First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do.

Deciding what kind of person you intend to be comes first, because that one decision settles hundreds of smaller ones you would otherwise argue out individually. Without it, every task is negotiated on the merits of the moment, which is how tiredness and mood end up making your choices. With it, the question is no longer whether you feel like doing the thing but whether it belongs to the person you have already decided to be.

Write one sentence naming what you are trying to become, in ordinary language and without flattery. Keep it somewhere you will see it on a bad morning, and let it settle one decision today.