Continuing Without Results

08/15/21 • 9 min

Just keep pushing forward until the results come.

Zig Ziglar tells a story of two guys out in the hot fields back in the day. They come across an old hand pump that use to work.

They pump for a while but nothing comes out. So they find a little water from a nasty creek to prime the pump. Then pump some more.

One guy says that’s enough, I’m done. But the other continues on. Because the deeper the well, the longer it takes to get to the top, and the better the water will be.

“Don’t give up, that water is coming says” the optimistic guy to the quitter. And they pump and they pump and they pump some more.

“I give up,” says the quitter and starts to walk away from his pumping duties.

“Don’t stop, that water is right below the surface. If you stop it will fall all the way back to the bottom and you will have to start again.” says the optimist. He convinces the quitter to stay and pump more.

They pump more and more. And finally, water comes out.

Once the water comes out, all they had to do was put a little pressure on the pump every once in a while to keep the water flowing.

The pump is like life. We have to pump and pump never knowing when the water will come out. It takes an amazing amount of work to get whatever you are doing to start flowing, but once you do, it only takes a little work to keep it going.

Do you ever want to be the quitter?

Last week I was that guy. I almost quit this 75 Hard Program go around at 30 days because I haven’t seen any progress. It’s painful to be on a diet and workout every day and not see anything happening. But I will continue for my 75 days and then reevaluate what I’m doing.

What about you? How many days or times will you work on something before reevaluating and moving on to something else?

You don’t have to be great to begin, but you do have to begin, to be great.

Get started, set a time of how long you will work on this one idea before you try something else. And when you set that time schedule, I’d like you to think about Dave Ramsey’s three rules of business:

It will take twice as long as you think,
Cost twice as much as you think,
And everyone thinks they are the exception to the rule.

Go after your goal. Work on it every day. Set yourself a reasonable time limit and then double it. Work for that long, and then try something new.

Ben Branam

The post Continuing Without Results appeared first on 75 Hard Experience.

Just keep pushing forward until the results come.

Zig Ziglar tells a story of two guys out in the hot fields back in the day. They come across an old hand pump that use to work.

They pump for a while but nothing comes out. So they find a little water from a nasty creek to prime the pump. Then pump some more.

One guy says that’s enough, I’m done. But the other continues on. Because the deeper the well, the longer it takes to get to the top, and the better the water will be.

“Don’t give up, that water is coming says” the optimistic guy to the quitter. And they pump and they pump and they pump some more.

“I give up,” says the quitter and starts to walk away from his pumping duties.

They pump more and more. And finally, water comes out.

Once the water comes out, all they had to do was put a little pressure on the pump every once in a while to keep the water flowing.

Do you ever want to be the quitter?

What about you? How many days or times will you work on something before reevaluating and moving on to something else?

You don’t have to be great to begin, but you do have to begin, to be great.

It will take twice as long as you think,
Cost twice as much as you think,
And everyone thinks they are the exception to the rule.

Go after your goal. Work on it every day. Set yourself a reasonable time limit and then double it. Work for that long, and then try something new.

Ben Branam

The post Continuing Without Results appeared first on 75 Hard Experience.

Previous Episode

Energizer Bunny is How to Reach Your Goals: 75 Hard Day 27

Just keep going like the energizer bunny is how to reach your goals.

Every day is a new battle. Every day is a new challenge. Every day is the same but different.

Yesterday I had to get up at 3 am and be at work by 4 to see an out-of-town customer by 7 am. No problem.

Most people would take that day off from anything else. Most people would just do the minimum of everything that day. Most people don’t reach their goals.

Here’s the secret of how to reach your goals. Work on them every day. No matter what. It doesn’t matter what else happens, if you keep working every day you will reach your goals.

Most people get off track when they stop for a day. A day becomes a week, a week becomes a month, and months become years.

I’ve always had physical fitness and doing physical things as goals in my life. At least for as long as I can remember. It wasn’t until my senior of high school I discovered weight lifting and my goals actually seemed reachable.

I was a fat kid, growing into a fat adult. I wanted to be a police officer but everyone laughed because of my physical fitness. After high school, I continued weights and working out. I got into good enough shape to join the Marine Corps and get through boot camp and School of Infantry. After that fitness was fun. I went through a police academy and the fitness part was easy.

Fast forward years and after I came back from combat in 2003, nothing mattered except enjoying life. I did the minimum physical requirements for years. Then, got in good enough shape to run a half marathon in 2007. By 2008 I was back in the war as a contractor in Iraq. By 2009, physical fitness was back in my life strong and fast. I was doing workouts that most soldiers that lived on the base wouldn’t even think of doing, and loving it.

I came back from Iraq the second time and started a family, and helped start a church. For years I was working a “real” job and working full time at the church and trying to raise a new kid and stay married. Fitness fell off.

I went to the gym once or twice a week if I was lucky. But for lots of weeks, I did zero physical fitness. Fast forward another 10 years and I look like a fat, out-of-shape, old dad.

Now I’m trying to change that. I don’t miss... even one day. I came home yesterday and did yard sprints. Then finished with a walk and mowing the yard for an hour. It was grueling, hot, and I was tired. But I did it. I worked out even after getting four hours of sleep and working 11 hours.

That is how you reach your goals. You work on it every day no matter what else happens.

Here I am at day 27 and still in the game for my 75 Hard Program. And I’m loving it. I got up this morning and headed out for a bike ride. Loved it. Faster and further than I have gone in over a year. I’m getting back into life. I had two good gym workouts last week, one yard workout, and two walks. I’m doing it every day.

What about you? Are you reaching your goals? Why don’t you set a process goal to reach your goal?

What is the one thing you could do every day that will help you reach one of your major goals? If it’s like me, work out every day, without fail. Some workouts are better than others, but I always get one.

If you want to write a book, set a goal to sit in front of your writing station for 15 minutes a day no matter what. Even if you fall asleep at your desk because it’s so late, do it.

Making that kind of commitment to yourself is how you reach your goals.

If you aren’t sure what goal to work on first, or you have the goal of being a better person, do the 75 Hard Program. It will make you a better person and help you reach all your goals. Get the beginner’s guide below.

Ben Branam

The post Energizer Bunny is How to Reach Your Goals: 75 Hard Day 27 appeared first on 75 Hard Experience.

Next Episode

Do You Continue When You are Sick? 75 Hard Day 42

Do you continue when you are sick? Give up for a day? Or give up period?

Yesterday I was laid up by the Covid Vaccine. I felt so sick I could barely do anything. I didn’t want to eat, didn’t want to move, felt horrible.

Before you go side-ways on me for talking about the Vaccine, it’s only relevant because I got mine the day before. Pain in my arm migrated to pain everywhere. It was the “I’m sick” body aches that come with a common cold. I just didn’t want to do anything. Even going downstairs to drink water was work.

But I did it. I continued my 75 Hard Journey even while being sick.

I know it sounds stupid to say, “look at me I did something while I was sick.” Because we all do what we have to do when we are sick. I know when you are sick you still have family and work obligations that you will continue to do. So I just added 75 Hard on top of those normal things.

Pushing through the hard times no matter what is how you continue and do hard things when you have to.

Last year I got the actual Covid-19 and it sucked a lot! I’d suggest you avoid it if at all possible.

But some of the main problems that will land you in the hospital are dehydration and weakness from lack of food. So when I had the Rona I made myself get up every hour and drink water and walk around. I also forced myself to eat something once a day. I had extreme muscle pain and my blood oxygen levels were on the brink of a hospital stay. But I wasn’t going.

On day two of walking around my room every hour, I had to go to the bathroom first and look myself in the mirror to get the motivation to do it. I had to yell at myself like I was a junior Marine failing at his task. But I did it.

On day three of walking around the pain was so bad I would cry in front of the mirror first and then tell myself I could do it. And then did it.

By day four, it started getting better.

The discipline, motivation, and pure grit I learned from 75 Hard let me stay at home and out of the hospital and recover from the Rona.

This program could change your life and maybe even save it. Sooner or later things will happen in life. You will get sick, a family member will get sick, and you will lose someone... We are all mortal and it happens. But if you have built-in a strength of will you will come out the other side. If you choose to try and learn your strength of will at the worst time in your life you may not make it.

Build your strength before you need it. Do a 75 Hard Program and be a better person. Sign up for my 75 Hard free starters guide here.

Ben Branam

The post Do You Continue When You are Sick? 75 Hard Day 42 appeared first on 75 Hard Experience.