We could all use a little pep talk every now and then.
I’m sitting in a plane somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean. We just hit a patch of turbulence, Finding Dory is on in the background, and my dad and I are the only people in our section with our laptops open.
We’re working.
I don’t blame them for kicking back and doing their best to relax on a long flight like this. It’s a Sunday anyways. For me, I’m happy to be cranking out a little work.
But there are times when I wonder if all of this work is worth it.
People like you and I sacrifice certain things to achieve what we want. And for most of us, we’ll have moments when we just don’t know if we’re doing the right thing. That’s natural.
Here are some simple reminders that can give you an extra boost during those moments.
1. It won’t happen without hard work.
There’s always a chance that we’re not doing it right. We don’t always make the right moves. But here’s something that we can be absolutely sure is true: there’s no way to achieve what we want without hard work. Without hard work, we’ve got no shot.
Hard work is our best shot.
2. We’re playing a long game.
Great things take time. Our focus needs to be on consistently and continually putting the pieces in place for the future.
Be patient while working towards a legacy.
3. You can be patient and work fast.
We have to be patient while we play the long game. It just takes time.
Patience is misunderstood.
Some people use patience as an excuse for not working fast. That’s not the case at all. The two things aren’t mutually exclusive. We can be patient and work fast. We don’t have to choose one over the other.
We can choose both.
4. You can define your own success.
Stop beating yourself up by comparing your success to others’. There’s no upside in beating yourself up.
Define your own definition of success, then continue putting everything you’ve got into making it a reality.
5. If you feel like you don’t know what you’re doing, that’s ok.
One of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever gotten about entrepreneurship came from a veteran entrepreneur: “It’ll look like everyone else knows what they’re doing. They don’t. This whole thing is about figuring out what comes next.”
Focus on “next.”
6. Nobody has to understand you for you to be on the right track.
We don’t need others to validate what we’re doing for it to be right. While it might feel good when others “get it,” their understanding isn’t a prerequisite for success.
If you truly believe in your work, then work.
7. All winners are persistent.
On my very first day of high school, my principal walked up to the podium and said something that has stuck with me ever since.
“Be persistently persistent. If that seems repetitive, well, that’s the point.”
Keep knocking on doors. Keep going on sales calls. Keep educating yourself. Keep at it.
You’ve got this.
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Earth, Water, Sky: YESSSSSSSS!!!! 3 Men, 3 Adventures, 3 Stories. Now on The Good Men Project
Sky High and Freefalling | Rock Climbing and the Rush of Falling | The Water Is My Home | The Hardest Part of a Triathlon: The First Step |
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Photo: Flickr/Phil Roeder