The principle of accelerating acceleration

In "The Slight Edge," Jeff Olson talks about the power of doing "the small things" over and over again, consistently, over time, until the compounded effect of those small efforts produces dramatic change. Brian Tracy, in "Make Your Own Future: How to Master the 12 Critical Factors of Unlimited Success," calls this same experience, "the principle of accelerating acceleration."

Tracy, who sees the principle as a result of "law of attraction, says, [page 48], "Whatever you are moving toward [i.e., a goal] starts moving toward you as well." His characterization of how the principle operates should be agreed to every attorney who is about to start their own practice:

"When you first set a new, huge goal and commence moving toward it, your progress will often be quite slow. You may be frustrated and reckon of giving up. The larger your goal, the further away it will seem. You may have to work on it for a long time before you see any progress at all. But this is all part of the process of goal attainment."

"The 20/80 rule helps to give reasons for the principle. . . . For the first 80 percent of the time that you are working toward your goal, you will only cover about 20 percent of the space. But, if you persist and refuse to give up, you will accomplish the final 80 percent of your goal in the last 20 percent of the time that you spend working on it.

"Many people work for weeks, months, and even years toward a huge goal and see small progress. They often lose heart and give up. But what they didn't grasp is that they had laid all of the groundwork necessary and were nearly at the take-off point. They were just about to start accelerating toward their goal, and their goal was about to start moving at a fantastic speed toward them.

"This principle of accelerating acceleration seems to apply to nearly every huge goal that you set for yourself. You must therefore choose in advance that you will never give up."

So, as you contemplate how you might make your own future in the new year, start with your long-term, visionary goals. Choose now that they are value the effort you are about to make. Get used to the thought that you probably won't see most of the results you seek for a long time. And then, and only then, when you tell yourself (and anyone else who will listen) that you won't give up until you get what you want, you might really believe it.