Most people start out in their business with ideas of success, being the best in their field, and of course being able to support themselves financially. As they work in their business, that hope starts to dim a bit and they are faced with a choice. The choice is whether to keep going in their business and keep working, trying to build, or to try something different.

Why is that? Because the business owner is following the natural pattern of the road to mastery. The road is a bumpy one and a lot of people fall away, some because what they are doing wasn’t their life’s purpose, or something better came along. Others fall away because they couldn’t figure out how to succeed, and the last group falls away because they didn’t really comprehend what the road to mastery looked like.

Here’s what the journey looks like. Everyone starts out as a beginner. It doesn’t matter who you are or what talents you are blessed with, everyone starts out with little or no knowledge and skill in the areas that they are engaged in. So at the beginning, starting at ground zero, it doesn’t take too much effort to get better than zero. There is almost always an immediate burst of progress that gives a sense of accomplishment.

After the burst of progress, their skill level typically declines or plateaus for a while. It is natural to stay on that plateau for an extended period of time. Then eventually there will be an upward spurt of progress. Often this is the case, but it is shocking how the person engaged in the activity that takes place on the plateau can get worse before they get better.

As you get a little better, you plateau, fall back, increase your skills and then dash ahead. It takes time and patience, and a willingness to go on the journey knowing that the instant microwave result is not what you signed up for. The trick is in what you do when you plateau. Many people get discouraged. Don’t practice too much or quit. If you keep stepping up to the plate and practice, even when you are apparently going nowhere, you are making huge steps closer to the mastery that you desire.