Success is never guaranteed, but struggle is guaranteed on your path to success. Overnight success usually takes a lot of practice and time. The relentless pursuit of sustained excellence is an uphill journey that takes an average of 10,000 hours. As the saying goes, we get rewarded publicly for what we diligently practice in private. There will be plateaus, valleys of distress, peaks, valleys, and rollercoasters of ups and downs. If you are not feeling a bit of pain, struggle, discomfort and stretching while trying to achieve your goals, you are probably not aiming high enough. The beginning of any goal is usually exciting, the middle is messy, and the journey is rewarding.
“ If our life is a good one, a life of mastery, most of it will be spent on the plateau. If not, a large part of it may well be spent in restless, distracted, ultimately self-destructive attempts to escape the plateau.”
I have been trying to speak French since 2010, and I have tried almost everything. I started out attending a formal school of French Language learning (Nigerian French Language Village) for nine months, immersion in a neighbouring francophone country immediately afterwards (Benin Republic) for six months, and have been listening to French music and podcasts and watching French movies ever since. It’s been a rollercoaster of ups and downs, rapid progress, followed by frustration when I have to speak and I can’t find the words. Thirteen-plus years in, I don’t speak impeccable French yet, but I am not where I used to be. I have had to embrace the plateaus and keep putting in the effort required to speak French like a native. I have had to be patient, persistent, endure, and embrace the struggle. As American Writer Hal Borland once said, “Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience. Knowing grass, I can appreciate persistence.”
“Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience. Knowing grass, I can appreciate persistence.” – Hal Borland