- “I’ll just have one candy bar.”
- “I’m going out just this once.”
- “I’m going to skip the gym just today.”
- “I’m going to watch only one House of Cards episode.”
- “I’m going to play 20 minutes of Call of Duty.”
- “I’m going to read that book another time.”
- “I’m going to relax just for one day.”
- “I’m going to have just one more drink.”
- “I’m going to sleep in today.”
We often think that it doesn’t hurt to skip the little things in life. We know that it’s better to exercise, read, or work on our skills every day.
We also know that it’s better to eat healthy, don’t drink a lot of alcohol, and don’t waste our time complaining of feeling hurt. But all of that stuff is boring. And it doesn’t hurt to skip the little and boring stuff, right?
Well, little things add up to big things. Positive and negative. Skip enough little things and you will never see results. But when you keep doing the little things—it will pay off.
- Are you dreaming of owning your own business?
- Do you want to build schools in a less developed country?
- Are you working on a screenplay, novel, or a new song?
Don’t slack. Don’t cut the corners. Don’t be easy on yourself.
Life consists of small things. When you do the small things extremely well, and consistently, you will be rewarded by big things.
- Making money with your business.
- Educating hundreds of kids.
- Your big break.
You have two choices:
- Don’t do the little things every single day.
- Or do the little things strictly, every day. Even when you’re not in the mood, don’t have time, or whatever.
One results in failure. The other in success.
“But something always holds me back from doing the little things.”
Distractions. Food. Sex. Party. Entertainment.
It’s all easy work. Doing work is hard. You’re soft and you cave in.
Steven Pressfield calls it Resistance (read The War Of Art if you want to create something—anything).
“Resistance is a repelling force. It’s negative. It’s aim is to shove us away, distract us, prevent us from doing our work.” — Steven Pressfield
Resistance comes in many forms:
- Friends asking you to go out.
- YouTube, Netflix, Facebook.
- A bag of potato chips.
- Your excessive drive to research something before you start.
- Over-analyzing things.
- The voice inside your head that says you suck.
Resistance is anything that prevents you from seeing the future. It wants you to stop doing the little things.
Next time you meet with Resistance, say: Go away, I’m working.
