Quotes and Action Steps Series (#8). “It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.” (Confucius)

Confucius (via Wikipedia)

Let us explore great quotes of the past and of the present to know how we can apply them to our life.
Note: Some sayings have been repeated a few times over the centuries, and from time to time we find that one quote is attributed to several different authors. 

“It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.”  Confucius

What does that mean?

Every kid is learning to walk, step by step. Then he or she is learning to speak, to read… Adults do not remember that, but sometimes it was really boring. During your life you have many goals. Some of them come easily; others take weeks or years, or even a lifetime. The path of improvement your mastery can be slow, difficult and frustrating.
 We need to move in the direction of our goals and not to stop.

Where can I apply this in my life?

The journey of improvement is not a linear progression. 
Imagine that you are climbing a mountain. It’s impossible to move without a stop.  But when you hit a plateau it seems that it’s a regression, and others keep climbing, leaving you behind. There are two ways: to give up or to move on from one plateau to the next.

The first plateau in the journey to your mastery appears when you realize that so called “overnight successes” actually take years. At this point some people quit.  According to legend, Leonardo da Vinci spent four years on the portrait of Mona Lisa. Keep in mind that great work need time and just go on.

The second plateau appears when you understand that even with hard work you can’t achieve certain desirable goals. It’s the phenomenon in the field of psychology that  known as the spacing effect: humans  more easily remember or learn items when they are studied a few times spaced over a long time span rather than repeatedly studied in a short span of time. Practically, this effect suggests that “cramming” (intense, last-minute studying) the night before an exam is not likely to be as effective as studying at intervals in a longer time frame.
To improve we need rest, patience and repetition.

The third plateau appears when you become comfort with your achievements. To get things going again, you need trying something new, but it’s a risk of failure.
Try new things and be ready for failure, because it’s what you do after failure that truly matters.
 Do not give up, just move (even slowly) to the peak from one plateau to the next.

Thank you for reading! 

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