By: Matloob Kirmani
Every action has two aspects, one is the process and the second one is outcome. Does the process differ from the outcome? Yes, absolutely outcomes are about the results you want to achieve, but the process is the mechanism that leads to those results. If you are an athlete, your goal is to become the world champion and the process is how often you practice. The goal is the same for all, to get a government job, to become an athlete, a successful businessperson, or to excel in any other field. But why can’t everyone get the same result? It means there is something other than setting up goals that will lead to success. The losers and the winners have the same goals but what matters is the process.
The majority of us are constantly goal oriented. In most situations, we always think about the results or the consequences that always put us in stressful circumstances. It’s like a cricket player who keeps checking the scoreboard rather than paying attention to their performance. It will only make him more nervous, affecting his performance. Many players struggle to convert their 90’s score to a century because they are more focused on scoring a century. As a result, they become anxious and fail to accomplish it. I remember a quote by three times Super Bowl winner Bill Wash, “if you want better results, then forget about setting goals. Focus on the process instead”. Goals are useful for providing direction, but the best methods for advancing them are processes.
The students are under depression as they always overthink their results, which affects their daily process of achieving their goals. Parents push their children to get positive results, but they don’t motivate them to work on the process. One of my friends was preparing for a competitive exam, it was his first attempt, and the preparation was not up to the mark. He never stressed to get a positive result. When he appeared in the exam, he performed so well and was just dropped by a small margin. On the next attempt, he worked so hard, but he started worrying about the outcome and became deeply depressed. In the end, he was unable to review what he had prepared before the exam, which led to his subpar performance. That means if you stress more about the result your process will get affected.
Goals are the same for everyone, nobody wants to get unfavorable results. If you work on the process effectively you will get long-lasting benefits or achievements. Most of the freedom fighters of any nation didn’t see their country as free, as they sacrificed their lives before the result. Then Why do we consider them as our heroes? It is because they were involved in the process that led the nation toward freedom. Many great leaders have sacrificed their lives for the advancement and prosperity of their countries, but they haven’t been able to see their countries reach their full potential. People regarded them as heroes because they took part in the process that bears fruits long after their deaths. Let me use the world of football as a recent example to demonstrate. Although Christiano Ronaldo is regarded as the best athlete in the world, he has never won a World Cup for his nation. He works so hard on the process that makes him the greatest footballer, but the result is never in his hands.
The final helpful strategy that a student, athlete, or businessperson should employ is to question yourself every day whether you have worked properly on the process, if not then make a promise to start it from next day. A handful of problems arise when you spend too much time thinking about goals and not enough time working on the process.
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author.
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