The Quest for Consistency
“Today is the best preparation for what tomorrow may bring.”
A star athlete doesn’t make an impressive play once. A successful business partner doesn’t make a lucky investment once. Lifelong friends didn’t keep each other’s secrets once. What do these three examples have in common? Consistency. It is crucial in performances and relationships, and it is the glue that keeps the engine running. Inconsistency will win some of the time, but consistency will win most of the time.
Consistency is the key to success. Anyone can have a good day, or even a good year, but true success is the ability to perform well day in and day out, year after year, in all conditions and situations.
Consistency is not easy. The greatest things in life never are, but it is rewarding. It requires concentration, determination, and repetition.
To be your best all of the time, you must:
- Take nothing for granted. If you aren’t constantly keeping track of your improvements, advice from others, and lessons learned, someone or something will easily allow you to forget progress.
- Take great pride in what you do. The things you do well are the things you enjoy doing. Always remember what brings you joy and you will never forget the path of excellence you are called upon. Do not allow setbacks to rob you of that joy, but press forward and find new strength and wisdom from your experiences.
- Take setbacks in stride. Every challenge brings you one step closer to a new experience and a newfound wisdom, and they allow you to see more of who you are and find an inner strength you never knew you had. If you allow setbacks to knock you down, you will stay down and no longer be consistent in your actions.
- Take calculated chances. To win something, you must risk something. Do not confuse risk with failure and inconsistency. Mankind fears failure, and oftentimes risk is associated with failure. The only way your risk could take you along a path of discouragement and inconsistency is if you choose not to see the lessons learned. If you fall down seven times, stand up eight.
- Take work home. To get ahead, you must plan ahead. Don’t just focus on a task during specified hours. Try to see the opportunity in a couple of extra hours during down time. Instead of watching your favorite Netflix show, work on improving and make productivity a habit for consistent preparation.
- Take the extra lap. Condition yourself for the hard times. The tough and tested can always take it. Consistent preparation is essential to handle difficult circumstances when they hit.
- Don’t take “no” for an answer. You can do what you believe you can do. When you are consistently confident, your attitude and grit will prove to others and to yourself that you can rise above any occasion.
- Celebrate after victory. It is important to reflect and celebrate on your successes, but also not to forget where you came from. If you let your successes go to your head, it can be tough to pull back. Celebrate and move forward, not forgetting where you came from.
As you journey along a quest for consistency, remember those eight truths. The best relationships succeed because the love did not fail in the hard times, and the greatest athletes do not quit when spectators jeer from the sidelines. When you are consistent, others will trust you. They know you will follow through, no matter what happens.
As the quote above says, “Today is the best preparation for what tomorrow may bring.” When you are consistent in the mundane, you increase your opportunities for success in life’s greatest moments.
