What if hard things were easy?

2 practices that help us when faced with hard things

Once we’ve decided the hard thing in front of us (whatever it might be) is worth doing, how do we actually get through it?

Unfortunately, there’s no magic formula for difficult work (anyone who says otherwise is lying). As Ben Horowitz summarizes in his book The Hard Thing About Hard Things, “…even with all the advice and hindsight in the world, hard things will continue to be hard things.”

But two practices can help us when we feel stuck or overwhelmed by the hard parts of life, work, relationships or depression.

1. Work on the hard part first. Instead of hiding from what’s most challenging, we acknowledge and prioritize it. This requires intentionality and courage.
2. Act as if it were easy. This shifts our mindset from impossibility — “I can’t do this” — to possibility and action — “What’s the next step I can take right now?”

Incidentally, ‘acting as if’ makes it easier to work on the hard part first. These two practices become a powerful cycle propelling us through challenging things that are worth doing.