Respect The Process

By Emeroy Bernardo

We live in a society of instant gratification. We get everything with the touch of a button. Instead of sending letters to friends, we simply text them or send them a message on Facebook. Many people don’t use the library to get information they need anymore, Google does most that work for you. A lot of the work nowadays has been simplified thanks to the power of technology.

Technology has it’s huge advantages, I honestly would be going mad if I had to use a typewriter to write this post out. But it also has it’s down-sides as well.

“All Good Things Come In Time.” But throughout all these advancements in technology and making things user friendly, many people have forgotten that message.

If you truly want to be a master at something, true success is a step by step process. Quick schemes really lead to no where. This applies to everyone no matter how naturally talented a person may be.

“Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”

Mastery = Time + Focus + Energy

Time
Along with time, patience will come a long way in your journey towards mastery. With technology making things easier and more convenient for us, it’s also made us much more impatient. Always keep in mind that all good things come with time. Rome wasn’t built in a day, nor was the city of New York or Los Angeles. The tallest of sky scrapers took the most time investment. View your craft like building, the more time you invest in it, the more you can build. And the more you build, the more likely you’ll be seen as a heralding skyscraper.

Focus
Distractions can lead to a short circuit. With the many things that are out there, a lot of us have settled with just scratching the surface with knowledge instead of going into depth. Especially on tasks that seem trivial or daunting, it’s times like those that we must strengthen our focus.
Don’t split your focus on too many things, other wise you’ll never attain what you wanted in the first place,

Energy
We all have energy when we start something. It’s something new, we’re excited. But as time wears on, so does our energy. Eventually we may come to a point that we just don’t want to keep pushing any more, the grind has worn us down. Whatever it may be, there’s nothing wrong with taking a quick step back to recuperate then get back to it. Do what it takes to regain that energy, just as long as you don’t abandon what you started.


People often have a general feeling of insecurity because they’ve never really mastered something. It’s like they have a sense of failing before starting. Master something simple at first and over come that basic insecurity to build that pattern of confidence.

The key for all these elements is really how bad you want it. Your desire. If you truly have desire and love for what you’re doing, all the so called “work” that may seem daunting won’t seem at all bad. You’ll see how necessary they are in your progress.

One of the reasons we fail to truly master something is our inability to be alone and sit still. We simply HATE boredom. Once we’re bored of something, it’s onto the next thing.

“All of man’s troubles come from not knowing how to sit still, alone in a room.”
                                                                          -Blaise Pascal

To feel inspired you must first experience a moment of emptiness. You can use boredom, to slow things down, and develop patience and self-discipline. I myself use Zazen meditation to help me strengthen myself in this area. I’m well aware that I can be sometimes impatient and want things done “RIGHT NOW,” but through this form of meditation, it allows me to sit with my emotions and not run away from it so I can have a clearer mind when I take action.

Mastery of any craft requires time and patience. THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS. Today’s society has taken away this element and has made us creatures of impatience. Gain experience through trial and error. Experiment and don’t be afraid to take hard blows. See what truly works and what doesn’t. The more expose yourself to your craft, the more you develop your intuition for it. Anything will give way to as long as you have a persistent and unrelenting attack on your part.

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