Compound Interest

Growth, change, and progress always happens internally before it ever manifests in an external way. 

In fact, the distance between when real, true, systemic change takes place inside you, and when it becomes apparent to everyone else is gargantuan.

That’s how you get better though; winning one small internal battle at a time. 

Victories over donuts, laziness, and the snooze button may seem tiny and insignificant. And they are when taken individually. 

Things rarely happen in isolation though. 

Each win you secure over weakness in whatever form is a deposit in an account that’s accruing interest. 

Every time you say, “No,” to something you shouldn’t do, you make a deposit in the account. Those deposits are small at first, but blossom over time. 

Compound interest is a beautiful thing, and it doesn’t apply to bank accounts only. It applies to every area of your life. 

Invest in a handful of daily habits. Habits that seem small when taken in isolation, but yield massive results months, and years down the road. 

Defining Success

How you define success is critically important. 

Focus on things within your control, not circumstances over which you have none. 

Winning, for example, is something you have little control over. Other competitors and external factors could derail your chances. 

You’ll be crushed if things don’t pan out. Worse still, you won’t reach your full potential. You’ll be focused on beating the next guy’s potential instead of your own. 

Doing your absolute best, however, is fully within your control. You can do something about it. 

Define success in these terms. Define it by your level of effort instead of a scoreboard.

Of course, effort means nothing if you haven’t prepared. 

Make giving full effort to preparation part of your definition of success.

Redefine success to mean giving maximum effort every day to everything in your life—family, friends, work, training, helping others, etc.  

Do this and you’ll walk away a winner no matter what the scoreboard says.