Advantages are created in the moments when you’re the only one to show up.
Some weeks back, I strolled out of the office at the end of my workday.
It has been a long, snowy, unusually cold winter here in the Midwest, and this day was one of the nastiest.
There were a few inches of snow on the ground, and the temperature was hovering at about -5 degrees Fahrenheit. The wind, gusting over 40 miles per hour, was pushing wind chills down to 25 below zero.
It was a great day to go home, make a hot dinner, and plant myself on the couch with a nice hot tea, zoning out on some Netflix.
But, I didn’t.
I had made a promise to myself. A promise I could have easily broken.
I was supposed to go to the gym after work.
I had been back on a strength training routine for a few months, long enough to start seeing some real progress after my cancer battle.
It would have been so easy to cave. To use one of any number of excuses.
The gym probably isn’t open anyway.
I’ll make it up tomorrow.
It’s just one day.
Most people are quick to make excuses such as these.
Far too often, I’m one of those people.
Soft and undisciplined, latching onto any reason to talk myself out of the hard things I know I should be doing.
But, on this day, I showed up. I put in the work.
Me and one other guy.
That’s it. There were literally just the two of us in the gym.
As I went through my workout, I observed him doing the same. I like to think we both had a bit more swagger, lifted a bit more weight, and were a bit more proud of ourselves for showing up because it was a very important day.
It was Separation Day.
Separation day is your opportunity. It’s the day when most of the world is sleeping. Or setting in front of the TV because they aren’t willing to freeze their ass off to go to work or the gym.
These days are rare, but when they happen, they are yours to seize. To put in the work others won’t, and to see the progress others don’t.
When the competition is sleeping late, taking the day off, or otherwise distracted, you have the opportunity to build your own separation day. Leverage your discipline to seize it fully, and you’ll gain an edge.
You’ll also begin to build some serious self-confidence by proving to yourself that you can keep your own word, even when it’s inconvenient.
Even when it’s freaking cold outside.
“Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.”
Jim Rohn
Opportunities Are Plentiful When Others Are Sleeping
OK, I promise – this isn’t some “you must get up at some random insane time to be productive” post. However, the opportunities to gain on your competition come when they are not awake.
I’m using the word awake here both literally and figuratively. It may be that your competition is sleeping in and you can find some traction by working earlier than them.
But, it could also be that you just need to find the days when they are mostly sleepwalking to gain on them.
Holidays.
Snow days.
Hungover days.
Whatever those times are, if you can identify them, you can leverage them to close the gap.
“If you will live like no one else now, later you can live like no one else.”
Dave Ramsey
While Dave Ramsey is famous for this quote primarily in the context of finances, I think the point of steady discipline now to build something that pays off later can be applied to so many areas of our life, such as fitness, entrepreneurship, and relationships.
When others are on cruise control, going through the motions of their day, it’s time to go all in on your goals.
Show up.
Do the work.
Let the ones that crave comfort over growth know you’re coming for them.
This is separation day!