"we enter this world as helpless beings, as a baby. And we have the universal desire to escape from that helpless state. Adler called this the pursuit of superiority."
Identity is everything. Never lose it. If you don't have one, create one, polish it and revert back to it again and again and again.
It's who you are, your path, what you stand for. Never comprise Identify for anything or anyone.
It never was about doing the hard thing for an outcome of an "easier life". It's about consciously choosing to do the hard/challenging thing, or going down the route with the most obstacles in order to grow and exceed your on limit. Over and over again.
Progress is never linear. You have to detach from the result. If results were so responsive to our input then everyone would have done it already with ease.
"Use it or lose it" is so real and it applies to every aspect in life. Physically, emotional regulation, mentally, spiritually.
A better way to rephrase. "Keep using it or you will lose it"