A few years back, there was a time I went to visit one of my Aunties who was a professional cake baker. So in one of the times, I joined her to bake, and I observed how she follows the processes. She would first turn the margarine and the sugar until a certain consistency, then she would sift in the flour, and then cream it until a certain level. Then she would add egg, and other ingredients. I then asked her why she did not put everything at once and turn, since they would still be put inside. She smiled and said that in order for her to get the right result, they she has to follow the required process. That statement made so much meaning to me even beyond the cake baking. In life, if you must arrive at a result, then you have to be willing and ready to follow the required process.
In life, every meaningful result that you want to get has a process behind it. Things like success, growth, improvement, mastery, etc, are not gotten by accident but by following the process. That is, by consistent efforts, which includes sacrifices, learning, patience, and discipline. It is ironic that a lot of people want the result without following the process. They want quick success without working for it, and they want progress without consistency. How will someone want to harvest what they have not even planted? Imagine dreaming of rewards or the prize, yet you have not paid the price? The level of results you need will be determined by your commitment to follow after the process.
The process is actually what prepares you for the result. It has a way of developing your skills, strengthening your mindset, and building your character. Without following the process, no matter how big your dream may be, it may just end up as mere wishes. A lot of the many struggles and difficulties that people experience in life are not necessarily about the largeness of the tasks at hand, but simply because they did not follow the right process. Imagine if you are climbing the staircase and you are stretching your legs to take it 3 steps at a time. You will become tired easily, and it will even be so difficult to climb, and will ultimately slow you down. But if you climb one step at a time, it will be easier, and you will even be faster, and you will achieve the required result.
One of the reasons why people skip the process is because of impatience. In the world we live in, almost everything is becoming fast and instant, so much that has made people to look for quick result. They even tend to compare themselves with others, and feel sad and frustrated if progress seems slow. But what they fail to understand is that building success can take time. Even what may look like an "overnight success" could be months or years of intense work and sacrifices. That is, what you can see on the outside could be what took years to prepare for.
While following the process, it may require you to give up your comfort at some points. This is because it will require discipline, persistence, sacrifices, and repetition. There might even be moments of failed attempts, frustration, and boredom. Some people tend to avoid these and opt for shortcuts, but at the end, they would discover that they have also missed the result. Shortcuts may bring temporary results, but if you want long-term success, then you have to follow the process. It is by following the due process that you will lay a solid foundation on which the success will be built on.
Following the process also teaches resilience and patience. When you work through challenges, it will teach you how to adapt, how to improve, and how to keep going even in the midst of difficulties. These lessons are very valuable, even as valuable as the final results itself. You have to understand that who you become during the process holds more importance than even the reward you eventually receive. This is why you have to trust the process even if it takes a while or it seems gradual.
Thanks for reading
