There Are No Shortcuts To Any Place Worth Going
Instant gratification. Simon Sinek says that his fear for the future generation is their split attention between real connection and the “electronic” connection. But he also talks about the future generation’s need for instant gratification. You can watch the video here.
Being a father of a 3 year old, we have noticed the same for our new daughter. Ever since she placed his finger on her iPad, she is attached to the interactions that he can make in the game / app. We enjoy that the iPad is able to “babysit” her and that it is able to “electronically” simulate how to do certain things, like gardening, taking care of pets, give a haircut or daily routines like brushing teeth. But there is one problem that we need to remind ourselves when we let our children to overly interact with these games.
That tap. That swipe.
It enforces the idea that with just a finger, you can get a response back almost instantly. Do this enough, they may make the connection that the same happens in the real world. We fear that the future generation will lack the patience to enjoy the process of making a dream become a reality, or the courage to try something they are not sure of because they expect the instant results. And if they are so good at choosing only the ones that they are sure will reap rewards, that they will get bored and keep on searching for fulfillment.
I believe this may be a problem for the future generation, but definitely a problem of the electronic / information age generation. The information age has created a shortcut for us to get what we want and what we need in a touch of a button. Need lunch, go to your food delivery app, choose one, click the black apple pay button and voila, your food is ordered. But also, when you need to find information about anything, all you have to do is Google it. And you will get all that you need.
It is not all negative. The information age has stepped us up as humans 10x more. We are smarter, faster and better at doing everything because as long as we are willing to learn and good at managing our time, the possibility is endless. You can learn anything and create anything you like. But the question is, how authentic is your creation? Is doing a google or youtube search for something a “shortcut” towards creating something authentic?
“There are no shortcuts to any place worth going” — Beverly Sills
I love this quote because it tells you two things that so many people missed.
The shortcut. And the place you are going.
The quote did not say there is no shortcut to losing weight, being happy, getting rich or being successful. It is to the place worth going … to be determined, by you.
Shortcuts.
I consider a shortcut to be a way to get where you want to be through an alternative path. A lot of times this may be an innovation, or a more simplified approach. But often times it is also a hack. Whatever or however you identify the reasoning behind the shortcut, the key determining factor of it is … its authenticity.
I’d like to think that when Beverly Sills said this, she intends to remind people to be authentic and patient in their work. No shortcuts means nothing is instant.
Quality work does not come from hard work, it comes from patience in the work that you do. In the end, it is not about satisfying others, but that you are satisfied with your own work.
I believe that Beverly’s quote tries to remind us to be authentic in our journey. To be reminded that the work that we do is important regardless of the outcome.
Anyplace worth going.
This is my favorite part of the quote. For hard workers like you and me, we get satisfaction from putting in long hours, being productive and being consistent. But do we also put into consideration where we want to end up? In my first 2 years as an analyst in a global consulting firm, I worked almost 12–14 hours every day just so I can get promoted to the next level, with my eye on the Manager role. I stopped when I realized that it will only require me to work more hours, manage more people and bigger projects. It may sound exciting to some of you, but it is not aligned to my values to grow my own family. What I needed was to focus on a goal that is aligned to my values.
Doing something that you value is a place worth going. Your values are things that are important to you. They are the bottom line to your happiness and they are the things that you won’t let anyone take away. To me, this the the place worth going.
This Digital Printable poster is currently available on my Etsy store. It means that you can purchase it and it will be delivered to your inbox almost instantly. Ironic as we talk about Instant gratification. I know. But I believe that this quote can change your mind and how you feel about your work so it is important to me that you can get it in the most convenient way.
I hope that you will be able to print it and put it somewhere that you see it often. Especially when you are doing your work … because your work is important, because you are patient with your work and because you deserve to be where you want to be.
