“If you do what’s easy life will be hard.” – Les Brown
I take this statement to mean that if you take the easy path in life, if you put in the least possible effort in the things you do, what awaits you is struggle and hardship. For me this sentiment reaches me on a deep level because I no longer believe that life was meant to be a struggle. Seeing perfect circumstances line up almost miraculously (after putting in the work upfront in a positve manner, even when I didn’t always feel like doing it) has convinced me of this. I notice that flow comes to me after I’ve taken the time to do the right thing, as hard or as time consuming as it might be. It comes after working diligently and sometimes after a necessary period of patient, watchful waiting.
This concept works in all facets of life – health, romance, relationships, career, finances, family, spiritual awareness and personal development. To give you a small example, this morning I woke up feeling sluggish and a bit foggy-headed. I hadn’t felt this way in close to a month and it got my day off on the wrong foot. But it was no surprise to me I felt like crap, after all I had taken the easy route last night. I had chosen to placate my feelings of loneliness by eating late at night and by eating foods high in sugar and sodium, foods that my body has become super sensitive to. It certainly tasted good and more than that eating them felt good making me forget my situation in that instant. Last night, cheating on my food regime felt worth it. This morning however, I’m paying the price.
The good news is that my food hangover brings into strong focus an awareness of what I don’t want to experience in my life. An awareness that helps me get my mind right and reset immediately because I know short term sacrifice always brings me the long term gain that will get me where I want to be.
What area(s) in your life do you see yourself taking short cuts, the path of least resistance or flat outright avoiding dealing with difficult situations that in the end make life more difficult? Below are six steps you can use to move yourself out of the habit of doing what is easy.
- Identify the areas you find yourself avoiding doing the upfront less appealing work in favor of taking easier steps.
- The next time you find yourself faced with one of these trigger situations, say to yourself “If I do what is easy, life will be hard.”
- Faced with your situation, list all the possible actions you could take and the likely outcomes of taking each one.
- Chose the option that you believe will provide the smoothest outcome long term.
- As you take action continue to remind yourself: “If I do what’s easy, life will be hard.” This will help you hold yourself accountable.
- Review the resulting outcome (which might take some time to see). If you still experience difficulty as a result of the action you took, reflect on the things you did in steps 2, 3, 4, and 5. Take note of what you could have done differently so that you can modify your actions the next time you apply this technique so that you can experience even greater flow in your life.
Remember that taking the high road is a muscle that must be developed, but once you are in the habit of doing the seemingly difficult work up front, you will reap the rich rewards of simpler, more peaceful life.
About the author: Patricia Brooks is a speaker, life purpose coach, and author of Growing Bold: How to Overcome Fear, Build Confidence, and Love the Life you Live. She is currently living in France and experiencing her dream.
Photo Credit: Peter