Marathon runners call them the dark miles. Around mile twenty, when the end is close, but still far away and the mind starts to play games. Quit. Stop. It's not worth it. Those moments determine everything--whether you stop or whether you finish, or at least give yourself a chance at finishing.
The dark miles for runners are the difficult years for the writer, artist, or entrepreneur--anyone doing anything worthwhile.
Joseph Heller spent two to three hours every day for eight years, writing his book Catch-22.
It took John Wooden sixteen years to win his first national championship.
Stephen King wrote every day for nine years before he ever sold his first novel.
Micheal Phelps swam every day, including Christmas and his birthday, for five straight years.
The time from inception to success--when you make it--are the difficult years. What's hidden behind every great feat, what the world likes to call genius or mastery, is nothing more than the passage of time with work interspersed between, and often a lot of it.
Thomas Edison said it best,
Genius is 99% perspiration one percent inspiration.
The biggest predictor of great feats--starting a successful company, writing a best-seller, winning a championship--is nothing more than this idea of being patiently persistent. Working hard, for a long time. Not just for years, but decades.
Ask yourself a simple question, how long are you willing to work for what you want? A year? Two? Three? Four? Five? Ten? Are you even willing to wait a few months?
The depth of your greatness will be determined by the duration of your actions. Intensity matters. You need to work hard, but what's more important is how long you're willing to work. It takes years of obscurity and failure and confusion to come out on the other side where you want to be. It's not fun, it's not desirable. It's not glamorous. But if you're willing to get through the difficult years, you'll uncover a feeling that very few have ever felt before.
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