The next promotion is not the finish line. While it’s important to have some goals, short, medium, and long-term, the point is simply to be training. When you start thinking about belts, you’re probably actually thinking about other people and how you compare to them. You need to compare yourself to yourself minus one year. That’s it.

It’s not about the goal itself. It’s about what you become in pursuit of the goal.

So choose your goals wisely. If you want a blue belt, you’ll get it.

If you want a black belt, you’ll get it. But it’s not about the belt, right? We’ve all heard that over and over. And it’s true. It’s about becoming the kind of person that can earn a black belt.

And from talking to several black belts, and in looking at my own life, I’ll tell you that the achievement doesn’t change you. By the time you get the black belt, several changes have already occurred.