On NO - It Has Happened Again (Response to Mel Waller)

byParthaB

4.1K followers

3 years ago

As many of you know, I'm a man of few words.

So, I finished up writing my article for today, and thought I’d pop onto the WA platform, as I typically do.

I’d do some light reading, shake my head every so often, tut, laugh, moan, grimace, screw my face up, and perhaps something of interest would catch my eye.

And today it’s just so happened to be Mel’s post/question that appealed to me:

Are You Running Your Business Like a Marathon?

Basically, Mel has asked what this means to us individually.

So, I set about replying to Mel, and approximately 1,300 words later I realised that I couldn’t actually post my reply.

Quite clearly it would take up the whole page, and I’d end up annoying someone (as I always do).

Therefore, much as I have done before, I decided to turn my reply into a blog post.

I’M SORRY!!

Plus, this almost feels likes, "Partha Does Motivation".

Trust me, I really don't.

I Hate Catchphrases

Firstly, I will say that this is one of those WA “catchphrases” that does annoy me.

Apologies, I can’t help it, I’m grumpy and opinionated.

That’s me, take it or leave it.

However, it is a phrase I hear bandied around all the time on the platform.

And more often than not, I feel it is misinterpreted.

Now, firstly I should say that there are even people that I like very much, and have a great deal of affection for, who typically use the phrase:

“It’s a marathon , not a sprint”

Just know that I am more than capable of liking someone, and can still feel occasionally annoyed by them.

I’m an adult…

I don’t allow a difference in opinion to affect my feelings towards another.

HOWEVER

I feel the old “It’s a marathon, not a sprint” is almost taken too literally by some.

Now, I realise that we are members at WA for many different reasons.

So, for some it’s all about building a business, earning money, and disappearing into the background.

For others, they enjoy the more social aspect of the platform, and interacting with people at WA forms part of their daily routine.

There are even those who are just here for the hosting and will pop in for the occasional chat

Partha holds his hand in the air and admits that this is him

I will never judge anyone for their reasons for being here (well, that’s not strictly true, I may judge some - remember “grumpy and opinionated”).

It’s your money, you spend it and use your membership how you like.

With that being said, as I’ve mentioned, I do see those who take the “marathon/sprint” saying a little too literally.

As in, they will put off actually working on their business because they know that they can’t achieve overnight riches.

But, unfortunately this then becomes a habit.

One day missed from working on their business then becomes two.

This then turns into a week, a fortnight, or even a month.

However, this whole while they convince themselves “it’s a marathon, not a sprint”, so they wouldn’t have received a truckload of traffic, or earned their fortune during those missed few days or weeks anyway.

But, then the habit of procrastinating has slowly but surely formed.

We almost convince ourselves,

“Well, it’s going to take me at least 18-24 months to actually be earning anywhere near a full-time income, so missing a day or two here-or-there really isn’t going to make a difference. So, I’m not going to overly worry about not moving forward with my business recently, I still have plenty of time. After all, it’s a marathon, not a sprint.”

It’s All About “Habits” Not “Goals”

I’m someone who’s actually run a few marathons in my time.

Plus, I have an extremely competitive streak.

So, for me, it’s about getting faster, getting better, or beating someone, each and every time I step onto the track/road.

And the only way I can achieve this is by taking daily positive and consistent action.

I can tell you now there are moments during a marathon race when you do actually sprint a little, or you certainly go just that little bit faster.

Perhaps, that’s just my competitive streak showing, but I have definitely never run a race at the exact same pace all the way through.

The “marathon” part as I see it simply means that I can’t expect a “quick finish”.

This is going to take time.

However, the more I practice (daily habits), the better I’ll get, and the nearer I’ll be to achieving my “goal”.

This is my business, so I have to take action on a daily basis.

I cannot afford to take too many days off, or have too many lazy days either.

Imagine if you owned a restaurant.

You weren’t really “feeling it” one day, so you decided not to open your doors.

You then do this again later in the week, and then you decide not to open the restaurant for a whole week.

Would you ever do that?

NO

It’s your business, so you would make sure that you open those restaurant doors every single day.

You may make someone else do most of the work, but those doors would definitely open every day.

We can all talk about “getting burned out”, “working too hard”, “feeling demotivated”, etc.

But, in truth, these are ALL just states of mind.

Shall I tell you how I run my marathon?

I make sure I write for one hour every single day without fail.

Obviously, most days I push through this and write for a lot longer.

However, there are days when “I’m not feeling it”, “I feel demotivated”, “I feel a little burned out”.

So, I set a timer for an hour and just start writing, safe in the knowledge that once that hour’s over I can do whatever I like.

This usually involves me eating about 10,000 calories, lying on the couch watching Netflix, and picking on and bullying my kids (don’t worry, it’s character-building, and we all love each other immensely anyway).

There will be days that I have other things to do, family time, going out with friends, etc.

Do you know what I do?

I get out of bed an hour earlier and write.

By the way, just in case you weren’t aware, you are at your most productive just after you get out of bed.

Regardless of how tired you feel, the day and your negative thoughts haven’t had a chance to kick in.

So, DON'T log into your email or WA the second you get out of bed.

This is a sure way to distract the mind, and perhaps even to get those negative juices flowing.

Set a timer for at least 20 minutes and do something that will move your business forward.

And that’s the point, you don’t have to do masses of work every single day.

You can pick a minimum amount of time, 10, 15, 20 minutes, whatever suits YOU.

But make sure that you actively focus on your business during that time.

If you take consistent and daily action good things will happen.

This is why it is sometimes better to forget about the eventual goal, but focus on building an actual habit.

Did you know if you just wrote 274 words EVERY SINGLE DAY that’s approximately 100,000 words a year?

Can you write just 274 words a day?

Does that seem like an impossible number?

NO!!

We could all commit to writing a MINIMUM of 274 words a day.

“From Small Acorns Mighty Oaks Grow”.

So, for me, the marathon part is that there is no “easy way” or “quick win”.

This is going to take time.

But, this doesn’t mean I can’t sprint a little every now and then.

Plus, no matter what, I will take action every single day, without fail.

Create your own daily habits, no matter how small, and whatever they may be.

Don't make excuses - 274 words, 20 minutes, whatever you decide, take daily action.

You can check out “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, and also Google and learn more about the Japanese business philosophy of “Kaizen”.

Thank You For Reading

Partha