Hello, friends—whether you’re grinding in the States, chasing sunrise in Asia, or winding down under southern stars. Round 3, Day 10 of the 740 Challenge is officially in the books, and I’m fired up that you’re here with me. Grab your coffee (or tea, no judgment), because I’ve got a truth bomb that hit me square between the eyes today.
I was diving back into Zig Ziglar’s classic See You at the Top—the same book i first read as a 20 something looking for direction. Zig dropped a line that still stopped me cold:
“Motivation is like bathing—you’ve got to do it every single day.”
Let that sink in.
Most of us only reach for the motivational “tapes” (or podcasts, YouTube rabbit holes, whatever) when we’re already drowning. Job lost. Relationship cracked. Bank account screaming. We’re so thirsty for hope that we’ll drink from any straw—even the ones that leave us more dehydrated than before.
Zig’s counter-punch? Get motivated when you’re already on top of the mountain. That’s when the good stuff actually sticks. That’s when you build the muscle memory to keep climbing instead of sliding back down every time life throws a curveball.
Think about every legend who refused to wait for rock bottom:
We shall draw from the heart of suffering itself the means of inspiration and survival.
— Winston Churchill
Churchill didn’t wait until the Blitz was over to rally Britain. He fed the fire while the bombs were still falling. He bathed in motivation daily, even when the world was on fire.
And then there’s the stoic emperor who literally wrote the book on staying unshaken:
At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: ‘I have to go to work—as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I’m going to do what I was born for—the things I was brought into the world to do?’
— Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
Marcus wasn’t waiting for a pep talk from the Roman Senate. He woke up, reminded himself who he was, and got after it—every single day.
That’s the game I’m playing with this 740 Challenge. Not just surviving the hard days, but stacking wins on the good ones so the hard days don’t stand a chance. Daily reading. Daily movement. Daily gratitude. Daily deposits into the mental bank account so when the withdrawals come (and they will), I’m not overdrafting my soul.
So here’s my question to you tonight:
When was the last time you fed your fire while it was already blazing?
Not when you were desperate. Not when the algorithm served you the perfect reel at 2 a.m. But when you woke up winning—how did you double down?
That’s the secret Zig was selling all those years. That’s the edge the great ones have always had. And that’s exactly what we’re building together, one day at a time.
Day 10 complete.
Day 11, we go harder.
I’ll see you at the top.
David Willis 