Love the Struggle
A few weeks ago, we had a discussion in my Theory of Knowledge class that sparked my attention. I can’t remember what the root of the conversation was about, but I do remember my comment because it stuck with me. I mentioned that transitioning from the bottom to the top is better than simply being at the top. In other words, the process of going from just yourself or even a bad version of yourself to a version that you are proud of is better than just being the best version of yourself. I believe this because going through this journey allows you to learn things and grow from mistakes…if you’re open to it! I don’t think you would know your full potential without your struggles. The struggles we go through make us who we are. They allow us to differentiate between the good and the bad because if we didn’t have the bad we wouldn’t know what the good is. They allow us to be thankful for the times of peace when we aren’t struggling.
This is why, we must embrace the struggle instead of fighting against it. I always say that I try my best to keep a smile on my face and have a positive attitude because no matter your attitude, whatever is happening is going to happen so you might as well face it with positivity.
We always painfully drag ourselves through the process and promise everything will be so much better on the other side. Of course, this isn’t true. For example, if you tell yourself life will be so much better when you are “skinny” and every day you dread the process. Then, you are finally “skinny” and nothing has changed. You aren’t better. This is because your mental state hasn’t changed. Not only is the final result not fixing what needed to be fixed, but you also just wasted so much of your life skipping over the journey.
When you change your attitude around the path of reaching your goals, you learn to love the grind and the hard work. You start to thrive off of the power that you produce. Many people ask me how I seem to be motivated so often and how I have my life together (I want to preface that this is not always what my life is like. Sometimes I have motivation, sometimes I don’t.) and the secret to this is embracing the struggling and learning to love it. In fact, as I write this I realize that you can’t just embrace the struggle, teach yourself to love it and want it and grow from it.
Know that you have to push through and not give up. Remember your “why” for your goals and your life and push through for you. Not for anyone else, but for you. In the end, if you aren’t doing this for yourself then why are you doing it?
How to love the struggle:
My number one tip is to be mindful and rational. Understand why you need to do this for yourself. Understand that not everything is going to be sunshine and rainbows all the time. I constantly come back to my why to keep me going. I remember that I am working out to better my mental health and stay healthy, I am pushing myself in school so I can become a hockey agent, I am doing so much so that I can be proud of the effort not the outcome.
Be open to the lessons and the criticism. The only way to learn is if you keep your ears open.
Try not to take things too personally. I know… easier said than done.
Think of this as the learning opportunity that it is. Know that the world would not give you this challenge if you couldn’t handle it.
Think about how proud of yourself you will be once you climb the “mountain” that you originally deemed impossible. I even think of this in terms of working out. When I’m on the peloton and I’m super tired I just think about how proud I will be when I finish.
Be grateful for all that you have and all that you have made for yourself.
Don’t be scared, be ready. We won’t always be 100% ready, but sometimes you have to fake it until you make it. This used to be my motto and has always helped calm me down especially before a test. It allows me to shut out the noise and focus.
Trust. Trust yourself that you can handle this and trust the world that you are ready for this. When you think about it, a lot of our worries come from not trusting ourselves. So next time, remember who you are and how far you’ve come.
Be your own warrior!