The Easier the Choice, the Harder Life Will Turn Out to Be
Easy choices are very inviting. At the moment, they feel oh-so-comfortable
When you stop and think about making easy decisions consistently and the possible results, things begin to look less desirable.
I used to work an office job. I'd been there for a year and eight months and was miserable, but the money was good.
When COVID hit, I was too afraid to leave. I didn't believe I could find better.
In early 2021 I was laid off. This turned out to be the best thing that could've happened.
When I write, I think about what would've happened if I didn't lose my job. I would've made the 'easier' choice of staying at a place that paid well but was toxic. If I'd done that, the writer I have evolved into wouldn't have come to exist.
I would have missed out on finding what makes me fulfilled and purposeful.
I'm confident I would have become a depressed, unhappy, and pessimistic person, basically any synonym of negative.
I thank God daily for the opportunity he gave me to find myself by separating me from that environment.
Yes, losing the income was tough. But it would've been worse not to find my purpose.
After losing this job, I went on a journey to find out what Angelica wants to dedicate herself to (hint — it has to do with writing).
At first, I only wanted money. Because most problems go away when you make enough money, right?
Wrong.
I realized I didn't have money problems. I had a mindset problem.
I was making money my only focus.
My scarcity mindset filled me with fears that pushed me to chase money like it was the air I needed to breathe.
I still struggle with some fears, but I'm learning to submit.
Submit to the promise of God providing for every need I have and the belief that as long as I am working to fulfill my purpose, the money will follow.
The easy choice would be to look for a job.
Having a job makes you feel 'secure' because the paycheck at the end of the week is always the same (Mind you, there's no such thing as security — I was laid off without any warning).
Funny story I spent months looking for a job recently. From April until the beginning of October, I must have sent over one hundred job applications.
Most employers did not reply. Few sent out interview requests, and even fewer interviewed me.
I took that as a sign from God that it was time to move forward, even if the direction I was going looked intimidating.
It was never supposed to be easy.
On this journey, I'm learning the need for things not to be easy.
It is necessary to struggle to persevere.
It's like going to the gym.
In the beginning, you're a little nervous. You've never done it before, or it's been so long that you doubt your ability.
When you start exercising, it sucks. You quickly get out of breath and think your endurance is nothing like it used to be.
If you're new, you think about how hard this is and how you're not sure if you'll come back tomorrow.
Why would someone do this when it's not easy or comfortable?
But towards the end, you realize that you were able to do it. You're exhausted, sweaty, and thirsty, but you're proud.
You did what you said you were going to do.
Like in the gym, in life, we should pursue what takes more effort.
Most likely, it yields a better long-term outcome.
According to Men's Health, gym goers are 40 percent less likely to be obese and 50 percent less likely to have an elevated resting heart rate.
Putting yourself through a brief struggle yields a better long-term result. How come we don't apply a similar thought pattern to life in general?
We've learned comfort is what we should pursue.
When did we stop telling people to strive? When did we start believing that settling is the best option?
The ideals society tells us to strive for being mediocre. Go to school, get good grades to get a 'good' job, and the life you want shall be yours.
Not sure if anyone has noticed, but this doesn't work.
I went to school, got excellent grades, and got not one but two degrees (one is a Master's). Spoiler — I never got the 'good' job, let alone the life of my dreams.
Let's not forget 5-figures of debt too.
This equation doesn't yield the results we want. I found that out the hard way because no one I was surrounded by knew better.
Fortunately, my eyes opened, and now all I want to do is tell the entire world.
The road to getting what we want from life is more challenging than advertised.
But it's also worth it.
I've said this before. Through struggles, we get forged into the people God intended us to be.
Through the challenges, we learn not just to persevere but to appreciate and manage what we already have better.
When we can take good care of what we already have, God blesses us more. We learn to be good stewards of our resources.
The better stewards we are, the more access to resources we get.
No one would entrust a business to a teenager. They don't have the experience to run it.
Why do we not think similarly regarding our expectations for life?
We're not going to get what we want until we step up and face the obstacles that come our way.
We'll be blessed with more because we'll know how to handle more.
A business owner that gives up on their business goes bankrupt. But the one who believes and finds a way to make it work succeeds.
Stop looking at obstacles as unmovable walls. Instead, view them as opportunities.
Obstacles are not meant to get in the way of our goals.
They are tools that God uses to prepare us, to teach us what we need to know to steward the blessings he wants to send our way.
Like in the teenager example, you won't get to keep a business unless you know how to operate it.
Obstacles and challenges provide the lessons we need to learn to succeed in life.
Most importantly, never give up.
So often, we throw the towel before we're about to reap the harvest.
I wonder, if I hadn't given up on past projects I started, would I have succeeded in the way I always dreamed? I'm pretty sure the answer is yes.
Persistence is a critical component of getting what we want.
If we do not fight tooth and nail for the things we want, why would we expect God to hand them to us?
Persistence in making things work will get you the results you are looking for. Giving up never got anyone to the top of the mountain.
We must keep going, especially when circumstances look bleak. It's in those valleys that we learn life-changing lessons.
Lessons that will take us to the next level, getting us closer to the life of our dreams.
