You’ve heard it said, “It’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey.”
I think this is true. But it doesn’t tell you enough.
I think something like this is more accurate:
The destination never comes; what matters is the kind of journey you’re on.
I’ve recently been reading Ben Hardy and Dan Sullivan’s excellent book The Gap and the Gain.
I went into it thinking this would be a book that should have been a blog post. The truth is, after I read it on Kindle, I started it right back up on Audible. It’s really good and definitely worth a read.
In a nutshell, the idea is that most high achievers measure themselves against an ideal — the destination, if you will. Rather than appreciating the gains we make along the way, we stay stuck in the gap between where we are and the ideal we’ve set for ourselves.
What we don’t appreciate (nobody ever told me!) is that the gap is ever-widening, because as human beings, the destination/ideal is always being pushed back. When we get a taste of achievement, we immediately think we’re capable of more (we are), so we move the goal line back.
The result is that outwardly, we look prolific. Maybe people look at us and tell us how grateful they are for us, they ask how we get so much done, they wonder about the secret to our success… but you look behind your back to make sure they’re talking to YOU!
The ideal/destination is not bad. In fact, it’s necessary.
You gotta have something you’re shooting for — that’s the crux of human achievement. But the ideal is a horrible measuring device. When we choose to appreciate the gains we’ve made, we can look at our current situation with gratitude, contentment, and gasp — happiness! Yes, it’s okay to be happy.
So, while making the way to your goals, you get to choose what kind of journey you’re on.
Do you toil along, failing to hit the magical pot of gold at the end of an ever-expanding rainbow?
Or do you look at your progress with joy, deciding to be thrilled with everything you’ve accomplished along the way?
Your choice.