This is a business lesson that I was a little late learning but has been crystalized for me lately. As humans we’re all looking for a magic pill, for a secret, for that one thing that’s going to make all of the difference. It’s programmed into us to look for this and all kinds of products and companies take advantage of this to make lots of money. But the fact of the matter is that when it comes to being successful and getting what you want, that’s it’s not a simple process. Things that are worthy of admiration not only take time to build but they are also complex
Look at the difference between a mud hut and the pyramids or the difference between a sharpened stick and a rocket ship. One is relatively simple to make and the other is extremely complex. One you could figure out in an afternoon and the other would take you millenia to figure out on your own if ever. Success is no different, it’s not an easy or simple process. I used to think that sure success was a hard road but a simple one but I was dead wrong about that. Success in anything not only requires working hard but also embracing the complexity.
There Is No “One Thing”
I know, I know everyone tells you that there is but the reality is there isn’t. Let’s use business as an example. Know if you’re a cog in a giant machine then yes it may be simple but if you’re running your own business and you want to be successful it’s going to be complicated. Everyone is out there telling you “Oh just start blogging and you’ll make millions”, or “No, YouTube video where it’s at”, or “No direct mail”, “No social media”, “No networking, and so on and so forth. The more you do the more you find that it none of those things, but rather it’s all of those things.
We all want things to be simply because it takes effort to sit down and figure something out that’s frustrating. I nearly broke my computer 10 times when trying to figure out wordpress, much less email marketing. But I sat there and did it. Went throught the same thing trying to figure out how to cobble a word document together so it’d look right on Amazon kindle. And looks like I’ll be going through this process again trying to figure out Facebook (something I’ve never used, yet have found to be critical for a couple of my target markets).
No Pain, No Gain
It sucks, it’s annoying, and there are times I miss just sitting there doing mindless work for the government or other places I’ve worked. Yet in order to get what I want (freedom, money, and a life I love) that I have to put in the work and get frustrated, mess things up, and eventually figure it out. With every new thing that is learned that I think will be the last there is always another just up ahead. I’ve come to understand that every mountain climbed is just one more in the journey and that there will be plenty more, probably bigger and harder than the ones before it.
But that’s life and that’s business. It’s easy to be average and it’s complicated to be a success. I’ve been talking about business but this applies to just about anything you want in life. Don’t let other fool you into thinking that getting above average results it either easy or simply. Because it’s not. You have to embrace the complexity, roll up your sleeves, and get waist deep in the mud figuring everything out. It ain’t pretty and it ain’t fun but it’s what separates the men from the boys and the successes from the average.
Embrace The Complexity, Embrace The Hardship
But it still beats being average. Getting the good things in life require toil and being frustrated a good portion of the time while you’re figuring things out. While I’ve never shied away from physcially working hard I’m learning that mentally working hard is just as important. So get frustrated, learn the things that are a pain in the ass to learn, do the things that others don’t want to do, and you’ll reap the rewards that others will never reap at the end. And remember to embrace the complexity.
If you have any questions you would like to see answered in a future post send them to me at charlessledge001 (at) gmail (dot) com. If you found value in this post then I would encourage you to share this site with someone who may need it as well as check out my books here. I appreciate it. You can follow me on Twitter here.
-Charles Sledges
