Just Put Your Shorts On

There are some strange things that happen when you try to change yourself.

 

And I'm not talking about the slow rate of progress or the big payoff--I'm talking about the disappointments, the injuries, then setbacks and the feelings of pain, uncertainty, and frustration.

 

Of course, you may have noticed that I haven't posted or written any content in about 4 or 5 weeks. It's not because I was taking an intentional rest or a deliberate retreat.

 

I fell off the horse.

 

I just stopped writing.

 

But that doesn't matter.

 

You know what I'm going to say next, right? It's not the incremental success that actually improves us. It's the ability to get back in the saddle with confidence that you are who you say you are.

 

It's the relentless mindset that makes us travel in the direction of our dreams.

 

We often over estimate what we can accomplish in a year, but massively underestimate what we can accomplish in ten years. In the end, it's the decadal time-scale that really matters--not the fact that we fell off the horse a few times.

Yet, this is often the reason we quit.

 

It's just so easy to forget about the long-game because days will always seem longer than years when we're in the middle of a workout, a breakup, or a career setback.

 

Having a relentless mindset means zooming out, looking at the big picture, and jumping back in the game anyway. Having a relentless mindset means accepting the embarrassment of falling down in front of others and getting back up anyway. Having a relentless mindset doesn't mean we're immune to pain, frustration or self-doublt, it means we're committed to the process of moving forward despite these adversities.

 

2 MINUTE ACTION:

 

What's something you quit or stopped doing recently? Writing? Learning a new language? Practicing an instrument?

 

What's something you can do in 2 minutes to get you back in the game?

 

How about writing a 5 sentence blog post? How about listening to a song or podcast in another language? How about picking up the guitar or sitting down at the piano and playing along with 1 song on the radio?

 

The funny thing about resilience is that the action itself isn't the hard part. It's not running or lifting weights at the gym that's hard--it's putting your shorts on.

 

I bet, once you put your shorts on and get back in the game, you'll surprise yourself how quickly you'll pick up where you left off.

The Easy Thing About Hard Things

It seems like whenever I ask someone about their new project they go off on this long list

We just finished the logo.We're talking to a lawyer about an LLC.We've got sights on new office space downtown  . . .None of which matters.It just doesn't.All the time we spend working on the easy things is the time we're not spending on the hard stuff.

What's the difference between the hard stuff and the easy stuff?

The Easy Stuff:Building the software app.Figuring out how to ship from your warehouse to the distributer.Finding a better way to collect website analytics data.But wait! Writing code is hard! Why are you saying all of this is easy?Sure, we can all agree that these aren't easy problems to fix, but it's not the thing that will define your success.There are a million software startups. Building the software isn't hard. The hard part is getting your app to hit the top 4 in the App Store.There are million suppliers and distributers. Optimizing transport isn't hard. The hard part is getting desirable shelf space at Walmart or Target.There are a million ways to collect web traffic data. Finding the right analytics tool isn't hard. What's hard is realizing that you need to get on the phone (scary, I know) and listen to this painful thing called "customer feedback."Being your best depends on knowing the difference between the hard stuff and the easy stuff.

The easy thing about hard things is knowing which is which.

Once I tell you how to do it, you're going to slap yourself at how easy it is.The way to decide if something is hard or easy is to sense how scary it is.Usually, if you're afraid of it, it's hard. This is the reason so many of us focus on our Instagram "❤️'s" instead of reaching out to Instagram influencers to place product or offer our services. It's easy to hide behind the wall of photos. It's hard to reach out and connect to a real, live human who could reject us.It's these moments that we challenge our character and our willpower. It's these moments that define who we are and who we're becoming everyday.And the cool thing about it is that you don't have to make a huge announcement or public display to make this happen.It's all about small (but relentless) attention to the hard things.2 MINUTE ACTION:What's something hard you've been avoiding lately?Is there an email that you've been avoiding?Should you really just call your Mom back?How about those blog comments that you want to delete? How can you respond with empathy?

Tell Me You Don't Already Know The Answer To This . . .

We almost always know the answer already. The trouble is that we're looking for someone to give us permission.We don't need a new fancy diet. We know what's good for us and what's garbage. Eat less, exercise more.We don't need a fancy new software app. We know what work we're avoiding. Do the scary stuff first, push everything else aside.We don't need a professional life-coach. We know what's right in our hearts. Care more, complain less, solve problems that help people.

But there are consequences.

The trouble is that caring more means we get hurt by careless people.Complaining less means doing the emotional work of reframing frustration as gratitude.Solving problems that help people means we have to deliberately look inside ourselves--which is can be terrifying.

So, it's going to hurt either way.

It's up to you whether you want to feel the hurt of being yourself or the hurt of never being you.It's up to you if you want to endure the temporary pain of vulnerability or the sustained suffering of self-denial.The thing we often know and often forget is that we're going to habituate to whichever pain we choose.To which pain would you rather be immune?

2 Minute ACTION:

• What work are you avoiding right now?
• What conversation are you putting off?
• What habit are you waiting to start?

Reply/Comment and let's get moving.