A couple years ago, John Maxwell spoke at a conference in Dallas called Catalyst. After his message concluded they had a brief interview session where the host asked Maxwell various questions about his writing career and his life. One of the questions that he was asked was, “How do you find the time to write as much as you have written?” His response was simple and profound. He said, “If you were given a dull axe and were told that you had to chop down a huge oak tree, it would seem like an impossible task. But, if you just take a few swings each day, eventually that tree will be chopped down. Its all about daily consistency.” He went on to describe his discipline of daily reading and writing. This discipline was seven days a week (holidays included), and each day he would read something and he would write something. Overtime, his metaphorical tree has been chopped down, as Maxwell has now written approximately 20 books and counting. It is all about consistency.
This led me to the “Daily 30,” and it is now my daily morning routine. The Daily 30 is the way that I have attempted to bring consistency to my life. The Daily 30 takes 30 minutes each morning, and is made up of 10 minutes of reading, 10 minutes of writing, and 10 minutes of prayer. There is nothing magical about the reading, writing, and praying. There is nothing that mandates that they have to be in this order. This is not a legalistic formula for you to follow. This is simply a framework that I have used to bring consistency to my life.
The reason that I have chosen reading, writing, and prayer for my Daily 30 is simple; I wanted to read more, write more, and pray more, and this discipline has pushed me to do each of these things with more consistently, with more quality, and in more quantity.
If you don’t have anything in your life that forces daily consistency, you are limited to the energy, strength, and endurance that you possess in a single moment, and if your goal is to see the huge oak tree fall in a day, there is a good possibility that your energy, strength, and endurance will deplete before you make it half-way through the trunk. But, if you are consistent with the small things, overtime you can see the tree on the ground. It is all about consistency.
I wanted to write this as a potential resource for those who feel like a dull axe facing a huge oak tree.
Start small and be consistent.
Consider creating your own Daily 30 as a place to start.