The only way to achieve the impossible is to consistently do the possible.” – Charles R. Swindoll
The Story of the Bricklayer
Every day, he goes out in the heat and lays bricks. One brick at a time, he continues as something valuable becomes visible. A young man sees the bricklayer daily and asks him how he can lay so many bricks in a day. The bricklayer says he can do it because he takes one brick at a time. He doesn’t think about how many bricks he has to lay; he just focuses on laying the next brick. The weather is sometimes adverse, but the bricklayer keeps going. He starts building from the bottom up, but his concern is not how difficult or long the task takes. His focus is on the next brick.
How I Stay Consistent
Since 2017, I have published a weekly blog, except for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s. There are days I stare at the blank screen and wonder whether I will have what it takes to write another post. This battle and the desire to deliver quality content each week can turn into a pressure cooker. Like the bricklayer, I focus on the next sentence, not the entirety of the blog. There are days it takes minutes to get started, but my motto is simply, “Just start.” These two words kept me in my chair, ready to write, when the urge to get up and walk away reached its zenith. In reflection, I am glad I kept starting. Because I started, I finished. Each week, I discovered content not previously available once I started. Like an archeologist who knows a valuable relic is buried underneath the rubble must start digging, I learned that you cannot extract what’s valuable until you get to digging.
Each time I start, the waves of fear, anxiety, and pressure give way to inspiration, motivation, and perseverance, the ingredients we all seek to possess before we start. This transformation from fear and anxiety to inspiration and motivation is empowering. Unfortunately, without starting, we won’t discover these valuable traits that usher us into consistency and propel us toward results. Starting converts the dark cloud into rain as momentum builds with every word, sentence, quote, and story until I reach the promised land of another completed blog post. What was once daunting becomes rewarding and satisfying, knowing that I am helping others raise their quality of life with enriching and edifying content. This is the power of consistency in any platform.
Commit to Consistency
Consistency develops your character. As people take note of your character, your platform’s quality grows. Our platform’s success and impact are evident through our consistency. It’s been more than five years since my first blog post. I didn’t know the ups and downs I would go through, and the urges to quit that would accompany my blogging journey. Through it all, I have learned that consistency has been key to sustaining what I start. Like the bricklayer, the next sentence was my focus. Each week, I pledge to write quality content to encourage and improve the quality of life of anyone who reads my blog. This pledge or commitment has kept me anchored to weekly blog delivery. Commitment is the path to growing your consistency. Without a commitment, it’s difficult to develop consistency.
Commitment is the path to growing your consistency.
Final Thought: Be the person who consistently shows up. Remember the story of the bricklayer. He kept showing up and laying bricks. He was an all-weather bricklayer. Seasons in life will change, but consistency calls us to brave the different seasons we go through and keep showing up. We all have a platform, and through consistency, they will thrive.
Keep on Keeping on!
Discover Your Treasure 