“When fatigue has got you by the balls, remember that if you really didn’t believe you’d succeed then you wouldn’t have tried at all.”
Nearly two years ago, I set a “goal” for myself that I was going to be in a career which allowed me to work anywhere I wanted to be (though anything is better than nothing, I put “goal” in quotation marks because I believe that a true goal has a timeline and not the simple wishy-washy “I will” statement that I had).
Fast forward nearly two years later, I’m where I said I would be. Pretty much. The actual goals changed a little bit, but the foundations are there — I’m self-employed in a career that I enjoy and gives me the freedom of not having to report to an office 8.5 hours a day. Yay.
(Don’t get me wrong, I’m not anti-work. As a matter of fact, if I’m enjoying what I’m doing I find that the hours go by without me noticing it. I can get wrapped up in work and barely have to come up above water for air. But to be able to provide massive value for my clients without needing me to report to the office at a certain time of the day for a certain number of hours every month… Now, THAT’S rewarding.)
The Dip
It hasn’t exactly been an easy journey. Long, lonely nights into the wee-hours of the morning were a daily occurence — working on websites, tweaking copy, implementing link-building campaigns, learning anything and everything I can to improve my services… And anybody who has experienced diving head first into starting their own business can definitely attest to adhering to strict cash flow requirements.
It was definitely tough, and there were definitely times that it was taking a severe toll on myself. The journey certainly hasn’t been easy, but I’ll be lying if I said that it wasn’t rewarding. I had to constantly use strength I didn’t think I had in order to make it through the dip.
But my eyes were definitely kept on the prize. Correct me if I’m wrong, but in my opinion that’s the toughest part of any endeavor — constantly being able to remind yourself of what you’re doing it for, and an unwavering determination to do what it takes to achieve it. Never let your distractions be the main focus — it’s so easy to get caught up in side activities because it’s fun. But if that’s all you preoccupy your time with, you’ll be kicking yourself in the ass later — wondering where the time went and why you’ve been running in place for the past six months.
Lucky Me?
I know a lot of people think that I’m lucky to be in such a position. Although there’s a little luck involved, I really believe that luck has little to do with it. After all, “luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” In other words, you’re responsible for creating your own luck. I really do believe that we’re in total control of our destiny.
But yeah. For the most part, I’m ecstatic to have achieved my goals for 2009. I’m wrapping everything up, and in approximately 60 hours I’m going to be arriving back to the motherlands for a great winter getaway. It’s exactly what those long, long hours have been for.
Like I said, goals change. While you initially thought you’d be content with going from Point A to Point B, soon you’ll realize that it’s Point E that you really want to get to. And best believe that when you get to Point E, you’ll want to reach Point H. No matter what the milestone, I believe that celebrating every time you reach one is so important for survival.
That’s exactly why I think my 2010 is going to be even more amazing than my 2009. This calls for a Steven Gerrard pat-self-on-the-back moment:
I might not get to update this until I return from vacation, so until then: merry Christmas and happy new year, ladies and gentlemen 
More on delayed gratification: