I’m sure that if you have ever presented a problem that you were facing to a trusted friend, you may have heard the phrase “trust the process.”
Yes – it is somewhat of an overused cliché. At this point, the phrase probably doesn’t hold much weight to you, but what does it really mean to trust the process? How can we do it?
Patience
In order to trust the process, you must have patience.
I have personally experienced and observed much internal stress over different aspects of life including academics, relationships, career opportunities, and finances. These are all natural issues that we all face.
What I’ve witnessed (and felt) is anxiety and uncertainty surrounding what we want right now vs. what we have right now. Many people have high hopes and big dreams for the future – as they should – but they are overly excited for these things.
Everyone wants their dreams to come true. When you have vision and ambition, you are eager about your dreams. That’s normal. What you must understand is that they will not manifest overnight. They require persistence, consistency, timing, and most of all patience.
If you are facing anxiety about a promotion at work, a business idea, a romantic partner, or an upcoming test, try to slow down and separate the entire structure of that issue into steps. Meditate on the issue and think about what you can do to get to the next step.
Faith
Trusting the process requires you to have faith. Have faith in yourself, have faith in the future, and trust your beliefs and intuition. Faith is commonly associated with religion and spirituality. Whatever you may believe in, faith is certainly an important component.
The next time you are feeling worried about the future or a particular situation, have faith that your efforts up to that point have guided you in the right direction. Remember that your hard work will pay off one day.
We all have started working towards a goal and within the first two weeks began to feel discouraged. The results are never instant. Have faith that if you stay consistent and keep working hard you will see your desired results and then some.
Focus
You’ll never get anything accomplished if you can’t stay focused. Trusting the process takes a great deal of focus.
By this, I do not mean focusing on completing your homework or finishing a quarterly report. By focus I mean waking up every day and centering your energy on what you’re trying to accomplish.
If your goal is to publish two YouTube videos every month for one year, align your focus accordingly. Instead of going out every weekend, perhaps consider reserving every other weekend to write, record, edit, and upload your videos. Instead of playing video games for three hours on Tuesday nights, you could spend that time researching different methods to improve and market your content.
Avoid distractions and actively seek-out different paths to take that will make your big plans come into existence. You must stay focused on your long term goals every day in order to make progress.
To trust the process is to be patient, have faith, and remain focused. Stress will always appear in different ways. Uncertainty, anxiety, and worry are all just parts of life. Remembering these three virtues and trusting the process are great ways to help you ease your mind and keep moving forward.
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