Newsletter #23: How to become relentless
/
Last weekend, I got the urge to purge … my filing cabinet. I went through three drawers and got rid of a tonne of papers. Some to the recycling bin, some to the bin I’ll take to the UPS store to shred.
Decluttering is satisfying but slightly less satisfying when it’s behind closed drawers—especially since, at the time, my desk was rather messy.
Though I was ruthless, I couldn’t bring myself to throw out an undated piece of paper titled, How to become relentless.
Since I’ve spent the last few days feeling and acting the opposite of relentless, I’m revisiting this advice and I’ll share it with you, in case your preferred level of relentlessness is off kilter.
Along with no date, this piece of paper contained no source. Which is rather unusual for my notes, but my best guess is it’s straight talk from Darren Hardy, in one of his DarrenDaily videos.
So, let’s get to it…
How to become relentless, according to success mentor, Darren Hardy (95% sure)
1. Work harder than anyone else and harder than anyone expects.
2. Know who you are. Don’t look for accolades, acknowledgement, thanks or praise—you’re doing this for YOU.
3. Look for pressure situations. Test yourself, enjoy the intensity and see what you’re made of.
4. Never see failure as final. Figure out how to use failure to get you closer to your goal. Each failure is a lesson learned.
5. Only compete against yourself. Your greatest competition is the person you’re capable of being.
I’d add another one to complement #1 – Rest harder than anyone else. Most people can’t go pedal-to-the-metal all the time without having an aneurism/nervous breakdown. When it’s time for a break, make it a good one.
And for me personally—who does better in a less-is-more context—I’d add one final thing: Choose how many things you can realistically be relentless about.
Probably your list of things that don’t require relentlessness will be 850 times longer than what you want to be relentlessness about.
For example, the book propping up my computer monitor is Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook. Martha’s tablecloth folding ideas … you can guess which list—relentless/unrelentless—they go on.
When it comes to the appropriate place for relentlessness in your personal and professional life, I don’t have the answers.
Fortunately, as a ghostwriter, my value starts with asking questions.
Two questions for you to ponder as February comes to a close:
What do you need to be relentless about?
In what areas do you need to take your foot off the gas pedal?
Until next time, keep on truckin’,
Andrea
Comic relief
Learn more about this artist here: https://www.reddit.com/user/_Nafyn_/
Epic tunes
This is the song that introduced me to LP, an amazing singer with a beautiful voice and amazing hair. Warning, this song is a gateway to hours of listening to LP belting out her own songs and covering other people’s songs.
Enjoy!
LP - Halo (Beyonce Cover) [Live]
Inspiration
Hooker Lips, a small company that makes all-natural lip balm in Williams Lake, British Columbia is relentless about bringing uncommon flavours to the world of lip balm.
You need lip balm that tastes like merlot? Canadian pizza? Candy cane? Dill pickle? Asian pear? Bacon? Peach bellini? Coffee?
Hooker Lips has you covered!
I sent these lip balms to my goddaughter and her siblings and I didn’t get disowned for being a bad influence (thank goodness they’re all natural!) so it’s all good.
60-second commercial
I'm an executive ghostwriter, specializing in benefits, leadership coaching, corporate wellness and employee assistance programs (EAPs).
I work with executives and executive coaches who have big hearts, are driven to help others and never open a conversation they're not willing to close.
My clients are straightforward, ambitious, humble, hilarious and I never have to wonder what they're thinking because they say what they mean and mean what they say.
If you're a tough-love executive or executive coach who would benefit from the kind of work I do, please get in touch:
andrea@redsailwriters.com | 647-502-3187 | ca.linkedin.com/in/andreabassett
Let's talk about these thought leadership projects in 2021:
Newsletters | White papers + e-books | Ghostwritten articles
Workbooks to supplement corporate training
Business book ghostwriting (fall 2021, early 2022)