Either Commit Or Stay Home

By Olivier Blanchard courtesy thebrandbuilder

Commit. Give it everything. Your project. Your job. Your relationship. Your race. If it's worth doing, it's worth doing well ... and if it's worth doing well, it's worth doing exceptionally well. Yeah, it might hurt and it might require a certain measure of sacrifice. Time. Pride. Fun. Sweat. Sleep. But that's a choice you make.

The choice is to either commit, or ... not.

And if you aren't willing and ready to commit, you might as well save yourself and your client the trouble and ... stay home. Be honest with yourself and those around you. If your heart isn't really in it, if you aren't willing to hit the ball or turn the cranks like the pro you are, then maybe you ought to sit this one out.

Committing to something isn't just about hard work, but also smarts, guts, and willpower. It's about throwing yourself into the game body, mind, soul and all. Even if it's for two hours a day, or five minutes every hour, that's what it takes to do something exceptionally well. If you aren't motivated to give it your all, then do yourself a favor and work on something else. Seriously. Turn it down. Delegate. Wait until your head gets clear and you can put your heart into it.

If you can't turn it down, if your boss or client forces you to work on something you would rather not spend any time on, then take a breather. Go clear your head. Find that one thing in the project or task that you know you can throw yourself at wholeheartedly, and focus on that.

Don't ever, ever, ever do anything half-assed. Ever.

Unless you like looking back on a completed project or campaign or achievement and wishing you had given it a little bit more effort. A little bit more heart. A little bit more juice.

Commitment is fun and painful and hard all at the same time... But that's the way it should be. Nothing worthwhile is ever easy to come by.

So make every word count. Every stroke of the mouse. Every release of the shutter. Every turn of the cranks. Every interaction with a customer. Every design feature. Every promotional coupon. Every TV spot. Every meeting. Every element of your web page design. Every media purchase. Every minute. Every second. Every breath.

It all adds up in the end.

It all pays off.

As long as you give it your all.

Have a great Friday, everyone.