Stay the Course
"We are what we repeatedly do. Therefore excellence is not an act, but a habit." — Will Durant
I’ve always been inconsistent. I have dozens of ideas. Some of them I turn into projects — the vast majority I discard. Out of all the projects I start, I hardly finish any of them. At the beginning I’m ecstatic, brimming with child-like enthusiasm. It’s like new-found toy. As novelty wanes, though, I get bored. This has been a dependable pattern in my life. But there are some exceptions.
Make it meaningful
When I was 19 I taught myself how to play piano. Erik Satie was to blame, a French composer from the late 19th century. His is the first piece I learned: Gymnopédie No. 1.
Satie was inspired by symbolist artists such as Pierre Puvis de Chavannes. His paintings depict eerie, bittersweet atmospheres. Somehow I was drawn to that, and I still am. I still play piano, it’s one thing that makes my life meaningful. Music is the universal language of emotion. And what’s more meaningful than evoking emotions beyond words?
Writing is another exception. I’ve been writing since I was a child. I used to write poetry, short stories, and some philosophical musings. But I’ve never done it systematically — only when I wanted. It turns out that I wanted to write quite often. But six months ago I started to do it every week, without exception.
That’s when I founded The Psychology of Wealth. At first it was an experiment. I started 3 or 4 blogs before that, but I didn’t stick to any of them. So I didn’t have high expectations for my newsletter either. But from the very beginning I felt at home in Substack.
As of today, more than 500 people receive my emails every Monday. But what’s even better is that I’ve been loyal to my goal. I’ve written something every week for six months straight. It might not seem like a lot if you’re a disciplined person. But for me it’s a relevant milestone. If I didn’t find it meaningful, I wouldn’t have taken it as seriously.
But sometimes meaning is not enough.
Embrace the practice
I had a hectic week and today I drove for 7h. To be honest, all I want is rest. Maybe reading, or doing something unproductive. But here I am, committed to the practice — as Seth Godin calls it. I want to make sure I publish my next issue on time. This means doing things you don’t feel like doing. Or learning to enjoy the process. Doing hard things consistently sets you up for success.
Angela Duckworth calls it grit.
Grit is passion and perseverance for long-term goals.
One way to think about grit is to consider what grit isn’t.
Grit isn’t talent. Grit isn’t luck. Grit isn’t how intensely, for the moment, you want something.
Instead, grit is about having what some researchers call an”ultimate concern” — a goal you care about so much that it organizes and gives meaning to almost everything you do. And grit is holding steadfast to that goal. Even when you fall down. Even when you screw up. Even when progress toward that goal is halting or slow.
Talent and luck matter to success. But talent and luck are no guarantee of grit. And in the very long run, I think grit may matter as least as much, if not more.
Having an ultimate concern is an eloquent way of putting it. If you want to achieve something, you need to organise your life around it. Yearning for it isn’t enough. You have to be strategic. Schedule time for it. Remove any friction. Avoid any temptation. Make your purpose the only thing that matters.
Turn it into your religion
If you’re a religious person, don’t worry. You don’t have to ditch your beliefs. If you’re not religious, don’t worry either. I won’t tell you to join my cult.
But you have to have faith in whatever you want to accomplish.
Faith means believing in your decision to start something. Believing in it no matter what. Only thus can you finish it. That’s hard, and it requires some degree of self-deception if you’re smart.
No idea stands the test of time in a critical mind. If you're a bright person — and you probably are — you’ll find it easy to poke holes on your ideas. Or those of others. Second-guessing is second-nature for smart people. At first, your project seems promising. As you gather more information, however, you realise it stinks. What do you do then? You quit. And when you find a new a idea, the same thing happens.
Does it mean all of your ideas are bad? Probably not. Some of them are bad, some of them are good. What this means is that you’re good at finding excuses to quit. Don’t.
I’d rather fool myself to accomplish something, than be right and stay still. Some amount of thought is required to guide execution. Too much of it leads to inaction.
Would you say you’re consistent and disciplined?
Photo of the week
Last week we celebrated the Persian New Year.
Happy Nowruz to all my Persian readers!
Yes, that’s a garden table. I need to go back to IKEA.
Brilliant piece. Immediately made me think of the idea that we regret the things we don’t do more than the things we do.
It’s better to try and fail, or fool ourselves to accomplish something as stated, than to not try at all. Thanks Alejandro!
Congratulations Alejandro for the success of your newsletter and for always staying the course! That is admirable. I am sure your excellent readers will keep you going!