#388 The one tiny thing you should do today

“I can only do that when…”

Remove the “only” and the when”.

I can do that.

And so can you.

If writing and creating every day were as vital to my survival as drinking water, ingesting food, and bonding… What would life look like?

Biologically, all behavior is driven by pain, pleasure, and the triggers and habits that come from repeated reaction to those stimuli.

So I eat because I want to escape the pain of hunger – or heartbreak, sadness, and frustration.

I connect with others because I’m neurologically hardwired to feel pleasure when bonding… and pain and deprivation when I’m abandoned.

Similarly, I write because I want to escape the frustration of not being able to put into words an insight.

I also write because I enjoy the rush resulting from finding the words that convey what I want to say.

I write because I love the tingling in my back and neck when I combine those words into sentences with just the right rhythm, just the right cadence capturing the meaning, context, emotion of what I want to say…

I write because writing wrests the essence from the whirlwind of thoughts and emotions racing through my mind and body.

I write because when when I write, I feel that at last, I can make sense of life.

And the more meaning I find, the more likely I am to write.

You can write consistently without ever becoming skilled at writing.

But it’s hard to become skilled at writing without ever writing consistently.

Skill shouldn’t be ignored. But consistency can’t be ignored.

You can choose what success in your life looks like.

And if you make your daily successes achievable enough so you feel successful every day, guess what: you’re a successful person now.

There’s a reason it’s called Tiny Trust Builders, not massive out-of-reach Trust Builders.

So celebrate that one-minute workout you did.
That one sentence you wrote today.
That one new word you learned in a new language.
That one time you didn’t give in to cravings.

Because daily Tiny Trust Builders create massive momentum and massive self-trust.

And I don’t know about you, my friend, but I’d rather feel successful every day than like a failure because those good feelings will carry over in all other aspirations and relationships.