Getting Dirty – Doing the Work

Everyone wants success, but no one wants to put in the work!

I have a confession. When I work on really big projects, I work really hard when the project is new, I am learning and having fun. Then, when the project gets to about 80-90% of completion, it gets hard. Progress slows. It starts to feel like work and boring. The fun is gone and I lose interest.

That’s the magic moment when projects can fail. Yet failure is not an option for the readers of this blog.

I have found that the following actions keep me moving forward:

• Prioritize – Re-evaluate priorities and determine where this project fit. If this is your priority in your life, then stop focus on everything else that could be a distraction. In the book, “The One Thing”, there is an overall question to keep in mind: “what is the one thing you can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”
• Slow Down – Often we are trying to rush something that does not need to be rushed. If I am working on a big project and progress slows, sometimes I allow it. Life happens and things change. So, if you can find flexibility in your project, use it. As long as you are moving forward and hitting milestones, things are good. Learn from this situation and consider setbacks when planning timeframes in the future.
• Accountability – You can reach out and ask for accountability from others. I recently wrote an article about how you can leverage accountability to achieve goals.
• Consider your “why” – Ask yourself: why am I working on this project? If it is a good reason, keep that top-of-mind and focus on your “why”. It is a powerful motivator.

These are just a few thoughts about progress. I am currently working a project and that has started to slow and I have used all of these actions to keep progress moving forward. Feel free to share any additional ideas below in the comments.

One of many life’s failures are people who don’t realize how close to success they were before giving up  – Thomas Edison