The Obstacle Standing Between You and Your Greatest Success Is You

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Imagine the success in life you're missing out on because of that pesky little obstacle that keeps coming up: YOU.

Anyone who has ever trained for something or worked out will know about the unexplainable thing that happens when it's time to work out. A voice inside your head screams at you to take the day off: "Give yourself a break. You can work out tomorrow."

My experience is that this voice doesn't show up every day, but this debate with your body is enough to derail your workout program completely. Convincing yourself to go get the reps is part of working out.

But if you weather the storm and make it to the others side of the dreadful and torturous gauntlet of working out, something incredible happens on the other side. You end up not only grateful for doing what you said you would do, but it usually leads to the best workouts.

Add to it that you can now finish your day knowing you slayed that beast standing in your way. It's a pretty powerful little boost to your confidence. Not to mention a few more calories burned and a little closer to that fitness goal.

And there's a sweet little life lesson: show up on the crappy days, and you'll eventually find success.

Your road to success is far less complicated than you are making it out to be because you: overcomplicate, overthink, and overpursue.

You entrench yourself into habits that don't serve you, prevent your progress, and steer you in the wrong direction.

And all of this is your own fault.

In our struggle to find the success we seek in life, if we look deeply enough and examine it closely, we will find one effort after another that we waste our time on. Usually, believing it's an action missing from reaching our desired outcome.

And while there's nothing easy about creating big wins in life or pursuing our highest results, the truth about our future success is much simpler: do the work, keep showing up, and be willing not to be perfect.

"When you elevate the man inside of you, wrote Leo Tolstoy, "then you will see that there is no difference between him and any other person on earth."

When we get caught in the middle of standing in our own way, we find ourselves knee-deep in Resistance.

I think about this a lot in my writing. I've shown up, written, and inconsistently published for three years. Why? Because something inside me kept saying it wasn't perfect enough.

In an era when we throw around the word 'viral,' something every writer, deep down, even if they won't admit it desires, I kept grading my writing on all the wrong metrics. Is this perfect enough? Will everyone who opens this love it? Will I get enough views to grow my email list?

And the truth is, none of that matters.

Sure, specific metrics play a role in one's success. But discovering the actual daily course necessary to climb your Everest is where it starts.

Show up. Do the work. Keep showing up.

And…get out of your way and head.

I think we often confuse success in life with some personal theory that we aren't skilled enough or brilliant enough or own the perfect set of possibilities.

All of those things have their role in success.

But is that what's really holding you back?

There's never the perfect time to start your business or head back to the gym or start living your best version. Strategizing, reading another book, and wishing you were more brilliant, naturally athletic, or younger are all forms of procrastination and Resistance.

What you think matters probably doesn't. What you think you are lacking, were sold short on, or are the actual obstacles standing in your way, probably isn't.

I'm sorry to break the bad news.

It's you.

I listened to an interview this week between two of my favorite writers talking about the writing process—two legends, almost 40 years apart in age, both creating incredible output. One didn't publish his first book until he was 50. The more youthful had a bestseller by 23.

Yet the writing advice for both boiled down to this: I will slowly produce a book if I show up—even on crappy days. Words I can edit, refine, improve, and eventually create into a great book.

Different paths. Same advice.

Life isn't much different.

If you apply this same approach to anything in your life, I'm willing to bet you will get where you want to go.

Showing up, no matter what, even on crappy days, will help you turn a dream into a reality, get your goal to the finish line, and turn action into great works.

And the same will apply to your diet, your career, your finances, and your relationships. As a parent, which I'm sure many of you can relate to, there are days you feel like you're drawing on empty. But being there, with presence, that's more valuable than we can imagine.

We won't always have the right words or know how to handle everything at the moment. But for a child to know that mom or dad is there and has their back…well, don't ever downplay that.

Want to break a bad habit? Show up. Want to start a good habit? Show up. Want to keep your sobriety? Show up. Do the necessary work.

Show up. Do the work. Show up again tomorrow.

No matter what.

And over time, witness the fruits of your daily labor improve that thing you are pursuing.

Sometimes we fall in love with our highest convictions—what we know deep down in our gut that we can produce. This conviction in ourselves is a great thing. Our inspiration, our taste for greatness, and the heroes we admire help us see this vision.

But don't measure yourself against that standard. At least not yet. Remember, it took them time to get to that place you admire.

They built it over time.

They built it by showing up.

And so can you.

You need to get out of your way.

Master the basics.

Because what is standing in the middle of your road right now is probably you.

And progress won't occur if you stay stuck behind this obstacle.

Do yourself a favor.

Stop overcomplicating it.

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Have a Happy Tuesday!