Elbow Grease
September 11, 2025
Some things in life just take a little more effort.
The other night I was washing dishes, nothing major, just cleaning up after myself. Everything was easy at first — plates, cups, silverware, quick rinse, little soap, done. Then I got to one pot. And this pot had that hardened seasoning stuck to the bottom, the kind that laughs at you when you try to just rinse it away. I tried the soft approach, and nothing moved. For a second I looked at it like, man, this is pointless. I thought about setting it down and walking away.
But I didn’t. I dug in, pressed a little harder, put some elbow grease into it. And just like that, piece by piece, the seasoning started to break up. A few more scrubs and the pot was spotless, like nothing was ever stuck there in the first place.
That’s life right there.
Most things start off smooth, like washing those first dishes. You don’t even think about it. But then you hit that one spot, that one task, that one problem that doesn’t move so easily. Could be your career, your art, a relationship, or even just something small on your to-do list. And that’s the moment where most people stop. They say, “I’ll come back to it later.” But later doesn’t always come.
The truth is, most things that feel “undoable” aren’t impossible. They’re just stubborn. They need that little extra push past your first try. That extra focus, that extra pressure, that extra decision to not walk away. Because once you lean in, you find out it’s not as tough as it looked.
Elbow grease is really just the difference between almost finishing and actually finishing. It’s the choice to push past that resistance. And once you do, you realize the thing standing in your way was never as strong as it seemed — it was just waiting for you to give a little more.
So whether you’re chasing a dream, trying to build discipline, or just fighting through the small stuff that makes life feel heavy, remember the pot. Remember how it felt impossible until I decided to stick with it. Remember that most things just need effort, not excuses.
Because in the end, it’s never really about the pot. It’s about your willingness to scrub through the hard spots in life and come out clean on the other side.
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