Life is a long journey- from the hospital bed (birth) to the graveyard (death), consisting of a series of small-small destinations that we travel through all along.
Destination is our vision and an end-goal that we aspire to achieve. Journey is things we experience, on the way to destination. Both are complementary to each other. Both are insignificant and incomplete in the absence of other.
Wins and successes happen only when you set out on a destination and do what it takes to get you there. No one would have succeeded in landing on the moon without direction, destination and plan. Destination is what gives direction and meaning to journey and incites us to act. Journey without destination is like a person who has boarded the ship of life without a rudder and compass and just drifting, not sailing. It’s the skillful sailing to destination that assures a successful and fulfilled life, not just drifting through with no idea of where you might cast. Saying ‘It’s all about the journey reinforces ‘anything goes’ attitude. It makes people complacent.
127 our experts are availableright now
Now coming to the journey: Wherein reaching the destination is just a moment in time, journey to the destination is every moment in time which may take weeks, months, years and sometimes, a life time. This is why, when we talk about accomplishments, it just doesn’t end up with a few words like ‘Well, the match started and I ended up winning the Gold Medal.’ We are rather keen on narrating the stories and incidents of fears, failures and hardships that we went through; people who helped us all along; our making and breaking points and those unforgettable special Kodak moments that got us from there to here.
Moreover, you don’t learn after you achieve the goal. You learn during the process of achieving the goal. What happens is that when there is a big goal in front of you, it’s but natural to think you haven’t succeeded, unless and until you reach your goal. Falling short of anything less than that is considered as failure. You tend to overlook the progress and small- small accomplishments along the way which do the groundwork for success. If we give due attention to the experiences that we gain through the journey- joy and pain; ups and downs; the lessons we learn and the person we become for the things that happen all along, we will gain much more than what we accomplish as an end goal. We will get to taste and cherish small- small successes that come along the road to destination.
Besides, there is no guarantee whether you will reach your final destination or not but the journey is guaranteed success. Anything worth-while, in any field, demands a hell lot of sacrifice, focus, fitness and discipline. Achievers work hard on their goals consistently and persistently, for a long-long period of time. Still, no matter how well you plan and execute, success and the reward you are working towards may or may not happen. There is no guarantee of pay off.
All your planning and execution might fail to get you the outcome and success you had hoped for. Only one thing is guaranteed- lessons and experiences that you gain through the journey. Nobody can take that away from you. Every day you have a chance to get better, to learn something new, to meet new people, to solve problems in different ways which change the way you view the world. So it won’t be an exaggeration to say that you don’t have to reach your goal, necessarily, to feel successful. What we gain through trying is impactful enough to fill us with the feeling of being successful.
To quote John Wooden’ I don’t think you necessarily have victory when you outscore someone, and I don’t think you are necessarily defeated when you’re outscored. I think the real thrill comes from the preparation to get where you’re in that area where you have the opportunity to outscore the opponent. But getting there…it’s like Cervantes said, ‘The journey is better than the end.’”
Yes, all your accomplishments are the by-product of journey. All that you gain is by walking on the trek.
Completing the cycle of journey- from setting a goal to bringing it to a conclusion make us mindful of the process of a well- traveled journey and a well-deserved achievement Take for example, by the time you attain your goal of losing weight, you would have had adopted a healthy life- style, too. And knowing that you have it what it takes, boosts up your confidence and makes you stronger inside.
The woes and blows encountered during the journey; improved discipline, grit and willpower developed all along, bring out the best in a person. To quote Muhammad Ali ‘The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses – behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights.’ Rewards of getting success at something is certainly high and exciting, but the transformation that takes place in a person while working on the goal is far greater in value than what one gets in terms of medals, certificates, name and fame.
So don’t underestimate those small-small milestones and wins you are achieving, and learning something new every moment when you are progressing towards your goal. You don’t know when these payoffs that seem so insignificant and minute will slowly culminate into big win. Do what it takes to do. All the hurdles you cross, the tears you spill because of pain and pleasure; the risks you take; the hard work you put in; the pain of pushing through the comfort zone aren’t just there to make you suffer but to evolve you as a better person.
