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Every morning at 8 and evening at 6, my neighbor practices on his drums for an hour. He started 6 years ago when we moved into the neighborhood. We were the first 2 to the neighborhood and when he started I thought it would only be a few times a week and would go away eventually. He used to practice 1-2 rhythms in the beginning (Ta–Tum, Ta–Tum, Ta–Tum), excrutiatingly slow. It must have been very frustrating to him. When my dad, a professional drummer, came to visit 2 years into it he offered to over and help the guy out. It was so bad. Today, my neighbor plays complicated riffs and I can actually catch the beat.

Also when we moved into the neighborhood, I started walking for 40 minutes. I convinced myself that 5 times a week was enough and that my body needed to “rest” on the other 2 days. After about 3 months 5 days went to 3. Three more months, 3 went to none. Two years into it, I realized that my waistline was expanded and decided to start the exercise regimen again. This time at the gym. I stuck with it for 3 months then it slipped to 2 days. After about 3 more months, the regimen went the way of the wind.

The difference between my neighbor and myself: he is consistent and I am not. I used to pride myself on not having to be consistent in my teens and twenties. I could learn anything overnight. In my professional life, I was brought in to turn projects around, rarely was I involved in the day to day execution. In my thirties, I started to dislike starting over every time. It was great that I mastered the ability to re-start and adapt to change easily, but in my personal life it didn’t get me the results that I wanted.

I’m 31 now, so I’m only one year into the notion of consistency. I must admit, I still don’t have a good grasp of it. I am learning though. I’m applying the theory to my health, spiritual practice, pursuit of my purpose, and new internet venture. Successful internet entrepreneurs understand the importance of creating a quality product be it a blog, ecommerce site, or information product. We understand the importance of networking via comments, e-mails, and of course, links. As a blogger, there is another ingredient, consistency. Whether it’s in posting or participation in the blogosphere. Consistently presenting yourself to the community builds up momentum and keeps your audience engaged. I learned that the hard way this week. I thought I’d pass on the information so that you don’t have to feel the sucker punch of a page 9 ranking after your business is dead because you stopped being consistent.