Many endeavors in life entail a long journey through a myriad of obstacles, highs and lows, and periods of self-doubt. No matter what you have committed to there will be times when you will have doubt about your potential and your why. Is this really for me? Am I really capable of accomplishing the goal that I established for myself?
Many people don’t realize what so many great athletes have overcome to get to where they are. Many people don’t realize just how relentless great athletes are. The journey is not all glory, in fact most of it is slow grinding drudgery. But as writer Logan Pearsall Smith once said, “The test of a vocation is the love of the drudgery it involves.” The long periods where it seems that no progress is being made is in fact where all the progress is made. The progress builds and builds and puts pressure like water on a dam until it finally breaks and then leaps of progress can be experienced. Continuing on the journey long enough to build up the pressure is essential if you are going to really experience the joy.
If you have doubts about your abilities, find out where they are and create a plan to improve. If you have doubts about your why find a quiet place, write it down, and see if that brings clarity. If you have doubts about whether you are making progress then measure relevant skills and fundamentals periodically so you can see the truth objectively.
“Anyone can start something, very few people can finish.” – Tim Grover
Practice Smart!
Dennis Hillman
