Doing the Little Things Well
Sometimes, the big picture should be ignored in favor of simple daily tasks.
For me, the simplest things are often the hardest to do. I know exactly what I want to do and where I want to go — at least I think I do, and yet at times, I can’t bring myself to do the small steps required to get there.
This paradox has always baffled me. Seemingly an obsession with self-sabotage masquerading as — insert excuse here.
I want to go for a walk but don’t. I want to get up early to study, I don’t. I want to clean the house first thing on a Sunday but don't. What’s going on here?
Is it laziness? Complacency? Allowing the week to get the better of me? It might be a combination, but at its core, I think it's fear. What would happen if I did all of those things exactly as I told myself I would?
First, I’d be able to trust myself — completely. *Chills*
In addition, I’d now have to accept responsibility for being the person who prioritizes their health and well-being overwork, who studies when others may be playing video games or scrolling Instagram, and who deep cleans their home each week first thing on a Sunday. That’s a lot of responsibility. The person who does those things can’t afford to slack off. That person is diligent in everything they do, focused on the greater good, and ruthless with their time management. That person may even have to miss out on fun events.
Could my FOMO handle that?
Being that person comes with small sacrifices, but those sacrifices would ultimately benefit other areas of life. Those sacrifices compound by creating confidence and a sense of dependability that you can have with yourself. In turn, you’d become more confident and dependable in your relationships with others. You’d realize the importance of every second of every day. No time would be wasted.
The type of person who takes the time to do those things well will have inevitable benefits in their professional and personal relationships. They’d have less free time, but hey, they’d likely use that time poorly anyways — scrolling Instagram, watching YouTube videos, going down a rabbit hole on some topic they’re hardly interested in enough to be investing that much time into.
Am I being too hard on myself? Is David Goggin's approach needed in a situation like this? Is berating yourself into submission the right way? Maybe so.
I think there’s plenty for me to learn here, about myself and the world around me. The question ultimately becomes — who do you want to be in the next five years? Would you like to be someone you could trust and depend on? Will you take the steps necessary each day to become what you SAY you’d like to become?
Fear of failure is a very real thing, but failure is necessary. Despite having the complete capacity to do the things we say we’ll do, we often fall short. We’re human, things happen — but I think we could agree that those situations should be the exceptions to the rule.
It’s very difficult to maintain complete discipline with yourself. Frankly, I think it requires a support team. A community of like-minded individuals who hold each other accountable and look after each other.
We can be the things we say we’d like to be if we only focus on the little steps along the way.
Please consider reading this article on the Law of Attraction by
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