If you look for evidence that people are conspiring to hold you back and the world is working against you, then it will take you no time at all to fi… - James Clear

Mental toughness is often framed as the perseverance that gets you across the finish line:

• Find a way to make it happen
• Push through the pain
• Grind it out to the end

But most days, mental toughness isn't about crossing the finish line. It's about getting to the starting line:

• Show up when no one is watching
• Keep your eye on the ball
• Do a little bit every day

Mental toughness is not skipping the days that are easy to skip.

The Goldilocks Rule states that humans experience peak motivation when working on tasks that are right on the edge of their current abilities. Not too hard. Not too easy. Just right.

Problem #3: Goals restrict your happiness. The implicit assumption behind any goal is this: “Once I reach my goal, then I’ll be happy.” The problem with a goals-first mentality is that you’re continually putting happiness off until the next milestone. I’ve slipped into this trap so many times I’ve lost count. For years, happiness was always something for my future self to enjoy. I promised myself that once I gained twenty pounds of muscle or after my business was featured in the New York Times, then I could finally relax. Furthermore, goals create an “either-or” conflict: either you achieve your goal and are successful or you fail and you are a disappointment. You mentally box yourself into a narrow version of happiness. This is misguided. It is unlikely that your actual path through life will match the exact journey you had in mind when you set out. It makes no sense to restrict your satisfaction to one scenario when there are many paths to success.