Gah. Sometimes it feels like I’m banging my head against a brick wall with my goals, struggling and struggling away with seemingly no progress. But recently while I was on a call with one of my clients, observing her do the same thing, I was able to observe an interesting pattern. The best moments in her life were always preceded by her biggest moments of terror, frustration and anxiety. That understanding helped me see: If you want to have a breakthrough, you have to have a some that needs breaking through. You can’t have a brilliant, genius breakthrough if everything is coasting along smoothly. You can’t break through thin air. You can however, break through a wall, or even a glass ceiling. I try to remind myself of that. Before each life-changing breakthrough, there’s a wall of frustration. Frustration is the precursor to a breakthrough. It’s a necessity for greatness.

If you’re feeling frustrated, stuck or exhausted, try to see it as a good sign – it’s setting you up for your biggest breakthrough yet.