“People who exist at the excellence end of the bell curve are focused on long-term gain. People successful in life, in business, and in relationships are living into a process that leads to excellence; these are the people who get up early to workout, who say no to crappy food, who carve out time for learning and mindfulness. They take the time to establish what’s important to them and what habits will get them where they want to go. They don’t get hung up on the short term. It can’t be overstated—that’s hard. It’s a constant dedication to habits and values that can be isolating. In the long term, though, the benefit will be unmatched.”
The most desired life outcomes await us on the far side of not just hard, but intentional work. That intentional work comes in the form of effective habits. Habits that define what we do, and more importantly what we don’t do each day.
It’s easy to pay lip service to our living within clearly defined and established habits. It is quite another, and altogether more effective, to walk the path of daily discipline they require.
That’s something we work on every day. We strive to allow principles, values, and habits to direct my daily actions. Sure, we fail in some way each and every day. When that happens, we take responsibility for it and saddle up again.
Life may have its ups and downs; its highs and lows; but they don’t dictate how we respond. That’s the one thing over which we refuse to relinquish control. That control is expressed in daily habits and responses.
Ben’s right. It is a lonely road at times. You feel strange saying, “No,” when everyone else is saying, “Yes.” It isn’t fun, but it leads to something far more satisfying than the temporary high of “fun.” Fast forward the tape ten years, and all the No’s and apparent deprivations yield a crop far greater than fleeting moments you skipped. They produce the joys of accomplishment and character.