Enjoy the process
"It does not matter how slowly you go, as long as you don't give up" - Confucius
We live in a speedy, want everything now culture, but long-lasting success can’t be a
quick thing.
We’re all a part of this microwave type of culture where we want money, success, a fabulous figure, whatever it is, right now. The thing is, real success takes time, it’s slow cooked. Ask yourself, which tastes & looks nicer: a chicken cooked in the microwave, or one from the oven? Yes, the oven cooked chicken takes longer to prepare and you have to wait longer before you can eat it, but it definitely tastes & looks nicer. That’s because it’s supposed to take time & when you let the flavours marinate and don't rush the process, the end result is better.
It’s the same with any type of success. You cannot rush true & long-lasting success. There are lessons to be learnt along the way and we should enjoy the process of working towards our goals.
When I first had the idea for my business, I had visions in my head of it being launched really quickly and in turn becoming this roaring success at the most rapid pace. I could not have been more wrong!
See, what I thought would have been launched and successfully trading within 6 months, did not actually lift off the ground until a full year after I had originally planned. I did not account for all the regulatory and legal requirements when I worked my original timeframe. Then when I did take these things into account, I did not factor in just how long things beyond my control would cause delays in my already worked & re-worked timescales. To call it frustrating, upsetting and annoying would be the biggest understatement of the century.
I was told "Remember Candice, what you are building here, is not something for a year or two, it's something you are building for the rest of your life." After I got over my tantrum, those words changed my mindset and my way of thinking about things completely.
When you are building something worthwhile, whether it be launching a business, losing weight, building a house, forming a career or building a relationship, whatever it may be, the words "slow & steady wins the race" are never truer. See there is no point in stressing yourself out about things not happening at the pace you would hope so long as things are actually moving forward. You may not be exactly where you had hoped to be at that given point, but as long as you keep moving forward, you are on the right path. If you are only even an inch closer to your goal, it is an inch closer than you were before. The mistakes that we make are all part of the process & are a learning curve. It’s during these errors and low points that our resilience builds and we learn how to do things better the next time.
I have realised that delays can be a positive thing. I am learning to use my time of delays and slow movement, to perfect and craft my business. New ideas & ways to make things better for when I do officially launch are being worked on all the time, during this period. Often, when we rush, simple things are overlooked and mistakes can be easily made. I would rather take my time and get it right from the jump, then to rush things and have to be constantly correcting errors.
Nobody has it all together, the key is to learn & grow from our mistakes. I told my eldest son recently that if you’re still making the same mistakes today you made in the past, then you’ve learnt nothing from the challenges of life. Through learning & growth, our success comes as part of the package too. I make so many mistakes in my business, but when I do and once I’ve thrown my tantrum (because I’m a spoilt drama queen like that) I reflect on what I could have done differently. What would have made the outcome a more positive one?
As we grow and learn, so our success grows and we get closer to our goals. These things don’t happen with rushed, quick cook, 5-minute success. Real success has to be oven-baked, quick microwave success just won’t last. Success and achieving your goals is all a process.
Enjoy the process.
Candice Lee
Owner / Managing Director of
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Twitter: @butterflyyprod
