It's Not Just About The Finish Line...

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay 

It’s hard not to focus on the Finish line, on completing the task and getting things done.

We seem to be hardwired to be that way, or at the very least, programmed to focus on it.

Our emphasis, then, is on the end point, how we’ll feel when it’s all over. And all of our efforts goes towards that end and getting “the result”.

The problem with that mindset is that we lose sight of what’s probably the most important part: the journey.

It’s the journey that teaches us. The journey is what builds our characters and molds who we are. It’s the journey that, ultimately, changes who we are.

Yes, that journey can be difficult, and tortuous and cumbersome and unpredictable and uncertain. Yes, it’s full of pitfalls and obstacles. But that’s actually the very thing that’s the value of the journey. The obstacle, in the words of Marcus Aurelius, is the way.

In other words, in so many respects, the journey is the destination.

So, instead of focusing on finishing, perhaps we focus on the work needed to get there. Perhaps we view the path we traverse as the essential element. Maybe we look at the problems along the way as challenges and teaching moments.

In that way, the fruit of our labor is what we’ve learned - the confidence and knowledge and wherewithal that comes from overcoming the obstacles we’ve encountered, from crossing the path.

Everything else that comes with it is a bonus (and well deserved if we’ve done the work).

Easier said than done, I realize. But surely worth the effort.