DO. THE. WORK.
Wake up this morning in a bad mood? So what.
DO. THE. WORK. Attitude is a choice. It has nothing to do with "waking up on the wrong side of the bed," but everything to do with your choosing to either give in to negativity or live life to the fullest.
Don't feel like working out today? So what.
DO. THE. WORK. Just like you, 99% of the people in the gym didn't feel like working out. Go anyway! Being the best you can possibly be in life is not about doing everything you "feel" like doing. It's about doing the right things that fuel the journey to achieving that purpose of being the best you can be.
Don't have time to eat healthy? So what.
DO. THE. WORK. Time and "busy-ness" is not an excuse to be unhealthy. Either fast until you can fuel your body properly or find ways to make sure you always have something healthy to snack on. Figure it out. It isn't hard. That is, if you really want to be the best you can be.
Feel like no one appreciates you? So what.
DO. THE. WORK. Do you really do what you do so that others will appreciate you? If so, you will be disappointed over and over again because you are putting your joy and purpose in the control of other people. You cannot control how others think and feel about you. But you are in complete control of how you feel about yourself. So, keep doing the work that you know is making you better day in and day out. You are not in a competition with anyone else. You are competing every day to be better than you were yesterday. Who cares whether or not anyone else appreciates that. You are surpassing those people anyway and you don't have time to slow down your pursuit of greatness just to see if someone else is appreciating what you are doing.
Don't feel like you have enough resources to reach your goals? So what.
DO. THE. WORK. Feeling sorry for yourself by focusing on what you don't have is one of the biggest excuses for failure in life. So you don't have the same resources as someone else? Big deal! Figure out a way to get it done. In the process, you will add an extra layer of success by discovering your resourcefulness. Additionally, you will probably appreciate and treasure your success much more in the end. Many of the best baseball players in the world grew up in third-world countries without a glove or shoes, and had to carve a bat out of a tree branch. Today those guys are playing in the MLB. It is certainly not because of their resources. It is because of the will, determination and resourcefulness of the person who says they want to be the best they can be. That is what truly makes the difference. I won't deny or pretend like resources don't create a privilege and extra advantage. However, you can have all the resources in the world, but without the grit described above those resources will do you no good. You still have to DO THE WORK.
Feel like complaining or blaming someone or something? Don't. Instead...
DO. THE. WORK. It requires absolutely no effort to be negative. We all tend to naturally lean in this direction. Consequently, there is perhaps no greater evidence of how weak you are than this factor. It requires work and effort to be positive. Being negative is always the easy way out. It takes zero effort to complain or blame, and you will notice it is those who give zero effort that seem to be really great at negativity, complaining and blaming. Take responsibility. That is what real winners and champions do. Put people on your back and carry them, not under your feet and trample them. It is easy to walk on top people with negativity, blaming, casting down, pointing fingers. It takes real strength and courage to lift them up and carry them.
Have you had a rough day or feel exhausted? So what.
DO. THE. WORK. Bad days are not unique. They come often. The difference-makers in the world, however, choose to not allow the external circumstances of bad days to define anything about who they are or what they are going to get done that day. It's simple, you are in charge of you. The "day" has nothing to do with how you feel and how accomplished you are going to be today. YOU get to decide that. Don't blame a rough day for your lack of effort. Do you feel exhausted? Okay. That's fine. Just don't turn it into an excuse to be weak. Exhaustion is not an excuse to be a jerk. It is not an excuse to quit. It is not an excuse to give up. Exhaustion is not an excuse for laziness and unproductive behaviors.
It is really very simple. Being the best you are capable of being comes down to WORK, and DOING THE WORK that is needed to be your best. The other option is default. The word "default" just means: this is the most common way all humans tend to be; this is what comes natural. Therefore, no effort or work is needed. It is who you will be if you do not choose to do the work.
What will you look like if you choose the default way of life? According to the handful of things we have discussed in this post, you will:
be susceptible to bad moods often, thus be no fun to be around
rarely exercise your body properly, thus not be in the best shape you are capable of being in
make poor food and drink choices; thus be unhealthy and feel sick more often
feel like everyone is against you, because your worth is based on being appreciated by others rather than your own work ethic
make excuses for why you can't be the best you can be
blame something or someone rather than take any responsibility for your failures
never get out of the rut of feeling exhausted and you will have more bad days than good
It is fascinating to me that all of the above does not HAVE to be a description of anyone's life, yet it is for more people than it is not. It doesn't have to be true for anyone because all of those things are CHOICES. You can literally choose to DO THE WORK required for better results and yet so many do not.
Even in writing this I am anticipating some of you objecting while reading, saying to yourself: "He just hasn't ever had to deal with what I deal with...", "I don't have a choice sometimes...", or, "Come out of the fairy tale world, Chris. The real world doesn't work like you are describing."
Okay. Keep telling yourself those things. This article isn't for you, apparently. It is written for those who actually still have a small spark of belief that they can change their circumstances and a hint of desire to be better than the life they feel like they have been given. They will read these words and they will determine to make some significant changes. They will stop complaining and making excuses, and within a short time they will discover they have attracted to themselves a whole different kind of friend and better relationships will be a result. They will see doors open to them that they never would have seen while under the darkness of negativity. They will physically feel so much better and be amazed at how physiologically interconnected strength and health is, how it creates a ripple effect into other areas of life. Before you know it, these people will be accomplishing things they never would have accomplished before.
Why? Because they simply chose to Do. THE. WORK.