Tag: Journey

Convenience Is About The Destination And Not The Journey

Achieving Goals, Happiness, Leadership, Relationships, Success

Convenience is about the destination and not the journey. When making our way to the summit of a mountain, we can climb up on foot, or we can take a helicopter. The problem with taking the helicopter is that so much is missed in the journey.

When we climb on foot, we see things that we can not see from the air in a helicopter. We push our limits and learn what we are capable of, and we work together with others, cheering each other on and being cheered pn by others because the climb is hard and the victory is earned.

When we take shortcuts and do not do the work, the destination feels empty. There is no sense of accomplishment.

Humility In Action

Achieving Goals, Happiness, Success, The Pathway To Fulfilment

There is a story about a samurai and a wise man that goes something like this. A samurai once stopped a village elder on the roadside and asked him to define heaven and hell. The wise man responded by saying, “you are too stupid to understand something like that.” The samurai flew into a rage, took out their sword and raised it above their head to bring down onto the wise man. The wise man then said calmly “that is hell.” The samurai stopped, lowered his sword and reflected on the wise man’s words. The wise man then said, “and that is heaven.” The samurai bowed in respect and continued with their journey.

It is said that for a samurai to use their sword they must make the decision to use it before they take it out, as they must draw blood once it has been taken out. The decision, therefore, is not changed once decided. I would like to argue that we should be humble enough to change our decision once it has been made, when there is new information that requires a better course of action. This takes humility, which is a skill we all need to practice. Sometimes someone wiser than us will show us a better way and we should listen, acknowledge them and act in accordance with this new found wisdom.