When I watched the first episode of Breaking Bad, I was simply blown away by its story.
Thank god I started watching it in 2018. I had access to all its seasons. I am sure that I could never hold myself to wait for an entire week. Wondering what happened to Walter White.
Bryan Cranston, who played Walter White became a hero for many people including me. He shared a very important lesson behind his success.
Early in his career when he was doing below average roles, he felt stuck. But later, his mentor suggested him to focus on the process rather than outcome.
And that's exactly what he did. He focused on the process. He wasn't going to auditions for money, fame or validation. He was going to auditions to give something.
The only thing he expected of himself was to give a performance that everyone would enjoy.
It led him to a couple of good roles. And finally he played the legendary role of Walter White in Breaking Bad.
This might seem like a simple thing but it has a huge effect when applied.
It takes 3-5 year to achieve success.
When you enter into a new career or a new project, it takes time. Especially in a creative career.
I couldn't understand this simple formula. And it kept me away from success for so long.
I always questioned myself. Why people are achieving so much? Why am I not getting the similar rewards. Why is it taking so much time. I had all these questions.
Take hive for example. The people who are getting good rewards here are the ones who have been on this platform from the beginning. That's 2-3 years. It takes a long time to understand things. To build things. And to succeed.
I didn't had the patience. I should have enjoyed the process. But I wanted to achieve my goals— money. So I left steemit in 2018. Only to join back in 2020 as hiver.
If I had stayed here. If I had been focused on the process, I would be a better writer today. I would be more successful here.
When you focus on the goals
While playing dcity, I focused on goals. My goal was to reach a high rank. And today, when I finally reached the rank 17, something unexpected happened. The goal was achieved. I should be happy, but I was not. The problem was— there was nothing more to do.
It became a little bit boring for me today. Though there was some excitement about the presidential election. But overall, some excitement wore down as compared to the last few days.
So, I am going to focus on building my city now instead of achieving a rank. Focus on the process. So that it becomes more enjoyable for me.
When you focus on the process
My only goal of the last month was to write daily. When I achieved that goal on 28th june, my excitement didn't wear off. Instead it kept growing.
I was improving. More confident about sharing things. More confident about how writing a post daily helps me.
As a result, everyday I post here, I am excited how it will come out. Will anyone read it or not. Will I get any upvotes. It's like getting a surprise every single day.
And that must be the goal of life. To focus on the process. Because the end goal of life is death. Nobody can stop it. We need to enjoy the process. Enjoy the things that happen in between.