Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. – Thomas Edison
“Work hard,” we are often told as youngsters.
Work hard.
What exactly is hard work, I used to ponder. Hard work to me was what my older siblings did. It was the school work, tasks, and jobs that they seemed to perform so effortlessly.
I can’t wait to do those difficult things, I used to think to myself! I could barely wait to ‘grow up’ and become like my older siblings! To be as smart as they were – to work as hard as they did!
And then one day as I was working on my high school math, I realized that I was where they had been when I had dreamed of being where they were. I didn’t feel particularly grown up or smart. The math, that I had once considered so complex and difficult, really was quite simple and easy to figure. It just wasn’t the hard work I had dreamed of it being.
Perhaps when I graduated and got a job, then I would be able to pursue the hard work of which I dreamed. That, I decided, must be when you really get to pursue hard work.
And then I graduated. I continued training in different programming languages and was assigned a website to keep up to date. I also listed and sold books online. Things just didn’t seem that hard. True, the programming language was intricate and took a good amount of effort, but it wasn’t hard.
On a quest for hard work
At this point, you may or may not think that I was just a bit crazy to be on the lookout for hard work. I would have to agree with you there. Partially.
You see, my quest for hard work wasn’t some crazy desire to be a slave to the most difficult work I could find. No, it was more the idea that if I wasn’t doing something difficult, then I needed to up my game, so to speak. I didn’t want to allow myself to be lazy or take the easy way out.
I know that I have been created with a special purpose and I want to be sure to give God my best – to measure up!
Discovering what hard work means to me
I have never really held a job outside of owning my own businesses and working for family companies. I’ve never worked as a secretary in an office complex or as a waitress in a restaurant.
My jobs, my work, has been relatively easy for me. There have certainly been times where I haven’t known how to proceed or grow my company, times I’ve been confused why sales are slow, but none of it has technically been hard.
What does work hard even mean?
What does it mean to work hard, I pondered not too long ago. To me working hard meant accomplishing mammoth tasks, reaching major milestones – essentially doing big things in big ways. And if I wasn’t working hard then did the work that I was doing actually matter?
I reflected upon the quote that I shared at the beginning of this post as I pondered this over the next few days and weeks. Did what I do matter since it wasn’t hard?
What is hard for you, I felt a whisper inside ask me one day.
Consistency.
Enthusiasm in the little tasks that take time.
Finding a sense of gratitude and ownership in what I have to do, the work that I have to perform.
Now those things were hard for me.
Ah-ha!
I suddenly realized that hard work to me, wasn’t necessarily what I had thought it would be! It isn’t sitting pondering revolutionary ideas and discovering life-changing processes. That kind of work just isn’t realistic or much encountered. But the struggle to be consistent and to find enthusiasm and value in the little jobs I call my work, that can be hard!
This discovery has been monumental to me! Realizing this has given me the freedom and ability to really delight in my days! It fills my days with purpose and accomplishment! And now, when I might be tempted to not apply myself to my tasks, I remember that this is the hard work I used to dream of doing!
What might you learn?
Though it’s not hard, per se, consistency is one of the easier things in life to let slide. Remembering to find value in what you do can be difficult too. But these things are just as, if not more, important as doing what we might see as difficult, monumental tasks.
Let me encourage you to examine your own life. Sometimes gaining a new perspective on what we do is all we need to better value ourselves and our opportunities. And believe me, God has given each of us a life worth valuing!
Don’t stop with just yourself, help those around you. Self-help and growing as a person can have limitless effects if we will bravely and boldly share what we have learned! You never know the amount of impact you might have!
Until Next Time!
Hope.
PS. I do so enjoy hearing from each of you. Please feel free to comment below or email (hope@theamericanlady.com). Do you have a topic idea for a post? I’d love to hear it! Talk to you soon!