After starting www.1000lifelessons.com I was amazed to find how many times I wanted to quit the project altogether.
I had every excuse in the book to quit.
- It was a stupid idea
- Nobody cares about life lessons (let alone 1000 of them)
- No one reads these days
- There is no money to be made
- It’s too hard
- I suck at writing
And on and on.
I could have started a website called 1000excuses.com and made millions.
To this very day I continue to make excuses on why this project will not work (and it is only 3% complete). It’s funny how creative we can get when it comes to self sabotaging our work and purpose in life before it is ever completed.
By not completing 1000lifelessons.com I would never be able to track it’s success. An incomplete project is an auto fail.
A great idea only has value when it is actioned and 100% completed.
Seth Godin mentions in his book “Poke The Box”, that you can only measure the success of a project or a business venture by completing it first.
Most of us quit things before we ever complete them. This is true for musicians, artists, businesses, students, inventors, and even athletes. Excuses get the best of us and we quit far too early in our ventures.
Get into the mindset of creating and completing things regardless of the outcome. The act of starting and finishing something, in itself, should define your success (regardless of the outcome).
Focus. Do not quit, get sidetracked, or start another venture until the one you are on is truly finished. This is the only way you can truly judge your success.
Practice starting and finishing something small. Like cleaning a room. Do it to the best of your ability and don’t stop till its done. Do it enough times and it will become a habit. It’s all about Integrity (sticking to your word).
Live your entire life this way. If you quit the small things, it’s only natural the large things will fall apart just as fast.
Don’t sell yourself short. See your idea through to the very end. Start something and finish it.