The Messy Middle: Finding Your Way Through the Hardest and Most Crucial Part of Any Bold Venture

look at what your competitors do, and ask yourself a series of questions: “Are their strategy and goals the same as mine?” If their strategy and beliefs are different, and you still have conviction in your own, then you shouldn’t be distracted. Stay the course

You can get the important stuff right and still lose by not enduring long enough

what determines whether you succeed or fail is grit, a special blend of passion and perseverance directed at accomplishing long-term goals.

If we have a good quarter, it is because of the work we did three, four, five years ago, not the work we did this quarter.

Sadly, most people are not patient enough to reap the fruits of their own labor. Great teams gain their strength and resilience while toiling their way through the valleys, not just from from relishing the view from the peaks.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, legendary for his long-term vision, reiterated this point. “Invention requires a long-term willingness to be misunderstood,” he said. “When you do something that you genuinely believe in, that you have conviction about, for a long period of time, well-meaning people may criticize that effort.” To sustain yourself over thi... See more

Be aware of the cost of constant connection. To keep perspective and nourish your imagination, create windows of nonstimulation in your day, rituals for disconnection, and periods of time in your life where you get out of your element and allow for new questions and curiosities to take hold