How far are you willing to go?

[Steven Wade]

If you dig really deep into this, the real question is how badly -- how much desire -- you have to succeed. If you have a real reason, plan, and belief that you can get it, but you don't intensely want it, then you'll quit when things reach a certain difficulty.

Your desire is the fuel to drive you from where you are to where you want to be in IM, and everything else in life. When you quit (even indirectly by putting in less time and effort), alibis come rolling in (i.e. family > IM).

Then, instead of "I'm doing this!", the thinking becomes "...how far will I go to get it?". When objectively looked at, family, your use of time, and IM aren't related in any way.

This is a seemingly simple comparison most onlookers would agree to -- making it socially "safe" to say publicly. When someone agrees with you, it provides social proof your decision to put in less time and/or effort is correct.

Even if nobody explicitly agrees, you now have your reason out in the world for people to see. If anyone calls you on it, then "hey, FAMILY > IM".

Not judging, because I've done it myself in many different situations, but nobody was willing to point it out to me, most of the time. Hope this provides some insight on things.