If you’re seeking some inspiration or resources to help you never give up on your goals or dreams, then this page is for you. With that said, have you ever known someone who made up their mind to finally get going on a big project, goal, or dream, but shortly after starting, they quit?
You know the scenario, the one where that friend of yours gets started on a pursuit with massive zeal. But then you learn that just a few months into their endeavor, they lose all their steam, and give up their dream.
The scenario where everything seemed to be going well for them, like their success was just around the corner, but then, they hit snag, an obstacle, and soon after gave up.
For instance…
The Side-Hustler
We’ve all had a friend or family member who finally decided to do something ambitious, like start a side-hustle. They’ve been talking about these books they’ve been reading, like ‘The 4 Hour Work Week’, or the “Side-Hustle’, and how in just a few short weeks they’d be up and running with a successful business, positioned to quit their day-job, and primed to ride off into the sunset of success.
But those few weeks quickly pass, and their endeavors fail to materialize into the soaring success they envisioned. But your friend is determined, so they stick it out for four, five, and maybe even six more months. But then something happens, they almost randomly come to the conclusion that the struggle is too much, and begin to say things to themselves like, “Ehhhh, I am not seeing any progress anyway, what’s the point of staying with this thing?” or, “You know, it’s not what I expected, plus it requires too much effort for too little results.”
Then they begin to tell you all about how maybe their side-hustle thing isn’t really what they wanted to do. So they give up, they quit, and their dream dies.
The Fitness Fizzle
Or perhaps you had a friend who finally said to themselves, “That it’s, I am going to turn this flabby body of mine into something lean! And by the end of next year, I am going to be a lean mean physically fit machine!”
Then they get to chasing their fitness goal, and they stay the course for four, maybe five months. But then, out of the blue, they tell you about how their discipline started to drift, how they are losing focus, their fire, and slowly, their desire to obtain that dream body they’ve always wanted.
The Writer
Don’t even get me started on the aspiring author. Everyone wants to write a book someday, myself included, as they should. It’s noble goal to pursue. The crazy thing is, most people actually get started on writing their book. They open up Microsoft Word, and start typing away for a few days.
Surely, most even get around to creating a few good chapters, but then, after a few weeks of being in the weeds of authorship, the ideas start to slow, and the pangs of creativity start to kick in. Each page starts to feel like pulling teeth just to put together. And then just like that, the dream of becoming a writer takes a vacation, with a one-way ticket back to “someday isle.”
The Common Tragedy
I know… it’s tragic. But this is not an uncommon scenario. It happens all the time. It is truly a modern-day tragedy that is all too common. And it doesn’t just happen for authors, artists, and entrepreneurs. It happens to people seeking higher fitness levels, it happens to people seeking the corner office, or even that simple promotion. It happens to EVERYONE!
The problem all too many of us have when reaching for our aims, is we give up too soon. We lack determination, staying power, and the self-discipline to see our dreams through.
If you’ve known someone who this has happened to before, or if it’s happened to you, there is a solution, and I want to share it with you.
But before I give you the solution, let me tell you a little story.
The story I am about to tell you, is part of the solution.
If you understand the story, you’ll understand the solution.
You ready? Here we go….
An Short Strive Story
A few years ago I had pretty good job as an Operations Manager for a large corporate firm. As part of the management team, we were studying a classic leadership book by Stephen Covey. The book was titled ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’, and it included an exercise that would change my life forever.
The exercise we were studying, was meant to help us create a clearer vision for our lives. The exercise had us imagine ourselves being able to witness our own funeral. It prodded us to examine how we wanted to be remembered by our friends and family at our funeral. And it was during this exercise, that I had this looming feeling. It was the feeling that I wasn’t on the right path. My gut told me that if continued down the path I was on, I wouldn’t be happy with who I’d eventually become.
I remember thinking to myself: “I don’t want to be remembered as a coward. I don’t want be remembered as a person who lacked the courage to at least try to go for what he really wanted in this life!”
It was a visceral feeling that convinced me; if I didn’t give my dream at least one last shot, I would probably regret it for the rest of my life.
So, it was in that moment that I became certain that the path I was on didn’t align with the vision I wanted for my life. And it was in that moment I realized I had to do something about it. So, that very next week I resigned.
I resigned from my corporate job, hedging both my career and the safe cozy income that would secure a comfortable retirement for both my wife and I. It was a scary decision to make. But, I felt if there was ever a time in my life to give my dream a shot, it would be at that moment.
So, I did what many people might consider crazy, and decided to chase my dream of becoming the author, the motivator, the life-changer that I felt in my heart, I could become.
As such, I set off on my grand journey to create a meaningful business. During the first few months on this new journey of mine, I did not make a dime. But, I kept to it, I kept striving to make this dream work.
After about 6 months, I was still not making much money. The traffic to my site started to grow significantly, but I had yet to truly monetize it (make money from it), as the one book I published was not selling very well.
Nothing seemed to be working, which led to a huge dip in my enthusiasm. I started to feel frustrated and discouraged. But, I did not want to give up on my dreams. I had worked too freaking hard for them already. Plus, I didn’t want to let down all the people I was striving to inspire, encourage, and motivate, so I persisted.
The 9th month mark arrived all too soon, and somehow, I was still not profitable in my endeavors. I started to have thoughts like, “What the heck is going on here!? This can’t be happening, I am doing this full-time for goodness-sake!”
I felt like I was drowning. Like there was nothing I could do to keep me from sinking. However, I was not ready for this story to end, so I decided once again to press on.
Nearly 12 months had passed, and I was still nowhere near reaching the goals I initially set for myself. But, in the middle of the next year almost a year-to-the date from when I resigned to pursue my dream, things started to change a bit.
The Dip
The money from my business started to grow. It wasn’t a flood of money, but it was something. And with this little bit of success, I was happy, at least for a little while. But then something unexpected happened. After rubbing elbows with another business owner who was also struggling in his business, I literally lost all of my motivation. It felt like a balloon with massive leak! Deflated.
Despite the recent growth, I was all of a sudden feeling like I had hit my lowest point in my pursuit in terms of motivation.
Yes, I had a bit more money coming in, yes, my traffic, my audience, and my business were growing. However, the business was not where I hoped it would be, especially considering the ridiculous amounts of effort I had already put in to it. In truth, the business was not where I expected it to be.
At my lowest point in my 12-month journey, the point where most people quit, I too wanted to quit. I had this nagging feeling that everything I was doing was for naught. I started to wonder if I was wasting my time, and that maybe the writing was on the wall. I wondered if the time had come for me to throw in the towel on this dream of mine.
It was as if every bone in my body was sapped of the energy I desperately needed to keep going.
The Divine 2nd Wind
But then, in that lowest point of the many lows already experienced during this 12-month adventure, I took a deep breath, and said to myself, “I am going to keep going. It may not be in the exact same direction as I initially planned, and it may not be at the same rate of production, but I am going to keep going. I am going to make this work.”
Now bear in mind, I didn’t feel like I had the physical or emotional energy to keep going at this point. I was done. Both mentally and physically. But astonishingly, my spirit was not.
Every fiber in my body wanted to say, “I am finished!” But my spirit said, “No you’re not!”
And just like that, not even a few minutes later, like a stroke of magic, a new set of brilliant ideas for my business came to me. It was an idea for both a new strategy, and a change up in my brand.
It was a magical second wind that I desperately needed. A second wind that gave new life to my goals and dreams. Suddenly, I was back in the game and on fire to keep striving. But this time around it was with much more vigor. It even felt like their was more purpose behind me than when I first got started but a year ago.
365 days after getting started on my journey, I found the clarity around my business that was missing. I gained a clearer vision for where I wanted to take it, and a better way to add value to the world. My dream found it’s footing, but it took time, some failures, and pushing past that critical breaking point.
This story is the unfolding of my STRIVE.
Those first 365 days of my venture were not a waste. They were the stepping stones of struggle and effort that needed to be set.
There is a quote that sums up the experience I had, and the journey that many of us must experience before we reach our aims, and it is this:
(Disclaimer: I am in no way suggesting that one must quit their day job to pursue their dream. This story I just shared is merely an account of the path I chose, what I learned from it, and how you can gain from it. There are multiple paths to a destination, and not everyone’s path will look the same.)
Related: Inspiring Stories of Persistence
The Solution
Thus, the solution I am offering you was born from that initial experience of powering through the dip. It is a solution that can help you create a new starting point for future power and triumph. It will help you in your pursuits, be they big or small.
This solution is your stepping stone for reaching for those worthy goals that bring you most to life.
Now, I know what you’re thinking, “Great story, but what is the solution?”
Well my friend, the solution is both the evolution of this site, The STRIVE, as well as the complementary journal I created to help you weather the storms that come with dream chasing.
The solution, is The STRIVE and this Journal!
If you are an aspiring artist, author, or entrepreneur, I know you know what it’s like to reach for those dreams of yours. I know what it is like being on the verge of quitting. You may have even quit once or twice already, I don’t know. But, what I do know is this, that if you give your aspirations the time and effort to become a living thing… your success is guaranteed.
Every time you say no to giving up on your goals, you are saying yes to your dreams. As a result, you inch yourself closer and closer with each courageous push.
So if you’re wondering, “Well how is the journal going to help me or my friend who may be struggling to keep their dream alive?”
Here is how my friend…..
How This Motivational Journal Will Help You Learn…
First and foremost, you must know this motivation journal is meant to help you persist until you get to your second wind. But not just to your second wind, but also to your third, your fourth, and every other wind there after until your reach your goal. The journal is meant to help you keep going. It is meant to keep you striving long enough to realize the success you seek.
If you’re wondering, “But how does it do this?” Here’s how:
Builds Momentum with 365 Days of Encouragement
Goals take time to accomplish, and these days many people expect everything to come quick and easy. In fact, most people don’t truly understand how long a worthy goal can actually take to create some momentum around.
As such, we’ve designed this journal to strengthen your grit, and give you the encouragement you need to move the needle forward. And to do so for a long enough period of time for you to actually experience the results you’re after.
We are in it for the long haul, and this journal strives to ensure you are too.
Zero-in On What You Really Want
This journal helps you zero-in on what you really want from life, and then it forces you to remind yourself every single day (see high performance habits below). Why every single day? Because, when you consistently remind yourself why you are getting out of bed every morning, you’ll be less likely to deviate from your desired end. Plus, when you finally convince (program) yourself what it is you are really working towards, you’ll become unstoppable!
After you set up that one big goal that drives everything you do, the journal will also guide you in setting quarterly goals. Each quarterly goal is a stepping stone that will eventually lead you to your main aim, your STRIVE!
365 Personal Messages to Strengthen Your Drive to Strive
The Strive Journal also includes 365 recorded messages to help you stay motivated. Each message is unique to each day of your Strive. Each message will encourage you to keep moving forward!
Just like ole Rocky Balboa said…
The Strive Drive is the drill sergeant you’ve always secretly wanted! It’s the drill sergeant that will get you to take action, without getting spit in your face!
Action Based Motivation Journal
Look, your dreams don’t have a chance in hell at becoming a reality if you don’t work for them. That’s why this journal includes a built-in accountability model to help you keep track of your daily efforts. If you want to reach your biggest goals, it is going to take hours of consistent effort, 24/7/365. Your dream deserves at least a few hours every day, if it is going to someday grace you with its attainment.
And that is why this journal is so great! It will ask you to do something every day to keep you moving closer to your goals, and it will score you for the effort you put in. If you really want to reach your goals, a consistent push to do something every single day is necessary.
To Do Lists
This Strive Journal also acts as daily planner. It has a daily To Do List included on each page of the journal.
The To Do List is modeled off one of the most effective strategies for daily goal completion, the 1-3-5 Rule. The premise of this rule is to focus on prioritizing your daily tasks, by getting you to complete at least 1 BIG goal, 3 Medium sized tasks, and 5 little things each day.
By applying this rule to your To-Do strategy, you will be able to supercharge your ability to do the daily tasks that need to get done for you to reach your aims.
High Performance Habits
I’ve been studying successful people for over a decade now, and the one thing all of them had in common, were great habits. To help you kickstart some habits that will usher you into becoming a high performing goal attainment machine, this journal has laid out a few habits that you should practice daily. By doing so, you will level up your abilities to reach your goals.
The journal has a checklist of daily activities that it highly suggests you do, and provides you with the best time of day to do them. Because if you do these activities, you will begin doing the same practices that a great many success gurus, leaders, and high achievers do.
If you’re wondering, “But I don’t want to be a success guru, or the next Richard Branson, why should I do these high-performance habits?”
Here is why. The one reason why you should want to do as they do, is because they are masterful goal achievers. They have a proven track record of achieving their goals.
And if there is one thing this journal is trying to do, it is ultimately to help you reach your goals, your dreams. The journal will help you achieve the goal that keeps you up at night.
The Purpose of This Motivation Journal
I am going to say it again. The purpose of this journal is to keep you going. I will help you never give up on your goals. Your dreams, goals, and ambitious endeavors deserve time to incubate. And in order for them to do so, you need to be able to overcome the biggest obstacle to success… giving up too soon!
Now most people don’t have the luxury of quitting their job to pursue their dream full time, like I did. Which can actually make giving up too soon even likelier.
I was fortunate enough to do so initially, because of some great investments I made in real estate. On top of that, I’ve had some luck with my first internet business, which provided some helpful cashflow to fund my endeavors.
That said, I’ve even had to go back to work a couple of times since first publishing this journal, but that didn’t mean I failed. Nor did it mean I gave up. I just meant I had to pivot a few times. But, that’s what’s great about this journal, it helps you keep your eye on the prize, regardless of the obstacles your face.
And because I didn’t quit, I’ve since managed to grow this site by over 232% year over year for the past five years, more than quadrupled my revenue, inspire and motivate over 2 million people, and transform this site into one of the top motivational sites on the web.
So, long story short….
Related: Inspiring Quotes on Persistence
Never Give Up on Your Goals Again…
So who is this resource for?
It’s for you! No Really!! This resource is for everyone with a dream. But most importantly, it’s for those who are ready to do more than just dream their dreams, it’s for people who are ready to chase them.
Really, everyone should at least give their dream one shot. Don’t be that person, 30 to 50 years from now, lying in their deathbed wishing they would have had the courage to strive for something extraordinary.
The great thing is, this tool helps make the achieving of that big dream, goal, aspiration, much more likely.
This is the only motivation journal that supports you in keeping your dreams alive, by pushing you to strive, for at least 365 days! Never give up on your goals again, outlast your competition, and achieve your dreams with the Strive Journal!
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PS – If you’re looking for some inspiring words of wisdom to also encourage you to never give up on your goals, then you’ll love these quotes. Give them a read, follow through on their advice, and most importantly… do not give up.
