The results will not be noticed today. But the shortness of breath will be immediate. Tomorrow, the goal will appear to be exactly where it was yesterday—far away, out of reach, nigh unnattainable—but the back-in-the-gym aches will persist. In a week—or a month—the thrill of starting afresh will be eclipsed by a daunting reality: seemingly being back at the beginning (sort of) with everything still to be done (sort of).
To mitigate feelings of impossibility, one can use the size of the goal, and the intensity and consistency of the efforts put into the work, to determine just how far one has come. If, for example, one has set their sights on big goals, the consistent efforts and sacrifices needed to attain them will be more substantial than if smaller or frivolous goals were chosen. As long as one continues on their path as diligently as possible, considerable inroads will be made towards what one seeks.
This has always been the way of the world: effort compounds.
But effort, sustained through dedicated routines, can be boring. This, too, is a part of the journey. There is more to the destination than merely arriving. Routine might have moments of dullness or plateauing, but it also provides the tried and tested blueprint for success. The challenge, really, lies in finding interesting and novel ways to overcome fatigue of all sorts.
One great task can be fragmented into smaller undertakings that yield immediate rewards: a made-up bed in the morning can be the start of the great personal turnaround; three things ticked off a daily to-do list can be three steps towards being more organised; and, when time is scarce or when motivation ebbs, a short workout is better than none.
While efforts might be small, they pool.
As long as a start of some kind has been made, one is immediately closer to the goal than one was before.
Always, then, it remains key to maintain one’s focus on their goals, and keep a firm grip on a disciplined approach to working and working out.
Small-small. شوي شوي—shway-shway. Pole-pole. Slowly-slowly.
Effort compounds.
The time to invest is now.
The dividends will be paid out later.
Rémy Ngamije is an award-winning Rwandan-born Namibian author, editor, publisher, photographer, literary educator, and entrepreneur. He is the founder of The Forge.