Don't Stop Now!

Think for a moment about a lengthy road trip you went on at some point in your life, one that was a few thousand kilometers away. It may have been a destination that took several days to reach, so you had to make overnight stops along the way. Perhaps it was for a holiday, and that destination was to be the highlight of the trip, but you incorporated some stops along the way to do some sightseeing and exploring. Even if you haven't been on such a journey, then think of a destination you would love to visit, that is say 3,000 kilometers away from where you are, and visualize driving that journey, how you would plan it, and where you would stop along the way? Either way, focus now on that destination, and why you wanted to go there so badly, what was it that was attracting you so? Perhaps there was a certain tourist attraction you desperately wanted to see, or there was a certain event on that you needed to attend, or maybe some of your loved ones live there. Whatever the reason, focus on the "why" you chose that destination, and the importance of it to you. Whether you have done such a road trip, or are just visualizing it in your head, I now want you to picture yourself on that journey, where you are say half, to maybe three quarters, of the way there, and unfortunately, you begin to feel the wheel rim starting to scrape against the road, courtesy of a flat tyre. Now this may normally not be such a big deal, but for the fact that along this journey so far, you have encountered so many hiccups, such as constant roadworks, a flat battery, accommodation dilemmas, you lost $100 from your wallet at some point, and all these other annoying inconveniences, it has compounded the frustration within you. So rather than go about changing that tyre and continuing on, you end up changing the tyre, you turn around, and you head home. You are fed up with all these frustrating events and occurrences, that you have simply had enough!

Frustration and anger would certainly be two emotions you would be feeling in such a moment. For so long, all you've been looking forward to is having some time away, and getting to that destination you have been so wanting to visit, but when the time finally comes that you can take this journey, everything just continually seems to go wrong. Such has been the disappointment of the journey to this moment, that it even takes you to the point that you end up turning around and going home, purely because you don't have the strength, the temperament, or the energy to face any more challenges and setbacks. In your mind, the holiday is ruined, so what's the point in continuing? It's like that theory that so many individuals around the world love to believe, that if you continually face setbacks, failures, rejections, and challenges, then clearly what you are striving for isn't meant to be. The truth is, this isn't the case whatsoever. So other than anger and frustration, on returning home, you would also feel extremely disappointed, sad, deflated, dejected, and miserable. Perhaps you would think about trying such a journey again in the future, but with the way you were feeling in that particular moment, that would be a while away. Think about the fact that you would have to start all over again with that journey. You were only another 1,000 kilometers away from reaching your destination, but you ended up giving up because you were tired of encountering challenges and setbacks. You endured 2,000 kilometers of frustration, challenges, setbacks, and inconveniences, which were indeed making your journey unpleasant, yet you gave up driving the remainder of the journey, and reaching the destination, which was the purpose behind your journey in the first place, all because you believed that you were doomed to have an unpleasant holiday.

Many of us have experienced those disaster type holidays from time to time, as things don't pan out exactly the way we expected them to, and it really does ruin an experience we were so looking forward to. In the above scenario, if such a disaster holiday were to take place, I believe most people would still continue on through to their destination, in the knowledge they have come so far, and their destination were closer than home anyway. They would probably believe that things couldn't exactly get any worse even. Why would most people continue through to their destination though? Well, minus the fact they may have already paid for things such as accommodation, it's what they set out on the journey for in the first place. It's what they were looking forward to, it's what excites them, it's what motivates them, it's their why. The question is, why can't more of us apply this theory and attitude to our goals? The pursuit of our goals is also like a journey. Unlike how most of our holidays pan out, we are just about 100% guaranteed that the journey towards our goals will encounter numerous challenges, setbacks, failures, and rejections. It is far from a pleasant and enjoyable one, yet it does teach us so much about our character, our attitude, our values, and our behaviors. Not to mention that it also helps us to grow, develop, and mature, as a person, thanks to the experience we gain. The goal is our destination, it is what excites us and what motivates us, but the problem with most people is that they fail to see their "why". Their goal lacks substance, it lacks meaning, and it lacks purpose. It is something that people would love to achieve, but it's not something they would be prepared to continue to work hard for, be patient for, and overcome all adversities and failures to achieve. It's simply not worthy enough to obtain, proven by the fact that most people quit.

Why begin a journey, only to turn away from the intended destination? It doesn't make any sense whatsoever. For anyone who has ever completed the journey in achieving a life transforming goal, or for anyone who is even currently on that journey, they would well know that it often takes several years to reach that goal, and that the journey is unbelievably challenging. I'm talking about continual failures, ongoing setbacks, non-stop rejections, frequent challenges, and constant criticism and judgment from others. The adversities are brutal, and they will often take us down to the lowest of lows, making it the ultimate test of our character to see how truly resilient, courageous, and determined we are. So it's no secret that the journey towards achieving our goals is damn hard, and it does require us to exercise a lot of patience in order to reach that destination. Most people underestimate just how challenging it really is though, along with setting unrealistic expectations for themselves. When those expectations aren't met, the challenges and failures keep on coming, and there are no visual signs of any decent success, that's when most people succumb to giving up. But why give up on something that you have already applied so much hard work to, applied so many hours to, invested so much money on, and sacrificed so much for? Above all, why give up on something that you truly desire and are passionate about achieving? What do you achieve by giving up? Nothing! You immediately return to the position you first started in, one in which you were unhappy, unsatisfied, miserable, and unfulfilled. One in which you wanted to escape in the first place. All your hard work is undone, just like that.

It may seem like we are never getting closer to our goal. It may seem like we are not making progress. It may seem like we are wasting our time. It may seem like these failures and challenges will never end. As hard as it may become, we just have to keep going! Failure is a part of the journey, and yes, that includes failing time and time again. I always love saying these four words that "failure is never finality", not unless we let it be anyway. Failure is an opportunity to identify what we are doing wrong, learn from it, make adjustments to our actions, and then try again. This will happen over and over, even for years and years, but eventually we will trial a certain action that generates the success we have been craving. We are always just that one action away from success, but it's up to us to work hard, get creative, be adaptable, and seek out that winning formula. You see, whilst we believe we aren't gaining anything along the journey to our goals, and all we are confronting are non-stop failures, we are actually gaining invaluable experience. From experience, we are learning, and then from learning, we are growing and developing, and from growing and developing, we are maturing. Just because we can't visibly see progress and success, doesn't mean we aren't actually achieving them. Each time we experience failure, we learn, we grow, we develop, and we mature, because we are forced into making changes, we are forced to step out of our comfort zone, we are forced into devising a solution, and we are forced into a mode of resilience and perseverance. That's what life wants us to do, experience, learn, grow, develop, and succeed. What have we ever achieved by quitting? You wouldn't start baking a cake only to stop three quarters of the way through. You wouldn't drive three quarters of the way to the shop to buy milk, because you had run out, only to turn around and go back home. You wouldn't tell your boss that you are going home, after going to your job to spend just 6 of the 8 hours of your working day there, all because you've had a rough day. Why then settle for only doing half to three quarters of the journey towards your goals, only to stop?

Don't stop now! You can't stop! You have invested too much time, energy, money, and hard work, into creating the life that you desire, to turn around and quit! Keep going! Trust me, I know exactly how hard such a journey is, and how it always feels like that success never seems to be getting any closer, but it never will get any closer by quitting. You can do this! You just need to continue believing in yourself, continue to work hard, continue to persevere, continue to remain resilient, continue to remain patient, continue to be driven by your goal, and continue to focus on the actions before you right now. What is that you can do today that is going to continue progressing you towards that goal, no matter how difficult, uncomfortable, or arduous that action may be? Do it! You're not a quitter, so don't degrade yourself! Chase down that goal, work hard for the life you desire, and don't stop! All this current pain, suffering, hardship, failure, and adversity, will one day soon, be all the worth it!

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