Will Smith (2): One Step at a Time

More insights from the December Reader's Digest interview with Will Smith.

Smith shared some valuable lessons he learned from his father:

Smith: My father was in the military, so everything was really regimented.

RD: Was he a taskmaster?
Smith: Oh, yeah, he was very serious about things being a certain way. When my father got out of the Air Force, he started his own refrigeration business. I might have been 12 and my brother 9 when one day he decided he wanted a new front wall at his shop. He tore the old one down -- it was probably 16 feet high and 40 feet long. And he told us that this was going to be our gig over the summer. We were standing there thinking, There will never, ever, be a wall here again. We went brick by brick for the entire summer and into winter and then back into spring. One day there was a wall there again. I know my dad had been planning this for a long time. He said, "Now, don't you all ever tell me there's something you can't do." And he walked into the shop.

The thing I connect to is: I do not have to build a perfect wall today. I just have to lay a perfect brick. Just lay one brick, dude.

How often have I felt overwhelmed by the enormity of a huge project, or a period of time (like the holidays) when so much is going on. At these times, I need to remember Smith's example:

Slow down. Take a deep breath. Take it one step at a time.

(See an earlier post on tips for tackling tough projects.)