Tom Bartow

Taking a zero on one of your most important tasks is the equivalent of a professional athlete losing a game by forfeit. Passing altogether on your priorities completely erodes mental toughness.

‘Busy’ isn’t what gets rewarded long-term in the marketplace. ‘Productive’ is. ... The most successful people don’t get everything done. They get the most important things done.

The reality is that our habits aren’t so much formed as they are in a constant state of formation.

The discouragement monster, as we call it, is so dangerous because it saps your willingness to keep trying. You must remember that scoring often comes in spurts.

Greatness is predicated on consistently doing things others can’t or won’t do. Simply put, success is *not* about being brilliant. It’s about being consistent.

What *does* enhance self-image? Learning to talk to yourself about what you do well and how you want to improve.

When we focus on small, incremental improvements instead of perfection, the human spirit takes over, and all things become much more possible.

Instead of telling yourself you aren’t special enough to get all the things you want in life, start telling yourself ‘I deserve it!’—and then start deserving it by taking action!

The key is to list important, ambitious, but realistic tasks that can reasonably be completed during the day. Small, day-to-day successes are the building blocks of achievement.

In our experience, those who enjoy the most success are the ones who do the best job prioritizing the day’s activities and accomplishing the most important tasks—not the greatest *number* of tasks.