Do you want it all NOW, right NOW? Financial success, critical acclaim, fame? Do you wish you could press a button on the replicator and say “Wild Success” and it would appear in a nice dish with whipped cream on top? I do. We’ve been trained to think that results should be immediate, instant. This despite it being proven time and time again that that’s not at all how it works. The angst doesn’t come from this fact…that things take time. The angst comes when we believe that things SHOULD NOT take time, that they SHOULD be immediate. For some reason we think faster results are better than results that happen over time, naturally and organically. And sure, it makes sense on some level. Afterall, the creditor wants his money NOW, not when you gain financial success and have more than ample money to pay him.
But think about the caterpillar that turns into a butterfly, or any other process in nature. You don’t shout at the caterpillar to hurry the hell up and become a butterfly already, you have a plane to catch, you have bills to pay, appointments to keep. The caterpillar is going to take her sweet time and become a butterfly when she’s good and ready, even if you’re standing there huffing and puffing, pacing in circles and tapping your foot impatiently. What can you change in this situation? Certainly not the caterpillar’s transformation process. You could change your whole attitude about it though. You could, and I’m going out on a limb here, you could accept that nature operates on it’s own schedule that has very little to do with your pressing engagements. Once you’ve stopped resisting this, you might just end up savoring the caterpillar’s process and recognizing the miracle behind it.
One other factor that contributes to the angst is the fear that you’ll NEVER get to be successful since it’s not happening right this second. But how ridiculous would it be for the caterpillar to think that she will NEVER turn into a butterfly because she’s not one right now? It’s equally as ridiculous for you to think that you’ll never be successful because you’re not now. It’s just unnecessary angst that clouds your judgment and prevents you from doing your best work. So, squash that fear and know in the back of your mind, you’ll get there and being where you are now is just part of getting where you want to go.
My point is this, things take their own sweet time. As a budding entrepreneur, this is a hard fact to swallow because like I said, the creditor is knocking on your door. But if you let go of your expectation that success is supposed to be instant, you might just start enjoying the journey. I’m not saying you shouldn’t take steps towards your goal, measure your results and adjust what you’re doing. And don’t forget to take steps to stave off the creditor while you’re at it. But as you take your steps, try new things, take on projects you care about, don’t be disappointed when the money doesn’t start rolling in immediately, or your first book isn’t a best seller or you sold only one piece of art this month. Keep at it, adjust, learn from your mistakes and you’ll get there. Maybe success SHOULD NOT be immediate, just like the caterpillar SHOULD NOT hurry up and become a butterfly.
Have you ever noticed that you can’t rush that great idea? Maybe you’ll have your jackpot idea when you’re baking cookies for your friends like Mya Jacobson did after leaving Wall Street that led her to start Feed Your Soul . Or maybe you’ll produce some amazing piece of work after producing some mediocre pieces and it will hit a nerve in the market and generate more income than you could imagine like Elizabeth Gilbert with her book Eat, Pray, Love. Why don’t these things happen to you today, right now? Because maybe you need to go through some failures and learn from your mistakes to be able to have that great idea and to produce that amazing piece. Maybe it’s a process you can’t hurry. Maybe the best thing you can do is be open to the process and get out of it’s way!
Are you trying to push the process along or going with the flow? Leave me a comment!
i love this taz…telling the “caterpillar to hurry the hell up and become a butterfly already!” that sounds like me talking to me sometimes!
it’s crazy how we can get so impatient at times, but what helps me is when i step back and look at where i was a year ago and to realize, dang, i’ve done so much in this past year!
thanks for another great post!
Great post, it’s yet another reminder that things happen in their own good time. I’ve been trying too hard and attempting too much for awhile. That will change now. YOU are already a butterfly.