Man, the year went by FAST. I hope you made great progress – I know I did.
Now that the year is almost up, let’s review the year and plan for 2020.
In 2019, LMM published 50 articles, created over 5,000 tweets, released Live Intentionally – a 90 Day program that’s changed many, many people’s lives.
Post the launch of Live Intentionally, LMM makes sustainable revenues – it’s always great to see something you start do well – far beyond the original expectations I had from this project.
Twitter followers went from 12,500 at the start of the year to 125,000. This is supermassive growth – the power of compound interest.
This year I also created new self-sustaining Twitter accounts such as Chanakya Bot – they give people access to new information on platforms they are already using and make me some extra income via affiliate marketing.
All of this was done on top of my other duties, projects, and business activities – it was possible only due to meticulous time management and an unwavering mindset.
The larger lesson to be drawn here is how one win helps you secure other wins – opportunities multiply as they are seized.
One large Twitter account drove traffic to the blog, gave me a stable readership – which motivated me to write more articles more consistently – which bought me even more readers from search engines and the like.
Furthermore, one large account helped my newer twitter accounts gain traction and grow far quicker than they would have otherwise.
Use one candle to light the others.
A lot of life is that way – you need one good win, and then you can build upon it.
The problem is, people do not try their hand at new things – they can’t get wins because they never take the shot.
God and good luck can only help you if you venture out and take your shots, for better or for worse.
If you are allergic to taking shots, the goddess of good health, wealth, and good fortune will have no reason to look for you.
Just as you have excuses, these beautiful women do too!
So, to close the year, let’s do a humorous semi-sarcastic compilation of the most common excuses people give to themselves and to others – along with the “in-between the lines” subtext of their words.
These excuses can be for anything – for something as simple as losing weight to something more complex like creating side businesses.
For enhanced readability, bold will be the excuse, normal text will be the subtext, and italics will be some extra commentary.
I’m too busy. I don’t have time.
It is not a priority for me.
I’m probably wasting time.
This sounds risky. What if I fail?
I don’t believe in myself enough to give it a shot. I’d instead take the safe path…
… and fail by default.
I don’t know what to do!
I don’t want to do the work to figure things out by myself.
I feel comfortable where I am. I only get off the couch if a guaranteed-to-succeed plan is directly handed to me, along with all the resources and support I need.
It sounds like too much work.
The effort-reward ratio does not look good to me.
Some things are worth the effort, and some things are not. But, chances are, it’s just laziness and apathy.
I will start on January 1st.
I do not care about it enough to start today. Let me pick an arbitrary date instead.
…just like how I started January 1st last year, and the year before that! Man, that was a wild two weeks before I got bored.
I need someone to do it with me.
I am mentally weak and I need moral support to start. I absolutely cannot start alone. I am weak and need someone to hold hands with me.
You will frequently hear this one from women. The men who use this one are not men.
That’s too much responsibility!
I am a child.
I suspect this is a result of bad parenting.
I don’t have enough (moral) support.
I lack confidence in myself and my vision. This self-doubt prevents me from moving forward.
People will support you when you win. You shouldn’t expect them to support you before that because they cannot see your vision – they are not you. Until you make your vision a reality, support yourself.
But what will other people think?
I’m afraid of societal judgment.
Fuck em.
Everyone else is doing it.
I am sheep. BAAAAAA
If you do what everyone else is doing, you will end up exactly like them!!! If that doesn’t terrify you, I don’t know what will.
I can’t find a mentor.
I lack the initiative to learn by myself.
Opportunities multiply as they are seized. You won’t find someone who wants to help you while you’re sitting on your ass. For most things, you don’t even need a mentor. Learn to use Google.
I’m an introvert, so I can’t be social.
This is my preferred label of choice.
This is totally not a feedback loop at all.
I’m too young/old.
Young: I’m postponing this to later/someday.
Old: I don’t want to do it, son.
Unless it’s physically or legally impossible, it can be done. Of course, post a certain age, some things are more viable than others.
I’m not confident enough to do this.
I’m not confident enough to do this.
This sounds like an excellent reason to do it in the first place (assuming the stakes are low). You will only grow.
I don’t have money.
I’m living in the brick-and-mortar age.
Bootstrap. Starting internet businesses is very cheap. Some (such as static niche sites) can be done in less than $50/year if you really wanted to. Social media is free.
If you can’t afford the gym, work out at home.
I don’t know the right people.
I want all the resources to be handed to me.
Well, you’re not gonna meet them sitting on your couch, are you?
I don’t know where to begin.
I don’t want to do the research. I don’t want it enough. Stop forcing this on me.
This person is disinterested in the idea. It’s all fantasy, no reality. All hat, no cattle. All talk, no walk.
Okay, this list can go on and on – I hope it made you chuckle. We’ve all said them before.
The holidays are upon us – as usual, it’s a good time to reflect upon your year and plan ahead for the next one. You should be reading a book; if you aren’t, pick one up from the recommendations page.
If the year wasn’t too productive for you, grab a copy of Live Intentionally: A 90 Day Self-Project and enter 2020 with some newfound momentum.
I wish you a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year! Ho ho ho!
– Harsh Strongman
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