Important, but Underrated

There is one component of your life that is very important but probably highly underrated.

It is the journey.

Common sense will say that we probably spend 99.9% of our time in the journey and 0.01% (if we are generous) at the destination. When we reach the destination, almost immediately, our focus goes to the next destination and we are off to a new journey. So, if that’s the case, why don’t most people enjoy the journey. Why should journey be the most underrated component of the lives of most people?

The answer is in the implicit design of any journey

The Implicit Design of a Journey

Believe it or not, your journey is implicitly designed to be complicated, uncomfortable and frustrating all at once. Now, that is not to mean that you should not enjoy that journey. It is simply what it is.

Let us take an example you are familiar with from your early days:
Destination: Wanting to walk
Journey: Learning to walk

Was it frustrating? Probably. Imagine if your goal was to continue to keep rolling to reach your destination. It would be super comfortable, less complicated and probably have zero frustration. Problem? You wouldn’t have grown a bit.

Here is the deal: You want to grow and the goals you setup will take you to places that you have never been before. There is a frist time for everything and but getting to that first time will be more complicated than doing what you are already doing, more uncomfortable because you have not done those things before and more frustrating as you probably won’t succeed the first time you try those things.

Summary: There is no need to NOT enjoy the journey because it’s more complicated, uncomfortable and frustrating, because that is exactly what you signed up for when you set those goals. It’s a package deal and dealing with all the complications, getting used to the uncomfortable situations and handling the frustrations of not getting it right the first few times is what will give you the GROWTH that will keep you going.

Enjoy the journey!