What you agree to do, do right.
On active vs passive commitments; choosing what to say no to and why everything you do should be an active commitment or nothing at all.
A thread
“Active commitments are investments of time, energy, and resources in areas you willingly choose to love and pursue.
When you’ve made an active commitment out of your genuine interests and values, you’ll take any opportunity that presents itself. Doing so comes naturally.
But when you commit to doing something that doesn’t align with your interests, you’ve taken on a passive commitment.
You agreed to attend an event when you’d rather be sleeping or you took back an old bothersome client because you don’t have the courage to say no.
When you operate out of guilt rather than intention, you are making a passive commitment.
Passive commitments at best dissipate into nothing and, at worst lead to painful extractions and reputational damage. Everything you do should be an active commitment or nothing at all.
An enormous amount of productivity and happiness in business and in life depends on whether you are able to cut out your passive commitments.
To do this, acknowledge passive commitments for what they are, and try to understand what’s driving your need to entertain them.
Fear of disappointing others? Desire to make near-term money? Unwillingness to bear short term pain?
Conduct an objective cost-benefit analysis that factors in the value of your attention & the opportunity cost of other active commitments you could make instead. “
Excerpts from The Messy Middle by Scott Belsky which I'm currently re-reading.
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