Setting the Stage for a Journey

Do you remember the last time you tackled something truly challenging, not just an extra workout minute or a mental hurdle? I'm talking about pushing past the limits you thought were your best.

In a world filled with cheat codes and shortcuts, where everyone wants to make success easier, the pursuit of genuine excellence often gets sidelined.

There's so much information in the world and frankly I think most of it is quite underwhelming.

Easy Roads and the Allure of Quick Fixes

On any given day we're told about cheat codes, hacks, side hustles and shortcuts to make attaining what we want that much easier.

And it's easy to believe in that stuff because, well why not? We all have aspirations. We all want more for ourselves. To live a bountiful life that feels rich in experience and excellence.

Attaining that is hard. So who's to blame for believing in a little bit easier a road.

It seems quite natural to want to lean in to anything that could help you get there more quickly. I think that's just human nature.

The problem is so much of the advice we're given is relying on our blind belief and taking advantage of that bit of human nature.

And for the record it's not just you; it's all of us.

The Pitfalls of Hacks and Shortcuts

The truth of it is, almost every hack, shortcut or easy button smash we take is distancing us from accomplishing our goals and realizing our full potential.

If we were just willing to try something hard and force ourselves out of our comfort zone we'd find the power we all have and harness it in pursuit of accomplishing our wildest dreams.

Which leads me to now.

Battling Self-Doubt and Overcoming Obstacles

When I launched Ground Control I was full of self-doubt, overthinking everything and desperate for any shortcuts I could find.

You see, while I had a sense for what I wanted to accomplish and roughly where I thought I should start, I also had a million questions that needed answering and technical tasks standing in my way.

While I had built businesses before I had done so with an incredible business partner who's skill set was different from my own.

One of the most powerful things about having a business partner is being able to compliment each other and fill the gaps when necessary.

The downfall to that reality is that we often end up with blind spots when it comes time to either do something on our own or to step up when the need is there.

A Methodical Approach

One of my goals with building Ground Control was to fill some of those gaps. I knew that it would be an opportunity for me to learn aspects of building a business that I missed out on when working with a partner.

Which leads me back to searching for hacks, shortcuts and any other way to close the gap in my knowledge base.

I spent hours scouring AI tools, reading the thoughts of influencers and online business gurus and everything in between to end up back at one simple solution.

Start small, go slowly and teach myself.

Progress Through Low and Slow

With that philosophy in the forefront I slowly began to make progress. The beautiful thing about going low and slow was that I also was able to think through so much of the theoretical and philosophical side of the project that I would need to plug in as I progressed.

I find myself all too often putting the cart before the horse and running headlong into the fray before I'm fundamentally ready.

Building it myself allowed me to really learn what it was I was trying to accomplish at the exact speed I was comfortable moving.

The Power of Trying Something Hard

The moral of this story is that not only did I get the job done but I grew in immeasurable ways in the process and the quality of what I set out to accomplish grew in leaps and bounds too.

The end product was that much better for having taken my time and looked under every rock. Is it perfect? No way. But what is perfection anyway?

Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor, the enemy of the people. It will keep you insane your whole life.

ANNE LAMOTT

I'm always game to try something hard but sometimes even the best of us forget its power.

So the next time you find yourself looking for a shortcut or the easy way out, remind yourself there's more there than you might anticipate and the power you'll get from sailing under your own wins is more gratifying than you might think.

Next week I'm going to break down the outline I used to plan Ground Control, the MVP tools I chose to build with and the exact steps I'd take to do it again.

I'll also include a handy cheat sheet so you can too:)

Now, I'd love to hear about your challenges and triumphs. Share your stories or the hard lessons you've learned. Let's create a community of growth and resilience. Comment below with your experiences, and let's inspire each other to embrace the journey of true personal development.

And building cool shit too:)

This is Ground Control

-Patrick