Book Club: Small Hard Things (Do Hard Things, chapter 8)

We've talked about going outside of your comfort zone. We've talked about going above and beyond the requirements. We've talked about the big hard things that require you to do them with other people.

Where do just little, everyday, mundane tasks come into the rebelutionary mindset? That's what chapter 8 of Do Hard Things is all about. 

"The truth is that your life (both now and later) will require you to invest a lot of time and energy in things that aren't big and that don't seem to make much of an impact. Some days they don't even make sense. Sometimes the smallest hings can be the hardest of all." (page 134)

Why Are They So Hard?
The book outlines five reasons why the small, everyday things like chores, getting up on time, or reading your Bible are so hard:

1. They don't usually go away after you do them. (You have to wash the dishes every day. You don't do homework once and then quit. The house doesn't stay clean.)
2. They don't seem very important. (Isn't it more important to raise money for a big cause? Aren't small hard things like, a distraction or something?)
3. They don't seem to make any difference. (Will it matter in five years whether I did the dishes today?)
4. They don't seem very glamorous. (Being patient and kind isn't something I'm going to get famous for. I don't get much thanks for these chores.)
5. No one is watching. (Everyone's impressed with her. No one notices all of these small things I'm doing.)

And here are five ways we tend to respond to these things:

1. Procrastination (I'll do it right after I do this. And this. And this.)
2. Inconsistency (I did it last Tuesday. And then I think last month sometime.)
3. Compromise (I'll stop this bad habit for good soon...but not right now.)
4. Begrudging (I'll do it, but I won't like it.)
5. Cheating (If you don't count under my bed and in my closet, I cleaned really well!)

Why Do They Matter?

These things benefit our lives right now and they also develop habits that will serve us well in the future, like self-discipline, relationship skills, and serving others.

"Doing hard things is how we exercise our bodies, our minds, and our faith. Small hard things are the individual repetitions--like a single push-up. They are seemingly insignificant by themselves but guaranteed to get results over time." (page 138)

"If we're willing to strive for excellence, even in the boring, repetitive tasks and responsibilities that others delegate or neglect, we will reap the powerful benefits that others miss. Embracing small hard things can make a radical difference." (page 141)

You probably have responsibilities that you try to ignore. You have to remind yourself that you have to keep an eye on those areas and commit to excelling in them even when it's hard. 

Small hard things are preparation for the future, but they are also significant by themselves as well. The book quotes Colossians 3:23, that says "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men." 

There is a quote near the end of the chapter from Martin Luther King Jr.:

"If it falls your lot to be a street sweeper, sweep streets like Michelangelo painted pictures, sweep streets like Beethoven composed music...Sweep streets like Shakespeare wrote poetry. Sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will have to pause and say: Here lived a great street sweeper who swept his job well." -Martin Luther King, Jr.

"Like the street sweeper, your actions at home, at school, at church, and elsewhere in your community can bring honor and glory to God if you are willing to throw yourself into them 100 percent just because they're things He has given you to do." (page 144)

What do you think? Did you enjoy this chapter? What are some small hard things in your life that tend to get neglected?