Growing up, the chore I hated most was vacuuming. It wasn’t the manual labor. As a little kid, I liked any opportunity to “be a grown up.” It was the fact that there was no visible result from all that work. It never made sense to me why we should spend all those minutes moving a loud, heavy piece of machinery over our carpets when it didn’t seem to do anything. When I asked “why?” my dear old dad gave me an extra long explanation about dust mites and “dirt you can’t see.” (He has a habit of long drawn out explanations, even to his grandkids).

Nowadays whenever I want my kids to do something, I always make sure to offer a good reason why. It helps them think for themselves and self-motivate, instead of mindlessly following instructions. That doesn’t mean they are happy to do chores or homework, but that certainly takes the fight out of it. The one person I didn’t to use this technique on was myself.

We’re two weeks into the new year. I like to make fun of all the people who resolve to be in the gym January 2nd and quit by January 4th. I can make fun of them because unlike the rest, I started my gym routine on a day other than January 1st. However, despite being inspired by my sister-in-law’s primal physique, I slacked quite a bit during the holidays.

It wasn’t a lack of discipline, as much as I felt I has been “good” about my gym schedule for awhile and felt I could get away with a bit of cheating. I mean, it’s not like one workout will show a difference. Of course, if you maintain this attitude for too long, and the results will be apparent. They will be as apparent as a carpet that hasn’t been vacuumed for months.

The lesson here is that I stopped reminding myself of the results. Yes, vacuuming and working out doesn’t have immediately changes to see. One must remind oneself of the long term effects of the activity. That’s how you can inspire yourself to keep pressing. Vacuum those carpets. Hit that gym. Goodbye.