Seth Godin is one of the most prolific content creators in the world. He’s written a blog post every day for 10+ years. Think of that, every day for 10+ years. How does one even accomplish such a feat?
Well, I’d argue that Seth understand the long game better than most. He looks at writing as not just a part of his practice but a part of who he is. His writing happens because, as he puts it, “it’s today.”
He writes because it’s today.
We all routinely do things every day because it’s today. I ate this morning. I will sleep later today. I will spend time with my family. I do a lot of things automatically just because it’s today.
The trick is turning an aspiration into a habit so your aspirational version of yourself becomes actually who you are.
James Clear’s book, Atomic Habits, is a great resource to start shifting your mindset. For example, “I am a runner” vs “I a want to be a runner”. The former defines who you are while the latter tells us who you want to be. Runners run. Wannabe runners don’t… yet.
We know this subconsciously. How we communicate to ourselves informs how we act: I can do this vs I can’t do this. I am vs I want to be.
How many times have you actually done something that you keep telling yourself I can’t do this vs I can do this? It’s usually when there’s self belief you get it done.
The long game is a commitment to yourself to become more of who you truly are. This commitment is not deterred by setbacks or what others say. If you told me I am a person who does not sleep, it would have literally no effect on me because it’s definitely note true. If for some reason, I do not sleep tonight I surely will very soon.
The aspirations for ourselves can and should change, but the commitment to becoming more of who we are must remain.