Effort is force inexorable, applied towards the just direction.
It operates as a cosmic law, like gravity, unwavering because it belongs to the order of things. There is no need resisting, denying, pressing or steering. What will happen will happen.
In hard-work, in throwing our heart and soul at our purpose, we stand in truth and move forward as surely the sun shines. Pretending to have control over that power, over how much effort we can afford, or drifting from the natural justice of it all, and we find ourselves a tyrant or a pawn.
Commitment to our goals translates as action, but as willing as we are, our options are a jungle, dense unexplored territory, and we need to just start carving our way through.
If we let ourselves be guided through, all we really have to decide for ourselves is to stay on our own side, and as we do that, we step into our power.
Gesticulation -running around like a headless chicken- does not solve problems or get us anywhere.
Effort needs purpose, a direction, an intention. Of course, we don’t know what will work, how and when, but at the very least, we need to observe the consequence of our action to decide whether or not it’s serving us.
Without a sense of trajectory, of progress, we cannot preserve our motivation, our energy, our sense of power.
Effort is movement, it takes us from a blank point to an accomplished point.
All the things we could and want to do, all the things we should and are invited to do, all the bigger, better, more optimal ways we could do what we are doing can make us drift off.
If we succumb to the temptation, and split our efforts across various endeavours, we find ourselves doing none well, feeling fragmented and pulled in different directions. Effort is wasted unless carried through a finish line.
In the momentum, while the sweat is dripping or the focus sharp, pushing through may feel like the right thing to do. More often than not, it only means doing it the hard and ineffective way.
Strength and generous effort have merit only if well directed - towards a worthwhile goal and right-sized to what is necessary.
Application of minimal effort well targeted will bring about the best result. Trying to force things would only cause pain and further delays.
The difference between persistence and stubbornness is the ability to learn and adapt; the means and the methods may change but not the direction.
Accidental genius, chance encounters and lucky days are propellers. They open doors and show us short cuts.
They are invitations to run full steam, streamlined, leaning in our strength and centredness.
Progressing through a situation requires effort, a few losses and sure sacrifice, all in the name of attaining a goal we have set.
Whether we pre-empt worse damage, spare ourselves the emotional cost, or simply move on from a mistake or bad call, deciding freely to cut our losses Is a necessary component of purposeful effort. The price to pay is little in comparison to the reward of accomplishment.
Keeping the eyes on the prize, and knowing what is indeed a failure and what is in fact a by-product of advancing, make all the difference.
Full effort isn’t the effort of everyone in all fields, it means working at full capacity for ourselves, using the extent of our skill, covering our ground.
We don’t know that we are at full effort until we’ve found the bounds of that domain, we’ve found the hedge, the boundary between our turf and someone else’s.
When we find that limit, we stop there, we don’t pull back, we occupy every inch of that ground, as the container for our might.
Great Vigour
Power of the Great
Big and strong