Success, however you define it, takes a lot of time. If you’re impatient like me, this can be frustrating. Today I sat down to figure out why I always underestimate how much time it’ll take me to do the things I set out to do.

When you set a goal, you look straight towards it, but the actual path is never linear. There’s always a long learning curve. Our growth and progress are always exponential when taking on something new.

It’s like this:

After you do the same thing consistently for months and years, you’ll eventually hit a stride and become much more effective with each move you take. But it does take months and years.

If you deceive yourself into thinking that the path is linear, you’ll compare yourself to an unrealistic benchmark of progress.

You’re really not that far behind. You’re actually much closer than you think. But if you let that unrealistic deficit get in your way, you might quit or believe you’re not taking the right steps.

Instead, put your head down, be patient, be consistent, and keep doing what you’re doing.