BLVCK & WRITE

process > outcome 

i’ll keep this one short and sweet. 

the more you grow, the more you learn. don’t be so pressed about your outcome right now. have a growth mindset. 

embrace your process — trust it.

the process is necessary, and the process itself is going to change you. so there’s no need to focus on memorizing the route you took to accomplish that change. just trust it. the process will consist of many great victories as well as defeats — persevere and believe in your process.

embrace failure — never give up.

use failures as a teacher as opposed to your enemy. please don’t waste your time trying to avoid failure; embrace it! ultimately, failure is inevitable, meaning you are bound to fail. you can come back from any setback if you want to, but that’s your choice to make. navigate your process, knowing that failure can build your character just the same as it can test your resilience.

don’t be lazy — put in the necessary work.

most people want the prize, but they don’t want to take the time to learn how to get there. those people will never become successful. your process is going to require you to do certain things, depending on what your goals are; this might mean years of training, learning, overcoming failures, making friends, losing friends, trying new strategies. the limit is endless. but you can’t be lazy, and you have to be willing to take those steps. 

the person you are becoming is infinitely more valuable than whatever the result is, or might be. 

direction > speed

in other words: focus on your path more than your pace.

no matter how fast you go, if you’re going the wrong way, you’ll never get to where you want to go — or where you need to be.

invest your time in determining your direction. 
when you’re going the right way, you can travel with confidence and patience. this way, it’ll only be a matter of when you get there — not if you make it. the surest way to get where you want to go is to move in the right direction, not go as fast as you can.

change your direction.

remember “journey > destination”? this is it, your journey. sometimes you’ll make wrong moves in the wrong direction. you’ll make a left turn instead of a right one. but don’t panic, and especially don’t speed up and keep moving in the wrong direction. slow down and change your direction.

the faster you travel on the wrong road, the farther you go in the wrong direction. BUT, if you’re moving in the right direction, sooner or later, your destination will be reached.

it’s better to take your time and be confident of not only where you’re moving, but also how you’re moving.

s l o w d o w n

stop. take a moment to look within and ask yourself for direction before heading nowhere fast. don’t worry about how long it’s taking you to achieve your goals — all that matters is you’re moving in the right direction.

remember, every journey starts with that first step. take it slowly and in the right direction so that your destination isn’t a dead end.

journey > destination 

i used to be a destination-oriented person — the process never bothered me, but the outcome did. it took a few setbacks for me to understand and realize the substance and importance of my process. there are milestones i want to reach, and things i want to experience. i've learned that nothing is more important than achieving these goals except everything about how i get there: my journey. 

those setbacks taught me that the path i take to reach my goals is more important than my goal itself because it's where learning and growing take place. these same setbacks also taught me that there would be more. 

destinations change, constantly. they can become obsolete, or new ones may even appear. but your journey never changes; it only continues. for example, you graduate high school, you graduate college, you get a job, you settle, it goes on, and that goal or milestone (i.e., destination) changes as we move from one phase of life to another. what's important to keep in mind is that it happens differently for everyone. it's what makes us unique, what makes us special, and gives us purpose. we grow, we heal, we win, we lose, we learn. think about the person you become, the connections you make, the lessons you learn, the habits you un-learn — all of that inner growth that has room to take place during your journey. 

now, i'm not saying destinations aren't important. they very much so are, and necessary as they are milestones that give direction in life. but the journey is life itself. destinations will make you proud, but the journey will make you wiser and stronger. destinations will give you a sense of temporary achievement, but the journey will provide you with happiness. 

so, don't worry SO much about your destination. make good use of every day: spread smiles, show love, make friends, sing, dance, enjoy life to it's fullest. you are going to make it. you are going to be successful. so be present, focus on now, and you'll be sure to have a success story to tell.