As famously said by Lao Tzu: "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step".

What he meant was that a person must begin his or her journey to reach their goal or destination. It is a motivational proverb that expresses deep insight into determination and avoiding procrastination.

The same goes for your goals to be a coach, consultant, speaker, or even a Wall Street Journal author. All these begin with a single step. If you don't start now, then when? What I do know is this: If you don't go after what you want, you'll never have it. If you don't ask, the answer is always no. If you don't step forward, you'll always be in the same place.

Therefore, I implore all of you who are reading this newsletter to sacrifice the time now and you'll get positive rewards later. Like the old Chinese adage says "先苦后甜" (First you experience bitterness before you experience sweetness). Trust me, a year from now, you will wish you had started today.

I remember this very vividly. In 2018, I did an interview with Gary Vaynerchuk and in that episode, he shared with me this golden advice. He said that it takes 21 years to succeed. What does he mean? It means that you have to love "hard". You have to love "eating shit". You have to love the process and understand that success is not overnight.

Look at last year's phenomenon on Netflix, "Squid Game". It took many years of trial and error plus rejections for Hwang Dong-Hyuk to finally amass such fortune and fame. 10 years.

There are so many famous "losers" that have shared their stories with the media for us to learn. Now the thing is this, many people thought that they are going to post a couple of posts on Linkedin & Instagram and they think that 6 months later, they are going to be on a yacht.

But that's not gonna happen in reality. Gary said very clearly that he wants the pain and the process because he has patience. Look, social media will have you rushing your goals and the thing is this, not everything you see on the internet and social media is real.

Remember, comparison is the thief of joy. It doesn't mean that this guy or girl can be a Millionaire by 30 means you got to. Different people have a different way of life and priorities. Give yourself the time and remember to keep pace. Be consistent and never give up.

Don't rush because of the pandemic or whatever other people have to say about you and your goals. With that said, you still have to go and get your things done. If you spend too much time thinking about a thing, you'll never get it done. Like Paulo Coelho said: "One day, you'll wake up and there won't be any more time to do the things that you've always wanted. DO IT NOW".

Never announce your moves until you make them.