How You Do Anything Is How You Do Everything

When we imagine moving up in our careers, it’s typical to think of the BIG moments. 

Quitting your full-time job to pursue your passion. Leading an initiative to reform company culture. Hiring the first member of your dream team.

These moments are stellar, and they WILL come if you work towards them. In the meantime, let’s talk about something less attractive: shortcuts.

We take them whether we mean to or not. Our brain takes shortcuts to lessen decision fatigue. Our bodies take shortcuts to be momentarily satisfied. We even take emotional shortcuts by rationalizing or compartmentalizing our feelings. 

This doesn’t make us “bad”, it simply makes us human.

We tell ourselves we’ll put in 110% when it counts. That when it comes time to be courageous, or resilient, or authentic…we’ll show up THEN. In the moments that matter. Not now, though, when no one is watching. 

Here’s the truth: the moment that matters is already happening.

How you handle any obstacle or experience–right now–influences how you will handle the rest. Each moment is rehearsal, an opportunity to strengthen your will.

How you take out the trash at the end of the day when you really, really don’t feel like it is how you’ll have the grit you need in turning your side-hustle into your full-time freedom.

How you pull yourself out of bed in the morning when you just want to stay under the covers is the same way you’ll power through the desire to abandon your passion.

How you handle the small, seemingly insignificant decisions of daily life is how you’ll handle the life-changing ones that catapult your career forward.

How you do anything is how you do everything. 

Now, we are not perfect. And we are not robots. Some things will slip through the cracks. But if if you let the little things slide moment after moment…what are you really rehearsing for?