Recently, the Huffington Post did a story about 15 little known facts about the hit show Cheers
The whole list was fascinating, but one point stuck out to me. I thought it was an important lesson that anyone chasing a dream should know.
Copyright: NBC.
The finale of Cheers was the second highest rated finale of any television show in the history of the medium. It was wildly popular when it finished.
But, when it started, the story is a little different.
When it premiered it was 77th out of 100 shows.
That means 76 other shows got better ratings. What does that mean for you and your dream? It means we can never judge the ending by the beginning.
We want dreams that come out of the gates as winners. We want fast starts and big wins right up front. But you know what? The best shows (and dreams) often don’t start that way. They start when no one is watching, when it’s you and your dream getting up early to work. They start when the rest of the world doesn’t even know you exist. When results are scarce and the ratings are low.
In those moments, you will want to give up. You will look at that first attempt and feel it’s representative of how every attempt in the future is going to go. It’s not. It’s your first or your second or your third, but it’s not your forever.
Never let a bad start make you think you’ll never have a good finish.
Don’t quit too soon. No one can predict the finale by looking at the premiere.