Getting an A for Effort
If there’s one thing I am good at, it’s working hard.
When I was a little kid, I remember every time I complained or whined to my Dad that I was bored or I had nothing to do or no one to play with, he would say to me, quite seriously, “Why don’t you go in your room and do some work?”
Never “go play.” It was always “go do some work.”
And I always did. I’d go into my room and look for work to do. Sometimes I’d arrange all the stuffed animals in order of size, or fluffiness. Sometimes I’d alphabetize my board games or books. And more times than sometimes, I would create a book. I’d take a stack of paper, write a whole story a page at a time, then go back and draw and color illustrations for every page. I threw myself into each project completely, and solicited my parents’ praise when I was done. I was a bit of a showoff.
My dad is a hard worker. He worked for Long Island Water Company for 42 years, starting as a mechanic, becoming union president and eventually moving to management. By all accounts, he was well liked by everyone, from the union guys to the women in the administrative offices. And I think it was because—and not in spite of—the fact that he didn’t tolerate nonsense. He expected people to work as hard as him. He expected people to care as much as him about tasks getting done well. He was fair and reasonable, but wanted the people around him to be at their best.
Interestingly, he never pressured me to be the best when I was a teenager, but I think it was because he saw he didn’t have to; I had inherited the self-discipline. I had discipline when it came to my sport (baton twirling) and when it came to music (flute), and that work ethic stuck with me into adulthood, allowing me to write novels and be an entrepreneur and get a black belt and climb a mountain and travel alone.
Dreaming is wonderful, but dreaming isn’t enough. A dream needs a plan. And a plan needs work.
I like goals. I like achieving. And my attitude has shifted, because when I was younger, I was driven by the need to be the best at everything I did. As an adult, I’m smarter and more realistic. I know I can’t be the best at everything. I can’t even be sort of good at everything. There are plenty of skills I could stand to improve, and lots of talents I’ll never have.
In my experience, the key to going after your goals, to achieving, to manifesting the best you’re capable of, is to be the hardest worker you know. Put in massive effort. Take big aligned action. Do what needs to be done in addition to what you want to do.
And if you’ll excuse me now, I need to go to my room and do some work.
