Can’t Harvest What You Don’t Plant

Hey team. Today’s quote is: You can’t harvest what you didn’t plant. Today’s actions are tomorrow’s realities.

This applies to procrastination and putting things off. It doesn’t work well to cram for a test the night before if you haven’t done anything for months. While sometimes you can get away with it, ultimately it doesn’t make you a smarter person. It can even set you up for worse failures down the road because you thought you got away with something, so you try it again and again. Eventually, it grows into a major failure. Then you start saying to yourself, “I suck,” and wonder why. The fact is, you haven’t been planting well for yourself—whether in your realities or your habits.

Imagine if you said, “Hey, I’m going to plant a garden.” Maybe you said that in February or March, but didn’t take any action. As the weather gets nice, you end up with a bunch of weeds. You say, “Oh my gosh, I need to plant that garden,” but then don’t do the work. Maybe you just try to quickly till the ground, throw out a bunch of seeds, and hope something grows. Things might start to sprout, but if you forget to water them, everything dies. It’s scorching hot, you don’t keep up with it, and you don’t harvest anything.

If you didn’t plant anything in time and suddenly realize in July or August that you forgot, it’s too late. Maybe you say, “Well, maybe next year.” I don’t know about you, but I’ve had seasons in my life where I said that—and a decade later, I was still looking at things and saying, “Maybe next year.”

Something to think about. The same thing is true for sales and everything else we do in life. Maybe next year, maybe next week. Maybe later. That’s one of the reasons we do our DS, write our reports, and handle our work in little increments.

One of the things I’m working on with my boys this summer is showing them that if they get up and spend 30 minutes cleaning the house, 30 minutes reading, and 30 minutes pulling some weeds, then we can make progress, maintain things, and still have fun. We’ll have time for water, pool parties, and all the good stuff—without wearing ourselves out by crunching an entire day into one exhausting task. Little bits at a time.

You’ve probably heard me say this dozens of times—unless this is your first video. If so, let me say it again: I repeat these things because sometimes it takes multiple repetitions for it to sink in. Some of us are a little hard-headed, like me. Others are brand new.

If you read just 10 pages in a book every day, by the end of the month you’ll have read at least one book. Most books are around 250 to 300 pages. Sometimes you might even finish one and a half, or two. Imagine reading 15 to 20 books a year, gaining knowledge and growing.

Imagine becoming a better parent by reading books on parenting. A better spouse by reading books on relationships. I read books on leadership because I want to be a better leader. I see that encouragement happening through Sonia and others. Many of our leaders are now reading at least one book every quarter. Some are reading two. I applaud that growth in each of them—and in each of you.

Do those things. But remember, you can’t harvest if you don’t plant. Planting seeds of growth and wisdom into your life and continuing to do so will only help you in the long run. It will help you become a better person, better prepared for what’s next—your purpose, your growth, your longevity, wherever life takes you.

I wish you all a wonderful week. God bless you, and I’ll talk to you next week.

Remember: Be valuable. It’s right there in the corner—nothing less will do.

Don’t forget—we’ve got parties coming up! If you haven’t RSVPed, you don’t want to miss the barbecues. You don’t want to miss a hamburger, a hot dog, some good fellowship. I’m going to make some tuna mac because it’s one of my favorites. We’re going to eat, have fun, enjoy, and throw water balloons at each other.

See you soon!