Give yourself time to grow.
I know it can seem easier said than done, but growth happens gradually, not all at once. For years there have been toys that are advertised as being able to grow five times its size practically overnight if you just put it in water. And though it would be nice to have the instant gratification of being able to grow overnight like that, it does not happen that way. That is not how growth works, especially when it’s regarding your own personal growth.
Like a plant, you cannot judge the bud before it even blooms. If you base your opinion of a plant on a bud, you’ll never see the flower it eventually will grow into. Growth blooms eventually. And similarly to the plant, you will become all that you ever wanted to be but you have to give yourself time first.
Growth Blooms Eventually
Often it can seem as if there is pressure to achieve certain life goals by a specific time. The expectations for your real-life can begin to resemble the board game, “Life,” where players go through the cycle of going to college or earning a career, then getting married, having children and eventually retiring. If that is your path, that is great. But if you’re 18 and you decide college is not for you, that is also great. You do not have to be pressured into the “game of life.” Grow at your own pace and achieve the goals you want for yourself.
Enjoy the moment you’re in.
It can be easy to always think about what is next. What will you eat for dinner today? What will you wear tomorrow? There is always something to anticipate. Sometimes, the anticipation can even be negative. But often times, the very things we worry about the most are the ones that never end up happening. So, take some time today to enjoy the moment you’re in right now. Tomorrow will come eventually, but right now you can enjoy the time in front of you. The moments you’re living in now, will be the ones you look back on and can see how far you have come. You’ll be able to recognize how much you’ve grown over time.
Keep Trying
It can be scary to jump without knowing if something is there to catch you, but if you fall, you always have the ability to get back up. Failure is not the gateway to giving up, it is motivation for you to try again. Believe in the person you want to be in enough, that nothing will cause you to ever give up on yourself. The potential you have is too great to be stopped by fear or failure!
Growth is a process. And everyone’s process is different and ongoing everyday. Most change does not happen overnight, but everyday you keep trying is a day you’re closer to who want to be than you were yesterday. Take the time to think about who want to be, work towards that goal and in time you’ll get there eventually. As the quote goes, “you don’t become the butterfly overnight.” But, everyday you can get a step closer!