We live in a world today where expectations are rising. We expect things better than before and faster with less headaches. We’ve become an almost On Demand culture. If we want something, we expect it either now or in 2 days shipping. We can non-stop binge watch things and always be entertained 24/7. We can eat foods from all over the world without traveling there. We can see exciting parts of the world through Google searches. We can order specialized products from across the world with a few clicks. It’s quite phenomenal what we have been able to achieve.
However, this amazing advancement has also created some drawbacks. The biggest ones I can see is the lack of patience and commitment to processes and systems which has created some unrealistic expectations on things that cannot be changed so easily. One of these areas that cannot be changed so easily is our life circumstances like our job, our relationships, our living situation. These changes take time and cannot be solved through Amazon Prime or Netflix (though they may provide a temporary reprieve from life circumstances).
We live in an On-Demand culture and expect changes quickly and easily
We have gone from a “get rich quick” society to a “always be happy/get what you want” society. And this mentality takes away from the real work and patience it takes to heal/change ourselves that eventually leads to a change in our life situation.
When I was 25, I had a “come to Jesus” moment, also known as a reality check. I came to a brutal realization that I wasn’t “strong” enough to be as successful as I wanted to be. Up until this time, I had experienced a decent amount of personal success in life: scholarships, college degree from a strong university, leadership positions, a good network of friends, admiration from my peers- a pretty decent resume up until that point. But I hit a wall- the Wall of Reality. This wall told me that I wasn’t gifted enough to passively approach life and that I had to learn how to be intentional and endure difficulty for what I wanted. I also had to learn patience (the ability for me to put aside little joys for long term success). Through training for 2 years in a bootcamp Yoga, I was able to develop the understanding of what this means and build the skill to endure difficulty on my path to achieving my goals.
There are many things in life that can come quickly, but life circumstances usually takes some time to create the changes we want. The process is not always easy. It can be challenging and test our limits and require dedication and patience to overcome. It may be a multi-year process to finally “arrive” at your destination. Be patient. Be diligent. Stay the course. And over time, you will see the results in subtle ways at first and then one day, when you’re sitting quietly alone, you’ll look back and see the progress you’ve made and the life you changed.
I’m writing this now, as I’m sitting on a balcony in front of the ocean. It takes work. It takes time. Be diligent. Be patient.