A day in the life of a retired Navy SEAL commander, who wakes up at 4:30 a.m., trains in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and doesn't eat for 72 hours at a time
- Jocko Willink is a retired Navy SEAL commander with a leadership consulting firm, bestselling books, and a hit podcast.
- His latest book is a "field manual" of routines for instilling discipline.
- Willink's daily schedule includes waking up before dawn to work out, studying military history for his show, and training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
Jocko Willink retired from the US Navy SEALs in 2010, but he hasn't eased his intense approach to life.
As the commander of SEAL Team 3 Task Unit Bruiser, the most highly decorated special operations unit in the Iraq War, Willink led his men with the mantra "discipline equals freedom." That is, by developing and sticking to routines and guidelines, you can free yourself to stick to the mission and not worry about protocol.
He realized when he retired that his leadership philosophy was applicable outside of the military, and today is a bestselling author, host of a hit podcast, head of a growing athletic brand, and is the cofounder of Echelon Front, a leadership consulting firm alongside one of his platoon leaders, Leif Babin.
Willink recently visited Business Insider to discuss his new book, "Discipline Equals Freedom: Field Manual," and gave us some insight into his daily routine.
It begins at 4:30 in the morning.