Break-throughs.

We read about them in books. We wish for them in our lives. We hear inspirational speakers talk about them as if they’re the holy grail. Break-throughs, in my own experience, are usually born out of perseverance, and they most often follow the rule of fours.

Four minutes, four days, four weeks, four months – if you can just muscle through the fours, you can make it to the next level. Resist that chocolate bar for four minutes and the craving is over. Exercise for four days in a row, and you’re on your way to a new routine. Do something daily for four weeks, and you have created a new habit. Stick to a change for four months, and you have a break-through. You realize you didn’t like the way it was before; you can’t believe you did it for so long; you feel better now that you’ve made a change. Break-throughs are often realizations based on consistent, dogged, hard work.

So next time you wish some break-through would fall from the sky, kick you in the rear, and open your eyes to a new way, remember that break-throughs are hard work. It’s even in the name. Breaking through something usually takes work. If you break through a door, it takes effort. If you break through a wall, it takes strength. If you break through a hard plastic encasement on a product, it usually takes, teeth, scissors, muscles, pliers and maybe a chainsaw.  So don’t give up! Don’t feel bad if the break-throughs don’t just happen. Dig your heels in and resolve yourself to get past the next four.

Be blessed.