How I become an astronaut (shooting for the moon, but reaching the stars instead)
Friday is the day when I check my hive portfolio, getting ready for the #saturdaysavers post. Once again, I need to reconsider priorities, as I always try to do much more than what is comfortable, in a move that I find beneficial. There is no glory in choosing easy-to-achieve targets, and what I found is that, if I choose some outrageous goals, this will motivate me to make some extra effort and eventually achieve them. Or getting close to it. Let's take some random examples. I had a bit over 5K of Leo, and the common sense idea was to think that I will do the same next year, maybe a bit more. So what I can get is around 5K Leo per year. Not so obvious choice was to go from 5K to 25K and to my surprise, the end of the year found me with something like 25400 Leo. Four times more than what was achievable. So I decided that this year I will focus on Hive, and double or more the total number of Hive that I got in the past 2 years. Took me two years to reach 5K, good, then this year we will go all the way to 12K. How I do not know yet, but where there is a will, there is a way, as Hannibal said landing in Italy.
Going back to the start, comfortable goals are better than no goals, but goals that challenge us, goals that seem impossible, are the ones worth engaging with it. It was some CEO, I think Peter Thiel, or maybe I am wrong, that said something similar. Make a 10-year plan. Make it good. And then find out what do you need to do to achieve that in one year. This is the way. Comfort is the enemy of progress. At least this is what I heard. Being comfortable is nice, but staying there too much, at that point, makes us weak. We need to go out of our comfort zone, regularly, if we want to evolve into a better version of ourselves.
You need to keep your promises, even the ones made to yourself. Oh, boy, this will open another entire can of worms. Keeping your promises. There are people who give you their word, and it is like a law, you know it will happen, and people who say yes, but you were disappointed once before, and you are not really believing them, you know that they just say that, but their words have no value, no weight. How it is that? It is quite simple, and the issue is down to keeping your promises or now. Sometimes we find it hard to say no, and we just agree to help somebody asking, just because we cannot say it right there in their face. But your schedule is already hectic, and you are quite busy, and you kind of know that you will not do it. Is that better than plainly saying: No, I cannot do it, I am sorry? While they may be upset for a short period of time, by saying No, you show integrity, especially if you come up with a good reason. By saying that you help, in order to save face, and you do not, this is much worst. As you may not only lose respect, but you can not be trusted also, so anytime you may give your word next time, this will have no value. This is much much damaging to your relationship with that person.
Moral of the story: never say that you will do something if you feel like not doing it, this is much better than saying that you will do it, and never living up to your word. Hundred years ago, your word was your bond. Today, well, not so much.
So, my friend, be bold, aim outside your reach, and keep your promises. This is how we make this year the best of our life.
See you tomorrow,
George