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How Do You Eat an Elephant??

published March 21, 2019

When you are taking on big tasks or you have a big challenge ahead of you just think, how do you eat an elephant. I know that sounds strange when you first hear it. When someone asked me I thought they were crazy. Why would you want to eat an elephant?

The answer to the question is One Bite at a Time. So what does that mean?? When you have a big task ahead of you, start. Start eating away. There is a famous Chinese proverb that says a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.

Thats what it takes, the first step. Then it takes some more steps, then more, then more. Before you know it you are at your destination.

I want to make sure that you do NOT think that I am advocating the actual eating of elephants. I have never tasted elephant, and I dont think that I ever will. But you get the point, right? Bite off a chunk, bite off another chunk and before you know it, elephant is gone.

I must admit when I started working on our house, I was a bit overwhelmed. By the time we got to the mid-rehab I was exhausted and thought I had made a huge mistake.  The finished product of the house is beautiful, but it took more than a 1000 steps. People ask me how I could even get started with so many things that needed to be done.

With houses, it is kinda easy. You start with the foundation, like in life. You have to have a good foundation to start with otherwise things are going to start falling apart. Good foundation for your house, your family, your life.

I hope that you read that last paragraph again.

Having a good foundation is key for a house. Then you can look to the roof. You dont want anything leaking when it rains. Then you peel back all the sheetrock, if you are doing that, to get to the electrical and plumbing. Insulate it all and then start putting it back together. Make it look pretty and you are done.

I wish the remodel of our house was that easy. Sometimes eating that elephant will take you months, if not years. Every now and then I have to ask myself again, how do you eat an elephant because I am in the middle of something that does not seem to end. Just keep eating and someday you will get to the end.

My weight journey does not seem to end. I have been eating WAY better. I have been eating lots less. And STILL the journey is several thousand steps away. But thats ok. The goal of 3500 miles on my bicycle this year will help with the weight journey.

I have put in some exercise into the program in addition to the cycling. Planet Fitness is going to have to become a part of my 3 or 4 times a week regimen. Sit ups and push ups are just not cutting it.

There have been times, like now, that I see progress, but I want the final product quicker. In these cases you have to be ready to do lots more to get to the finish line. This is why I have set a goal of 3500 miles. It is also why I have decided to get a membership at a gym to help build some muscles and it will force me to work on the big belly so that I will not be a fatty anymore.

KEEP GOING. Keep eating that elephant. I know that you are full and that skin is kinda tough, but keep going.

I have seen too many people give up when they are right in the middle of it all. You kinda slow down and think that things are not moving as fast as they should and decide that maybe this was NOT the right track for you. Stop thinking like that. Malcolm Gladwell, a New York bestselling author says that you need 10,000 hours of practice to achieve mastery of a subject.

He says that the Beatles used to play eight hour gigs, sometimes longer!! They did this over and over for years. When they came to America, they had well over 10,000 hours. That is some overnight success!! Keep going and you will get in your 10,000 hours.

Sometimes it takes a Herculean effort just to start the journey. Its that first step that you need the biggest push. I always think to myself, “Well, let me take the first bite of this elephant, if not, I am never going to finish eating it.”

Maybe you need to get that first investment property closed so that you can build that confidence. Practice talking with sellers. Talk with more and more of them. Eventually you will get that deal done.

If I can help in any way, please send me an email or call or text me.

Good luck and keep eating that elephant.