Wednesday
Jul252007
Motivation advice from Jerry Seinfeld: Don't break the chain!
Wednesday, July 25, 2007 at 12:38PM
The secret to writing good comedy is to write every day, at least according to Jerry Seinfeld. In a conversation with Brad Isaac, Jerry explains how he motivates himself to write every day, a technique that could just as easily be applied to exercise and diet:
Why does it work?
Hmm, maybe this is something we should be using with SmarterFitter.
Link
He told me to get a big wall calendar that has a whole year on one page and hang it on a prominent wall. The next step was to get a big red magic marker.
He said for each day that I do my task of writing, I get to put a big red X over that day. "After a few days you'll have a chain. Just keep at it and the chain will grow longer every day. You'll like seeing that chain, especially when you get a few weeks under your belt. Your only job next is to not break the chain."
"Don't break the chain." He said again for emphasis.
Why does it work?
It works because it isn't the one-shot pushes that get us where we want to go, it is the consistent daily action that builds extraordinary outcomes. You may have heard "inch by inch anything's a cinch." Inch by inch does work if you can move an inch every day.
Daily action builds habits. It gives you practice and will make you an expert in a short time. If you don't break the chain, you'll start to spot opportunities you otherwise wouldn't. Small improvements accumulate into large improvements rapidly because daily action provides "compounding interest."
Skipping one day makes it easier to skip the next.
Hmm, maybe this is something we should be using with SmarterFitter.
Link

Reader Comments (1)
Oh, how I miss Seinfeld! Best show ever.