Did you miss the chance to become the most read site or publication? Did someone else rank higher on a list, in an organization, in a social network?
How many times do you tell yourself: I'll do better next time?
Do you equate that to results?
What happened next time?
Sliding doors scenario
Say you did better next time around. You are on top of the list, your site ranks higher, even highest in your category, or across a couple of them; you have the most followers. What's next?
Or maybe you didn't do better. You ended up at about the same level as you were before and you put considerable time and energy into your pursuit of higher. What's next?
Has either of those scenarios made you happier? The challenge with constantly looking to what's next is that we forget where next comes from: it comes from this moment. It originates from the choices we make and the promises we keep.
Putting stock in the opinions of others
Is a sure recipe for disappointment. There is more: it gives little value back to you. Those lists and rankings make no promises. A third party, you, is expected to warrant that the ranking was fair. Would you expect Ford to warrant that the price you bought a used car for was fair?
A promise is an agreement to do something that one can rely on. Opinions are not promises.
How about asking a different question?
What now?