41

Celebrating 16 years of marriage... in the DMV parking lot waiting for an HP fireworks show.
Eating a French picnic with some delicious local wine. You can't do crazy stuff every year. :)

Last year, I turned 40 and shared 40 lessons and quotes. I'm amping it up with 41 new lessons and quotes this year!

Just kidding - they'd lose their meaning.

How about just one more from Noah Kagan and Alex Hormozi?

Do 100 reps before even thinking of stopping!

In a culture of increasing instant gratification, I find it hard to accept that I'm initially bad at something and need practice to improve. I'll try it three times, declare (to my inner self) that it's too hard, and stop.

No!

Making valuable things requires skills; frequently, developing those skills takes longer than I think. So, to help me get over the initial slog of learning, I commit to doing 100 reps of the thing before even thinking of stopping.

For example, when Jessi and I started our podcast, we committed to doing it for a year before looking critically at the stats. I figure the first 50 episodes are simply us finding our shared voice. Only after that can we start actually trying to improve and grow it, and then only after that can we assess if it's worth the effort.

Moments before starting our first episode

And guess what?! A few months in, we had a busy week, and recording a podcast felt like one too many things. And it wasn't even growing the business! But then we remembered that business growth isn't the goal this year. It's simply finding our voice and how it fits into our weekly rhythm. We took it as a learning opportunity and kept going.

Success!

Here's a free half-lesson: Translating internet numbers into real life keeps me grounded. When I post a video and "only" get 20 views, I remind myself that if I presented in a room to 20 people, I'd be excited. And when I hit 1,000 views, I imagine the venues required to host that many people—there aren't many in Corvallis. I'd be PUMPED if it were in person.

At the same time, I hold in tension the reality that BILLIONS of people could watch my stuff (and at least 100K ideal customers). So, if only 20 people see it, there's obviously room for improvement.

And that's the key. Within 100 reps of starting something, only focus on improvement. Don't even think about stopping. I'll even say it's better to focus on quantity over quality, and assuming you care about the output (not just doing it to check a box), improvement can't help but happen.

If you're learning something, do 100 reps without any thought of stopping. You got this.

Samson, working on his defense.

Elinor, playing at her recital.