The first time you do something, it’s really hard and you probably suck at it.
The second time you do something it’s still hard, but you struggle through it
The third time you do something it starts to get a little easier.
The tenth time you do something, it starts to get a lot easier, you begin to feel like you’ve got the hang of things and it feels like you could just ride that momentum without trying as hard as you used to and be okay. Here, the temptation to coast can set in.
The Necessity of Coasting
Coasting isn’t a bad thing. If you’ve ever driven a manual car, you know you have to shift to neutral anytime you want to change gears. You have to coast to change gears, even if it’s for a split second. If you want to go faster, you have to shift and coast, before you take things to the next level.
Here’s the thing about coasting: it gets annoying. Going into neutral seems pointless and it can be tempting to ignore that phase altogether.
It’s not “productive” in the traditional sense of the word, but if you try to jump from 4th to 5th without pushing in the clutch, you’ll find yourself lurching forward, losing your momentum and coming to an abrupt stop in the middle of an intersection while everybody honks at you for holding up the traffic (not that I would know anything about that).
The last few weeks, things have been easier. Not too easy, but not really challenging. I have a lot going on right now outside of the blog that I haven’t shared yet (soon little grasshopper), but I feel like that’s led me to a realization:
I’ve been coasting.
Things have been good, I’ve been blogging for over a year, and things aren’t nearly as hard as they used to be. This isn’t a bad thing really, but you can’t coast forever. If you try to coast your whole life, you eventually slow down to a complete stop. And there’s the paradox: If you never shift gears and take things to the next level, coasting ends up being detrimental, but you can never take things to the next level unless you coast.
Lots of people do this:
- Bloggers stop blogging once they reach a certain number of rss readers
- Business stop growing when they reach a point that’s “good enough”
- Workers stop learning and improving when they’re doing just enough work not to be noticed.
Any time you start to reach a place where you’re “comfortable”, it’s really easy to stop, take a breath and coast.
Coasting With A Purpose
There’s nothing wrong with coasting, it’s needed, but you should never coast just to coast. You need to coast with a purpose.
The difference between people who do well and people who fizzle out are the people who do well use coasting in order to prepare for something bigger. They’re actively resting up for the challenge to come. The hill up ahead, the new business challenge, the next phase of their blog, whatever is next.
The people who fizzle out are usually the ones who think their small modicum of achievement is something amazing and try to ride that tiny bit of momentum the rest of their life. Most of the time it doesn’t work and coasting just becomes an excuse for them to be lazy.
The Next Level
I’ve been coasting the past few weeks. I’ll admit that, but I noticed it early on and I’m using this time. In the next few weeks, I’m going to kick things up a notch. If I don’t, call me on it (<– I mean that). Big things are coming…
No one ever got out of a rut by coasting. You have to apply the gas liberally. Thanks for the boost!
Time to gun it.
Wow, great post. I’ve never thought about it this way – this concept of “coasting” through life. Very common for people to just intend to quit when they already have something good going – but usually that dosn’t really last. Applies to businesses, relationships and more.
I kind of have a spin on that problem, in that I tend to be not happy with the status quo but keep looking for something “more”. Which can also be a problem (at least in the eyes of my ever-complacent bf).
But I totally get what you’re saying – very thought-provoking.
There’s a big difference between complacency/apathy and contentment. I think it’s possible to be content with whatever you have and still strive to be better. What do you think?
Just what I needed to read today! I’ve been coasting far too long. It’s time to change gears NOW.
Make the shift!
Great blog! I have been coasting in a few areas of my life. My personal and my athletic goals as well as my interpersonal. It is easy to get stuck there.
I will make a plan too…. To rise out of this rut at least in some areas. Small steps to big leaps. 🙂
Baby steps through the office. Baby steps out the door…
Exactly Dr. Marvin! I feel good, I feel great, I feel wonderful! 😉
I have a lot of endurance races coming up. But I suffer deep sadness. The only light is my training. I coast still.. And hope to incorporate time goals for growth rather than staying in the same zone. And as far as the other areas I coast… I hope soon i will climb out from underneath the gray cloud. 🙂
Good luck with the training. It’s amazing the effect that exercise can have on your moods. Best – Joel
Woo! Not coasting yet and feel better about that 🙂 The struggle is definitely worth it, and I realize I DO get board when I’m coasting. I always need something new and challenging..
Switch it up and keep pushing. Good luck with the design biz!
Love this one! I’ve been coasting too, to an extent. I see it as a time to build up the energy for the next burst, as well as check I’m really headed where I want to go.
Looking forward to hearing about the changes and seeing where you go when you kick it up a notch. It will be awesome!
I will definitely let you guys know 🙂
Boy I needed this today – you don’t know how much I appreciate it. Thank you so much Joel!!
Sure thing Elena!
Interesting concept! I drive a stick shift 4Runner and motorcycles and sometimes the coast is nice. It’s time to say, ‘yeah, im going to relax and enjoy this moment. and also, im gonna save me some gas.’
that said, theres nothing better than gunning it 🙂
Just gotta watch out for those $4.50 gas prices!
“The difference between people who do well and people who fizzle out are the people who do well use coasting in order to prepare for something bigger. They’re actively resting up for the challenge to come.”
Brah, this is great insight. Even while we take a break, we can use that time to work on the next challenge, even if we are just thinking.
I’m excited to see what you have cooking, seems like your putting a lot of time/effort into it. Keep going Joel, and thanks for your honesty.
Big things coming…stay tuned!
Great post! I just found your blog upon recommendation from my brother and I’m enjoying your posts. OK, slightly off topic- but I HAVE to know what car that gearshift belongs to…. is it a MINI S?
Really good question. I got it off flickr. Usually I try to provide a link, but I seem to have missed this time. Do you happen to have a thing for MINI’s?
Yes, definitely love the MINIs. In fact, will be driving one on Sebring Raceway this weekend! I think your photo is a MINI gearshift 🙂
Haha, well you probably know better than me. Have fun this weekend at the raceway!