To make long-term improvement in anything, you need to be consistent and repeatedly show up. However, you also should’ve be too down on yourself if you don’t.
The key to life is learning and bettering yourself. So, if you want to make progress at anything, follow these two rules.
Rule #1: Show Up
It should be self-explanatory that the key to making progress in any of your endeavors is to show up and actually do that thing.
In a world full of convenience, comfort and five minute hacks, many people have forgotten about the importance of hard work. However, even the most talented athlete or the most gifted artist is nothing without pounding the stone.
The difference between those who dream and those who succeed is often simply a matter of showing up and doing the work day after day. Said Zdravko Cvijetic:
“The majority of goals people pursue don’t require innate talent, or working a 12-hour a day — in most cases they lack old-fashion consistency.”
Rule #2: Don’t Beat Yourself When You Don’t Show Up
Not showing up is counter-intuitive to making progress in your endeavors. However, even more so is beating yourself up for not showing up.
If you have a bad day and don’t show up or don’t show up to the level that you’d like, freaking out is simply a waste of energy. You can’t change the past but you can make your future better.
Rather than dwelling on your failure, learn from it. Implement better strategies and don’t make the same mistake again. As Paulo Coelho said:
“A mistake repeated more than once is a decision.”