Sunday, December 19, 2010

Three Steps Forward, One Step Back

There are times when I feel like my life is making progress. I'm taking those three steps forward. They may be baby steps or giants leaps - either way I am beyond where I used to be. 

Then, there are times when I feel like all the sudden life is making me take a step backwards. Why?

Could we be missing something when we take so many steps forward without remembering where we came from? Perhaps, those steps back are a reminder. It's okay to take one or two steps back every now and then. Life is not always about the progress we are making forward. Rather, it's about the journey and process we take getting to wherever we are going. 

Embrace the moments where life is taking you back. It's probably for a good reason. 

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Now..or..later

A new question for you: Would you rather learn a hard lesson now.. or.. learn it later..

Majority of us learn lessons the hard way. In my life, more often than not, I learn my lessons by making mistakes, evaluating why I did what I did, and then trying to adjust to not make that mistake again. Am I successful? Rarely. Sometimes it takes multiple times of making the same mistake before you really catch on to what the problem is. The problem may be hidden. You may think it's something else. Almost like it disguises itself. But, eventually the problem will present itself in some form and you will know.

...Then what?

You have two choices. To learn from it for good or keep making the mistake.

Hard lessons are inevitable. Like trying to avoid writing a paper or studying for a test in college. You can spend days procrastinating and thinking that it will eventually go away. But, it doesn't. It's always on your mind until you either stress yourself out getting it done at the last minute or you never do it and suffer the consequences.

If you prepare for that test, study, read, whatever you need to do it still may be hard BUT you'll learn more about the process that it takes to succeed to do better next time.

A hard lesson learned now saves time in the future. Time you could be spending on figuring out another hard problem that leads to more success.

If you're like me - we strive to be more success, to learn new skills and to do things effectively. Why? To eventually help others to the same. So we can teach them. Because, life is all about learning and teaching.

You have to learn now..or..later.. so what's your choice?