Stop Waiting for the Payoff.

This Thanksgiving morning, it was 24 degrees in Utah. My 10k race started at 8am. For some reason, myself and about 5000 others still showed up even though it was brutally cold.

This race was extra special to me. I signed up for the race on January 1st. Then, halfway through the year, a few obstacles decided to throw me off (a heart attack and a stroke).

I kept my mind right... and as soon as I was out of the hospital, I started back up my training. I lost most of my progress. I could barely run. Day after day I showed up though. I was super committed to getting my health back on track. I changed my eating habits. I went on daily walks. I slowly added a bit of jogging. Small incremental progress consistently over time.

Fast forward to race day.

Something weird happened.

I actually completed the race 20 minutes faster than I even expected. My heart felt great. My calves hurt a bit, but otherwise I was strangely even in better condition than I was one year ago before my heart attack.

And what was more confusing to me- I strangely didn't feel the "Big Payoff" after crossing the finish line.

Sure... It felt good to complete this race... when just a mere 6 months ago... I wasn't even sure if I was going to leave the hospital alive.

So i started trying to figure out "WHY" I didn't feel this massive excitement or level of accomplishment.

My family flew in from NY for Thanksgiving. Just like most families, we spent a good bit of time at the Turkey Day dinner table talking about what we are thankful for. Tradition says this is the one big holiday a year where we show gratitude, right?

While sitting at the table, it hit me like a ton of bricks.

Sure, I am grateful on Thanksgiving for my family, my health, and all the things. But I don't need to wait till the one day a year to express that.

My gratitude and appreciation has been programmed into my daily operations.

One of the first things I do every morning is write down 3 things I am grateful for that day.

And then I started thinking about how this relates to my 10k run. See, I programmed cardio exercise into my daily operations. I was stacking small wins up every day for the last 6 months. And that's why the big win wasn't this "overwhelming" sense of excitement. I was confident. I was strong. I was ready. It was almost as if I won the race before I even started.

MIND BLOWN.

Yes, you got a bit of a longer story today before I get into the Lesson of the day. Thank you for spending those moments with me so far. I promise this next section is full of GOLD.

This is a newsletter about growth and learning in the workplace after all.... so how does all of this relate?

Many professionals approach their careers with a “grind now, enjoy later” mentality, believing that sacrificing immediate satisfaction will eventually lead to a big payoff—a promotion, a dream role, or financial security. While this approach might seem logical, it often creates more problems than it solves. Waiting for a distant reward can lead to burnout, frustration, and a loss of motivation long before that reward ever materializes.

I want you to pause, and read that block quote again.

Now, this "delayed gratification" works well in certain contexts. If I skip the immediate satisfaction of eating 5 pieces of pie after thanksgiving dinner - I'll feel much better about myself when I look in the mirror a few days later. If I skip the immediate satisfaction of spending my money on something dumb, I'll feel much better when I see my savings and financial stability grow.

When it comes to career growth, waiting for a single "payoff moment" at some undetermined moment in the future leaves many of us feeling terrible about ourselves. 85% of adults have low self-worth. Also, interestingly enough, 85% of adults worldwide feel disengaged at work.

When gratification is endlessly postponed, people disengage, lose motivation, and give up on their current career path all together.

With that context, lets get into todays lesson.

"CONSISTENT GRATIFICATION" (aka small daily wins) IS THE REAL PRIZE.

Consistent gratification is all about enjoying the process itself.

Celebrate the small wins. Recognize progress. Build Self-Confidence from everyday learning and growth.

See, this will fuel your fire. These small victories build momentum.

Psychologists call this positive reinforcement. When we see tangible results from our efforts, we are more likely to persist. And this becomes a virtuous cycle.... the more you grow, the more fulfilled you feel, and the more motivated you are to continue growing.

But this principle gets lost in our professional lives. We are so focused on the goals and the outcomes of our work, we sometimes lose sight of the satisfaction that comes from the journey itself. We focus on the output instead of figuring out how we can be more efficient or more effective at achieving that output.

Growth and learning needs to become part of our daily operations.

We need to be intentional about our growth, and actually mark time on our calendar to grow and learn every day.

This is why I call this newsletter the 10% training habit. I believe there is massive ROI to train up to 10% of the time on the clock. We can always find ways to become more efficient and effective with our work.

Start with 5 minutes of learning a day. Over time, you will want to add more time to it. It starts to snowball. The trick is to stay consistent.

I get it. We get busy at work. We get sidetracked. We treat growth as a one off event, and wonder why the "BIG PAYOFF" is so elusive.

We have to redefine what success looks like.

Instead of tying success solely to outcomes like promotions, salary increases, or title changes- lets focus on the day-to-day wins that contribute to our growth and satisfaction.

The real gold is when your career becomes a source of regular fulfillment every single day... aka... CONSISTENT GRATIFICATION. And this happens when we grow and learn and become a little bit better than the day before.

The long term goals or the "BIG PAYOFFS" can still be there, but they shouldn't be the sole motivator or focus. Delayed gratification does teach us patience, discipline, and long-term planning.

With consistent gratification, we get a sense of joy and motivation with every new challenge we overcome and skill we master.

This keeps us engaged in our work and prepares us to adapt and thrive in an ever-changing market.

Lets get into action!

ACTION TIME:

1. What is one skill you could get better at? How can the journey towards mastery provide you with consistent gratification?
2. If you have a team, how can you change the focus to more consistent gratification?
3. How can you track the small wins along the way? A daily gratitude journal?

I truly do appreciate your time and attention today. We as leaders need to inspire growth and learning in the workplace, now more than ever! And it starts with ourselves. I promise to continue to provide Fresh, Actionable content week after week on this topic! Writing is one of my sources for consistent gratification, and I am thankful for sharing what I learn with all of my subscribers and friends! Thanks again!

Your Friend,

Dan