As you can imagine, this is not going to be about how to actually eat an elephant. I could probably have picked a different subject line, something like How do you eat a whole cake? But, I thought that line wasn't as catchy and I don't want to encourage you to eat cake, unless you make it yourself with safe ingredients.
Elephant or cake, it doesn't really matter. What matters is the process that takes us to eat it and that we sometimes forget to embrace and enjoy. Have you ever had a feeling of not progressing fast enough whenever you set yourself to accomplish something? Not only that but, have you felt discouraged and as a result stop trying? I invite you to think for a moment how many times this has happened to you.
The feeling of not progressing fast enough and feeling discouraged is common when we forget to have a good time. It is somehow hard to understand that every step of the way gets us closer to where we want to go. The problem with focusing entirely on the end result is that it makes us forget to enjoy the process. The end result is important and we should keep it in mind and visualize it because that helps us to achieve it. But, focusing too much on the final destination can disconnect you from the process and this can prevent you from growing and learning.
Here is a quick example. Imagine you want to build muscle and be stronger, so you decide to start lifting weights. You set your goal to lift weights once a week. After the first week, you don't see much improvement besides feeling very sore. You make an effort and complete your second week of lifting weights. Still, you haven't noticed much difference from the previous week. Maybe you are a little bit less sore but you don't feel any stronger. After a month, you still don't have your muscles toned and you start to get discouraged and decide to stop. At this point, you may think nothing is changing, so why would you keep going, right?
What if I tell you that muscles can start forming after 3-6 months but actually built after 1 year? Of course, that's depending how often you exercise but that is not the point. The point is that instead of enjoying the process and learning about our body, we get discouraged too soon because we don't get results fast enough.
We ALL need to learn to enjoy the process. When we do, we see each step or action as an experience that can teach us something. We don't get caught with feelings such as I am not enough, I can't do things right, and why is this taking so long? When you enjoy and trust the process, things start happening sooner than you think. So, next time you commit to do something, think about the elephant (or the cake). You can't eat it all at once. Take one bite at a time and ENJOY IT.
To help you enjoy the process, you can follow the next suggestions:
- Set a goal and break it into small steps. (e.g. My fiancé's family is from Brazil. I want to be able to communicate with them so I am going to learn Portuguese)
- Take a step and plan how are you going to make it happen. (e.g. I am studying on Tuesdays and Thursdays for 30 minutes each day)
- Focus on that step and find a way to enjoy it. (e.g. I will find a good language program to follow and want to complete 1 lesson each week. To enjoy it I will combine with with, learning a song, writing notes to my soon to be family in Brazil, watching a movie or a video in Portuguese.)
- Celebrate when the first step is completed or when you are ready to move on to the next step. (e.g. Once I am done with one part of the program, I will connect with someone in Brazil or Portugal. It is very easy these days with social media.)
- Write down what you learned and plan your next step. (e.g. I make a note of what I need to review, review it and move on to the next lesson.)
- Repeat. When I less realize, I would have accomplished my goal. (e.g. After practicing and having fun learning, I finally learn the language and I am able to communicate with the family.)
This was a simple example and can be applied to many things. Are you ready to enjoy the process?