,

One of the coping mechanisms of today's youth is to resort to quotes that support their failures.

Or at least help them live with it. 

Quotes like...

"Que sera sera" (What will be will be)...

"Don't pressure yourself unnecessarily..."

"Na who don chop dey work..."

And so on.

It's quite understandable to want to hold on to some sort of consolation to help you cope with your struggles and challenges. 

Everyone faces down times and hits lows every now and then. 

So when you see those kinds of quotes, they resonate deeply with you. 

And maybe subconsciously, you begin to adopt those mindsets. 

Slowly you begin to condone mediocrity. 

You begin to say things like... 

"After all, I did my best..." 

"If it was meant to be, it would have happened..." 

Et cetera. 

Well, let me break it to you. 

You're not doing yourself any good if you decide to leave your life to chance, just because you failed at something. 

Because, chances are, the challenges and obstacles you faced were life's way of testing your seriousness and how badly you wanted that thing you were reaching for.

Just like Dan Koe said in his post.

So imagine the damage you will do to yourself (and probably have been doing) if you give up after your first (few) trials...

Or even worse, if you subconsciously start putting in less effort into trying to achieve your goals...

...all because you weren't able to hit the previous goals you set.

Or because of a few failures and rejections here and there. 

Now imagine the compounding effect of that mindset and behaviour on your life over time.

Imagine the potential for living a miserable life filled with lots of regrets that you are creating for your life.

Imagine all the great things in life you are already preparing to miss out on...

All because of these subtle negative mindsets that are creeping into your subconscious mind from what appears to be some harmless cruise on social media.

Look...

Don't let anybody deceive you.

Put pressure on yourself.

If not for yourself, consider your family and loved ones.

This current version of you cannot benefit them in any way.

Not in the way it should at least. 

And to become the kind of person who is (and stays) valuable to your loved ones, and is able to give them the kind of life you want for them,

You need to put in an insane amount of effort.

And yeah, I know it sounds like hard work — it actually is.

But then, if you think about it, nothing that is worthwhile, and will last, ever comes easy.

Unless you want me to deceive you. 

So let that be your consolation instead.

Keep putting in the work.

Keep showing up.

Keep putting in the reps. 

Keep pushing yourself.

Keep pushing your own limits.

Keep reaching for new heights.

Whether it's financially, mentally or even skill-wise.

Make sure you are making all efforts necessary to grow as much as you can, in every way you can. 

You only have a limited period of time to have it all figured out (to a large extent at least),

Especially if you're in your twenties.

So make the most of this time.

And ignore anyone who tells you not to pressure yourself.

Because if you don't pressure yourself, who will?

Besides, the pressure will only force you to grow.

And in the end, you are going to love the results.

Because growth is attractive. 

Anyway, I just thought to motivate you a bit this morning.

Especially since it's been a while since I wrote to you.

You'll be hearing a lot more from me moving forward.

That said, I hope you have a productive day ahead.

See you around.

— KD™