We are a microwave society and it seems we are programmed to just go for the easy, quick fix. Everyone wants convenience and for things to happen quickly and it seems as everywhere you look that is the advertising message we see like , “lose weight fast” or “make money now.”
Taking the easy way will not challenge you or help you improve. I recently started training for a 10K, I was not a runner before training for this race. When I would see a choice of a flat path or a path with some sort of hill I would go for the flat path. The flat path was the easy way and did not challenge me to get better. It did not build up my strength or help me to become a better runner.
Taking the easy way often means we are taking shortcuts. In the long run shortcuts are not beneficial. I go back to the idea of losing weight for an example. When you try to lose weight quickly it is not healthy and it is not sustainable for the long run. When you lose weight by taking short cuts it is a short term solution.
As Maya Angelou said, “All great achievements require time.” Remember not to just go for easy. Be willing to put in the effort and the time and you will reap the rewards.
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Angela Paige
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This is an interesting article, Angela. I am not 100 percent sure I agree that anything worth anything takes hard work to achieve. Some things do, but I don’t think that is true wither everything we try. Many of us have grown up with the idea that it is important to work hard for success, but there are a lot of people who work hard and are not successful at anything except knowing how to work hard.
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Hi Angela,
I think that you make a great point which can apply to many areas of life, such as finances, health, career, etc. You often have to work at something one small step at a time before you can build momentum. Also, the foundation that you lay for your endeavors should be carefully planned. Using your example of weight loss, if you do it slowly and make a lifestyle change you will be able to lose weight and keep it off, meeting your ultimate goal. Good luck with your running!
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Angela,
Very wise words. Sustainability takes time. Respect and reputation takes time. Wasn’t it the tortoise who won the race?
RICK
Rick Lelchuk´s last [type] ..Flexibility – Moving with the Flow
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Great article Angela! I tend to agree with you that it is human nature to look for the quick fix, and too often not follow through when we realize there’s a lot of work involved to get from here … to there. That said I personally have a bit different take on the process – I’m more than willing to do the work, but I try to make myself look at the BIG picture. A lot of times we’re so close to the process we miss bigger opportunities. Great example – a local group I belonged to was fundraising by selling candy at the weekend swap meet – a lot of work for a small payout plus our ‘leader’ had to buy all those candy bars up front and then worry about them melting before we could get them all sold. I happened to read about a grant available for cultural programs and knew our project fit so I pulled in a favor, marched myself into the county council offices and got us $5,000 – more than enough. To me this it’s all about working smarter
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Angela,
ok, ok, yes, we all are guilty of wanting things fast and easy… and most of us achieve that state sooner or later… BUT, what not many people talk about is the hard work and the diligence, and the determination and who know what else that is put into play in order to make it easy and simple…
I thnk you for your great and stimulating article.. hope that what I added here make sense and will serve us all to improve and yes, achieve what you wrote: “All great achievements require time.”
Thanks so much again.
nickc
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Trust me, running or even walking on a flat surface would be a big challenge for me right now!
Your comments about our microwave society take me back 31 years to the time when I was expecting my eldest. I couldn’t find any nice, affordable maternity dresses, so I decided to sew a couple. I did not own a sewing machine, so I sewed them by hand. Years later I was without a sewing machine again, and sewed a doll quilt for each of my three daughters. I made the interesting discovery that if you KNOW something is going to take a long time, you don’t get nearly so impatient for it to be done. You just keep on going, stitch by stitch, until it’s done. And oh my goodness, the pride you feel when it is done!
I still have both maternity dresses, and my daughters still have the quilts.
Willena
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