The Power of Consistency
Why regularity and predictability matter in life, relationships, and work
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
-Aristotle
We often say things without thinking, and think things that we don’t say, so there’s always this dim blanket covering our true colors.
That’s why the things we do says more about us than the things we think or say.
Through our actions, we bare ourselves to the world.
More than words
Mean words can hurt, but they are far more likely to be excused by the heat of the moment than a callous action. A word of incentive is always welcome, but rolling up your sleeves and helping someone in some endeavor is a much bigger proof of support.
This is true for our interactions with others, but even more when applied to ourselves.
As Aristotle said, we are what we repeatedly do, and there is no condescending self-talk or pat on our own back that will make things look different than what they are, no matter how harder we try to believe otherwise.
To be the person we want to be, we just need to do the things that that person would do, constantly. Easier said than done, I know, but that’s why we must focus our efforts on consistency rather than anything else.
Consistency is a fundamental concept in personal habits, relationships, and professional endeavors. At its core, consistency refers to a state of stability, regularity, and dependability, where behavior, actions, or processes are repeated in a predictable and reliable manner, to the degree to which something is the same or similar over time.
Boring, I know, but from dull processes, great things can arise.
The odds of you having a great idea in the shower and sitting down half-dry at your desk and writing an incredible essay are much smaller than the ones of you having a writing routine where you write every day for 90 minutes.
It’s not only because of the quantity of work that you’ll produce, it’s also because of the practice that you get from all those hours.
