Day 114 On Fulfilling Your Own Standards (283 words)

It’s far better when doing good work is sufficient. In other words, the less attached we are to outcomes, the better. When fulfilling our own standards is what fills us with pride and self-respect. When the effort – not the results, good or bad – is enough.

--Ryan Holiday

When your motivation depends on the results of your labor, it poses a big challenge: if the results are slow to come, you’ll most likely give up well before you see your effort bear fruit.

When you set new goals, think not only of the results you want to achieve, but also your own standards that you want to fulfill. While you’re waiting for the results, draw inspiration from your efforts to do your best. Even if the results don’t materialize for this particular goal, in itself this appreciation of your own efforts will help you to build a disciplined work ethic that will benefit your entire life.

For example, for me as a writer, I know when my writing is up to my standards and I always strive to make every book better than the one before. Even if a book I consider to be my best work turns out to be a commercial flop—as has already happened a couple of times – it doesn’t discourage me from writing new books. I know that I fulfilled my own standards and did my best. If I were motivated only by the results for each new release, I would have given up a long time ago.

Do you know what your standards are and do you strive to fulfill them, even when there’s no hope for gratification in the foreseeable future?

This article is an excerpt from the book 365 DAYS WITH SELF-DISCIPKINE, written by Martin Meadows, and the copyright belongs to the author and the publisher.