EDITED VERSION

I went for a walk because I wanted to get some inspiration to write this article. I've been thinking about it for a while — it's something that's really important to me, and I was a little intimidated to finally put it into words so I could share it with more people. Maybe it'll be helpful to someone too.

So I'm listening to this podcast, and a man on it — a successful businessman — says: "You need to work on certainty within yourself before anything else. Work on your insecurities and doubts. Put that before any business plan, before anything you think is important. Work on that first."

And I thought: oh my goodness, that's the missing piece I was looking for. Because here's the thing — how? How do you actually work on yourself to the point where you're that sure of yourself?

How many people actually achieve something great? A minority. And I've been thinking about why. How do you get there? How do you build something that keeps working — where the thing doesn't break, and you don't break. Because I don't know. Or at least I didn't really realize it, to the full extent.

And I know, by how I've pitched it to you, you might be expecting some groundbreaking information. Something nobody knows. Here it is — the grand reveal! But no. Let me tell you — it's simply the trust that you have in yourself. Bam. That's it. You can close this article and go back to what you were doing, because it sounds so boring and underwhelming and, quite frankly, frustrating.

Or… you can hang on a little longer and hear me out. I'll prove it to you, and maybe you'll see it for yourself and actually be able to do something about your situation. Because I know a lot of people feel that they can do better, achieve more, take chances and win — they just don't see the way out.

The Pattern I Couldn't Unsee

Let me start from a couple of months ago. A friend invited me to watch a World Cup final with some of his friends I didn't know. What he didn't know was that, that same day, I was planning to tell him we should hang out a little less — because I have this business and this dream that I want to build, and it's all too distracting for me.

My friends know that's my regular pattern. I disappear for weeks, months, saying oh I'm working on this thing, I need space, I need so many things. I've lost friends over it. But I always thought I was in the right.

Then it hit me: wait a second. Isn't it the same pattern I apply to myself?

I mean — I plan something, I have goals for the next quarter, the next year, and then after entertaining them for a few weeks, when it actually gets to the hard, grinding part, I suddenly jump ship and forget all about it. Never mention it again. Even though there's this unanswered question nagging me from inside: "What about those dreams you said out loud?" Nothing. Silence.

And once I saw it, I couldn't unsee it. Because here's what nobody tells you about breaking promises to yourself — it's not just a bad habit. It costs you something you can't easily get back.

When you ignore your own promises and leave them hanging in the air, and then try to come back to them later — why does it feel so much harder? Why do you have so many more doubts? Why are you afraid to step into it again?

Because you have proof now. Proof that you didn't do it. There's no proof of your success anywhere to be found — only proof of failure. And that's what your brain reinforces: "Look, here's what went down last time. I don't think you can do it." I mean, how harsh is that? Pretty painful. I felt that proof accumulating inside me for years without knowing what it was.

Everyone has access to the same information now. Same books, same podcasts, same YouTube videos. So why do so few people actually build anything? It's not knowledge. It's not opportunity. It's that they don't believe themselves when they say they're going to do it. Because they've said it before. And didn't.

Faithful in Little

There's a verse that kept coming back to me: "Whoever is faithful in little is also faithful in much." Which can be applied to everything.

You're not going to build a successful blog if you can't sit down and work on your articles, day after day, week after week. Same with business — you can't make more money if you haven't started with making any at all. First a little money, then a little more, and then more. Or think about relationships. You don't build trust on the second day. It's a track record of proof you build with the other person that shows you can be trusted.

Every person you admire for their commitment — they didn't wake up certain one day. They kept one small promise, then another, then another, until their inner voice stopped arguing with them when they set a goal. That's the whole secret. It's boring. It's slow. And it's the only way. As Grant Cardone puts it, you either get bigger or you stay small — there's no in between.

So what's the mechanism? It's pretty simple. You know what to do, you sit down, and you do it. It starts with something embarrassingly small. One evening where you sit down anyway. One promise you keep when everything in you wants to disappear again. It feels almost too small to matter. But that's exactly the point.

Building the Proof

What did I do after realizing all this? I decided I wanted to fix it. I promised myself I wouldn't do it again. I don't want the swings of highs and lows — being proud of myself one week and disappointed the next, feeling low even when nothing is actually wrong.

Because I know myself well enough to know I can't get rid of that drive for something bigger, something higher. I don't know where it comes from, but I know it's there, and I'm left unsatisfied every single time I ignore it. So there's no other path for me.

And I started working on it. I write on my blog. I work on my app development (that's what I want to do, and what I hope will bring me money one day) consistently. Consistently. And guess what — even when the metrics don't show it, I'm still so proud of myself. Because metrics and money and all of that aren't the end goal. Being true to your higher self is. I know it'll pay off eventually. I don't know when and I don't know how, but I am certain it will. It can't be otherwise, because I'm working on my skills and actually getting better.

As Grant Cardone also says: there are plenty of people who know everything, but very few who have actually done anything. And now you know why.

I don't want to make the same mistakes anymore. I want to build proof for myself that I can do this. Because my dreams are big, and I deserve better. And so do you. If you're serious about your goals and you have big aspirations, you need to start building that proof — one little win at a time, every kept promise, every checked task. You deserve better than being your own worst ghost.

Go build that life that excites you.

Best,
V