I believe that this quote has a deep meaning that only a few can understand.
When we work hard on something we believe in, it's called passion. When we work hard on something we don't believe in, it's called stress. — Simon Sinek
Everyone who is active on hive, is working quite hard. To prove their worth and to earn some rewards.
However, people can be divided into two categories. First are those who believe in the concept, the ideas they are sharing. Their primary focus is to connect, and to build something later.
Second one are those whose primary focus is rewards.
So, writing and sharing a post on hive could be a passion for some people and a way to earn rewards later. And stress for others, who don't get rewarded. They see their work as waste.
Just a small difference in how we see things can impact our life in a big way. It can decide how long we will stay on hive. I am pretty sure that the value of hive could go anywhere from 10 cents to $2. The people who will stick here when hive is 10 cents or below, are here for their passion.
These small differences in our perception is not only on hive but in life as well.
People spends 8 hours a day working very hard and call it enjoyment. Because they are working on their passion. Others work the same 8 hours a day, and call it stress. They need to take break from their work every now and then, otherwise they will get burned out.
But how does one develop passion for something. It's quite rare that you start doing something and call it a passion. I mean there is some excitement when you start doing something. But passion is when you do it for years, with the same energy or more.
I was reading an article article today. It describes how Chinese train their weightlifters. The weightlifters usually spend an average of 8-10 years to prepare themself, so that they can become professional weightlifters one day. The interesting thing is that they spend the first three years just enjoying the sport. Nothing serious at all. And their passion for the sports develops over time.
Only after the first three years of enjoyment and 4-5 years of improving themself, they try for the National and International competition.
I mean spending 3+ years just to enjoy the process, and then 4-5 years preparing for it, before you even think about competing. That's really a lot of preparation.
I just wonder, how much my writing will improve if I spend the next 3 years to enjoy the writing process. And then 4-5 years improving it. Only after that I will call it a passion, and think about making money from it.
Hive gives us a good opportunity
We start making money from the day one. There is no preparation for the skill. No years spent figuring it out. You just start and make your first buck.
In fact, when you introduce yourself, it could be your biggest paycheck on the platform. Big enough to motivate you and call yourself a writer. It will keep you going for a couple of months before your question yourself, "Are you even cut out for being a writer or not?"
Spending 3-4 years to enjoy building up a skill is quite a long period of time. But the longer you spend honing your skills, the better you will become.
Last time I started writing in 2017, I quit in a matter of 3-6 months.
The reason? I didn't made enough money.
If I had continued till today, I would have spent 3 years enjoying the process. Now, I would be working on improving my skills. And maybe one day, I will become a professional writer, and make enough money though my writing skills.
This problem prevails in many parts of our life. We focus on goals and completely forget about enjoying the process. That's why we quit. Thinking it's been months and we haven't achieved anything yet.
Once we start enjoying the process, our life will completely change. We will enjoy the process of our growth as much as we enjoy the end goal.
The process and the struggle always validates us, not the end goal. One of my favourite personality is "The Rock."
And if you follow him enough, you would know that he always stress on being the hardest worker in the room. The end goal of money and fame doesn't motivates him. Even if he has achieved everything. The daily grind makes him what he is today. He knows that he works harder and smarter than anyone else. This gives him the ultimate satisfaction. That no one can outwork him easily. He enjoys the daily process.
So, enjoy the slow growth because— slow growth teaches you to believe in yourself.
There is no reason to focus on the growth if you don't know where you are going
Peter Thiel in his famous book "Zero To One" described that the biggest leaps in progress are vertical, not horizontal.
The day to day progress is horizontal. You might not even notice it. But vertical progress is the one that will take you from zero to one. It will create the technology or idea in the first place. Like Apple did it in 2007 when they came up with Iphone and changed the way we use phones forever.
If you want to make an impact in the world. You need to go from zero to one. The best way to do it— is to question the assumptions you hold about the present.
Make your actions more effective
Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto showed that 20% of the population owns 80% of the land in the country. This is a well known concept that is taught in the business management field too. It is famously known as The Pareto Principle or power law.
In order to maximise process efficiency, you should focus on 20% of the opportunities which would return 80% of the gains.
Whenever you do something, think of the power law and ask yourself "Are your being effective enough?"
So, first, you need to go vertical, get a good idea, an end goal in your mind. It's the time you go from zero to one. Then you enjoy the slow process of achieving that goal. It may take months, or years depending on your goal.
The simple yet effective process to go from zero to one on hive is:
- Figure out what you want to build
- Enjoy the process of building your goal for months or years