If you’ve ever found yourself watching TV in the middle of the night, you’ve probably run across some sort of infomercial promising you the world for very little effort. My favorites usually explain how “you” can get rock-hard abs and a perfect body in minutes a day, from the comfort of your couch, eating potato chips and drinking sugary drinks. All the while, models with perfect bodies and rock-hard abs show just how easy it is to look like them and be like them.

The thing about these commercials is that if you watch them long enough, they are quite compelling, and even the most steadfast cynic will, at some point, question their own sanity because, hey, “this might actually work!”

We all know these marketing messages have been around as long as there have been marketers, because they prey on one of our biggest vulnerabilities as human beings… The promise of Something for Nothing.

Think about how compelling and hard to resist this message is, especially if you are down on your luck or things in your life aren’t going exactly how you would like. Yet here, for no money down and a few easy monthly payments, “you too” can have the life you’ve always dreamed of.

I see this message offered over and over again in so many ways, shapes, and forms.

Here are a few that come to mind:

Sales professionals get an endless stream of qualified prospects and leads without lifting a finger.
Small business owners are promised marketing results that will fill their pipeline for a fraction of what they pay elsewhere.
Earn big money and create cash flow from the comfort of your living room.
Buy a lottery or Powerball ticket and change your life overnight.
Drink our beverage, buy our clothes, cars, or stuff, and people will like you and want to date you.
And my personal favorite. I’m a foreign millionaire trying to move a large amount of cash into the USA and willing to give you most of it for your bank account info and Social Security number.

All of these are designed in just about the same way in that they promise you something great and ask you for very little or nothing.

Here’s a fact I’m sure you already know. No one, and I mean no one, has ever accomplished anything great by doing nothing or putting in very little effort. And if you happen to, there is little chance of sustaining it.

There’s a reason why 70% of lottery winners are broke within 5 years.

You probably can’t recite the names of the past 5 winners of American Idol or The Voice.

Most people rise too fast, burn out quickly, and fade away. This is because they haven’t put in the time, effort, and energy to become the person needed to reach these levels, so it’s not sustainable.

Look, I get it. It’s fun to think about “what if,” and, quite frankly, it’s much easier to imagine success in a “Something for Nothing” scenario. But do yourself a favor. The next time you catch yourself getting wrapped up in a Something for Nothing frame of mind, ask yourself a valuable question. Does this sound too good to be true? And if it does, then take your parents’ advice and pass.

There is no such thing as an overnight success, so what are you doing this week to become the person you plan to be?

What skills are you practicing to create the outcomes you desire?

Where can you make a slight adjustment or Quarter Turn to start moving in the direction you plan to go?

How are you holding yourself accountable?

If you want to accomplish something amazing, it only stands to reason that you will have to put in the effort to make it happen.

Here’s to getting something for something!