Greatness isn’t determined by a single day, moment, or achievement. These are just things people on the outside see. And while accolades and accomplishments are important, they’re not the treasure.
These “accomplishments” are simply a sign that you’re doing something right. These are the road signs to keep following.
You might not realize it yet, but it’s the day-to-day grind that builds confidence and momentum. After years of problem solving, addressing your weaknesses and analyzing your failures, you figure out how to grind.
Everyday you try to get 1% better, and some days you just get 0.00001% better. But it doesn’t matter; progress is progress.
Working towards a goal is a skill. I think so many people struggle with self confidence because they have never fully committed to a goal. They haven’t invested the time and energy to develop a work ethic and resilience.
Many think confidence is knowing you’ll succeed, but that’s not it at all. Confidence is not fearing failure. And you gain confidence after decades of failing and realizing everything is still ok. Even when you fail, the sun still rises, and your people still love you. It’s up to you to learn and get better from it.
When it comes to gaining confidence, experience is extremely important as well. I appreciate taking time to educate yourself and get an understanding of the goal you’re chasing. But to become an astronaut, at some point, you have to put the helmet on and get shot into space.
I see too many people motivated by their fear of failure, rather than love of the journey. No athlete or business person that you look up to is scared to fail. Risk is what makes the reward taste good.
The truth is successful people, myself included, rarely celebrate reaching their goals. It’s not that I’m not proud; reaching my goals is just a sign that my plan worked. I’m not grinding my way to a destination. I’m just focusing on the process.
There is no shortcut to any great accomplishment. Don’t cheat the work. You’ll only lose out on important lessons along the way. Be present in the experience.