Find Your Donut
There’s something so digestible and eloquent about a clear, concise and SHORT article.
Few do it better than the Great Set Godin.
In 100 words, Seth perfectly describes the analysis paralysis that we all have of wanting to make our efforts PERFECT the first time. In fact, he’s so good at what he does that he could have left it with just this:
Once we realize that there is almost no chance we’ll get it right the first time, we can embrace the opportunity to sign up for better instead of perfect. Get it wrong the first time. Then make it better.
While on the Seth Godin binge, I’ll drop this read in here
A little longer than the last, but still so brilliantly written. In less than 250 words Seth gives us the formula for under promising and overdelivering. The line
"the promise we make defines the quality that is expected”
speaks right into the fact that everything is relative. Sometimes our efforts are the formula for greatness, but we’re directing them in the wrong way. I could go on…but Seth wouldn’t.
Inspired by the simplicity of the articles above, I’ll leave you with a quick story under 300 words:
Early Sunday mornings I go for long runs. It’s still dark and cold outside and the runs aren’t much more exciting. My body isn’t awake yet, I can see my breath, running is monotonous, and SO many other excuses of why I don’t want to do it.
But I still go. Why? Because on Sundays, I run for donuts. It sounds contradictory, but hear me out:
I’m a health nut. My diet is dialed in to the T. I work out everyday. But for a LONG time, I hated running. HATED it. And because of that, it was a weakness of mine.
I LOVE donuts though.
So I’ve used my love for donuts to incentivize myself to run further.
If I get my long Sunday runs in, I get Sunday donuts. If I don’t run, I don’t get the donuts. It’s that simple.
Let’s step out of the specifics of this story for a sec.
Find your donut. Metaphorically speaking of course.
This doesn’t just apply to running and donuts. It applies to all things in life that fall in the margins of our experience.
Whatever it takes for you to be incentivized to “run”, use that motivation. The irony is that I now actually like running… regardless of getting the donut…
Because now, after doing it for so long, I’m good at it. Funny how that works.
Stay in the fight.
Kevin