For most of my life, I’ve felt like I’m either climbing up a mountain… or heading down the other side, wondering what my next climb will be.
There’s something very special about this. And I can’t tell which part I like more—the climb up, or the relaxing, reflecting walk down.
The climb up gives you something to focus on. Something to build. Something to aspire to.
But it’s also very scary when you’re at the bottom and it’s looming in front of you. You worry you might not make it.
Or you choose to stay in bed and contemplate a way to procrastinate.
And that’s actually the key.
Overcoming that little bit of fear when you’re standing at the bottom of something new, waiting to tackle it, is the one critical piece of the puzzle that separates the doers from the dreamers.
After that, everyone thinks that success is at the top but that’s misleading, because success actually comes with every step you take to get to the top.
The real top… the summit, as everyone will tell you who’s been there, is both the end of your journey and a new beginning.
It’s why so many people get to the top and then they want to build again. Because success is in the journey up, not the end.
So, don’t just say you want to be a travel writer and then wish to skip ahead to actually being a full-time travel writer.
Instead, take a few steps to get there and relish in your immediate successes.
Here are three tips for making that happen:
1) Circle a date on your calendar for taking your first (or next) steps
2) Lock yourself in a room until they’re done
3) Pat yourself on the back for getting past the fear of looking up from the bottom of the mountain
Then do it all again the next day or week.
Because I promise you—the view from the top is amazing.