You Haven't Done Enough Yet

Today I am going to dispel, once and for all, a major misconception many people have. Many of us, even most of us, walk around with the mistaken idea that we have "done enough" and "deserve" what we want.

I'm not at all sorry to be the one to tell you this: that is falsehood, and a harmful one at that. The fact of the matter is, if you're not where you want to be and don't have what you want to have, then you haven't "done enough" yet.

Earlier this week I talked about how detrimental this sentiment can be towards our ability to be competitive, but it can damage you in plenty of other ways.

Getting Complacent

Once you starting falling into the "I've done enough" trap, it very quickly becomes a slippery slope. "Enough" is an enticingly vague measurement of whether or not we are working hard. We can come up with all kinds of excuses to tell ourselves that it's ok to stop. "I didn't a lot of sleep last night, I've done enough for today." "I've been under a lot of stress lately, I can stop here." The list goes on.

Left unchecked, this can lead to slowly but surely slipping into a state of complacency, where you stop asking more of yourself and growing. You get comfortable with just doing "enough." Once this happens, you stop growing and improving. "Enough" becomes your new standard, as opposed to "more."

Don't let this happen to you. Push through the set. Finish that section of your project. Complete the work, and finish strong. Rest when you're through, not before.

Feeling Entitled

Once start telling ourselves that we've "done enough," it's a very short jump into thoughts of what we "deserve." This is fundamentally flawed attitude to have about nearly everything in your life. Everything you deserve, you already have. If you don't have it, you don't deserve it yet: you haven't put in the work to earn it.

There are very few exceptions to this. If you think the system is rigged and you're truly not getting what you "deserve," then work on fixing the system. If you're not willing to do that, then you don't want it badly enough.

Sitting around feeling entitled is a fast track toward going nowhere. No one cares about what you feel like you deserve. They care about what you work for and earn. And you haven't earned it until you have it. It's just that simple.

Rest Afterward

The time to rest is when you HAVE earned what you're after. When the race is won, when you have the job. When the project is complete. Then you rest long enough to catch your breath, before you get after the next goal.

Share your stories down below. Tell us about a time that you the "enough" mentality tempted you, and how you pushed through to the end.