Most people are smart enough to know that you can't expect to go to the gym once and be fit for a lifetime.
Most people are even smart enough to know that if the program you've been following isn't working anymore you should try something different -- and not just completely give up.
So why would this common sense be any different in other area of our life?
You don't start a business and automatically make a million dollars.
You don't eat one healthy meal and reverse years of poor nutrition.
You don't go on one date and have a fulfilling relationship for the rest of your life.
Just like training in the gym -- it takes hundreds of reps to start seeing results and thousands of reps to create lasting change. And even after you've gotten the results you want, you have to keep doing the reps to maintain it.
This is true for any endeavor.
But why do we succeed at some and fail at others?
If you pay attention, the things that you stick with and see results from are things that you've committed to for a long period of time. And the reason you've been able to commit and put the reps in is because you fell in love with the process.
When you fall in love with the process you fall in love with doing the thing simply for the sake of doing the thing, without getting overly attached to the end result.
The paradox is that when you learn how to love the process and not get too attached to the outcome, you actually get more and better results.
This is because when things get tough (as they always do), instead of making excuses and giving up, you get creative and resourceful and find new ways of doing things -- because you love to do the thing.
This is why it's so important to find what you're passionate about and do that thing. Or, at the very least, change your story about the thing you're doing to one that allows you to find meaning and purpose in the process.
Successful people aren't lucky, they're just willing to keep trying until they get lucky (and get the result that they want).
Talk soon,
Nathan