Major Investment For One Increment

I’m sort of an automotive nut. I read a lot of magazines, I follow automotive blogs, and talk to people who are wired about cars. I particularly appreciate older models. Somewhere along the line someone said that if you’re going to restore a classic you’d better love that car. If you don’t really love it, you won’t finish it. Craigslist is full of disassembled projects that people lost interest in. It’s easy to get distracted at any stage of the major undertaking, and find something else that’s more appealing, less work, or to simply get disheartened just give up on the whole thing. That same concept applies to a whole lot of things in life.

Sometimes it’s amazing how much energy it takes to make one incremental difference. And just because you achieved one step, that doesn’t mean that the next increment is going to be easier. Perhaps eventually they will, but not necessarily. You have to be realistic about that investment. Don’t look too far in the future or you will become overwhelmed. You need to establish small goals and celebrate their achievement.

You can only do this if you’re doing something that’s connected with the core of who you are. (Of course, that means you need to know that about yourself which is an investment in and of itself.) And you need to surround yourself with people that will keep you honest, humble, and driven. Using those people to help establish and celebrate the increments is a really good idea.

The revolution that you’re trying to start, lead or shape is worth the investment. Line it all up, and make it happen. When you’re done, you’ll end up with something that will appeal to a whole lot more people than it does now. Even if it’s a weird-looking, quirky contraption, it’ll be better with no rips in the seats, a fresh coat of paint and it’s running smoothly.