The Gift of Challenge
Today, my motivation to write is low.
I’d rather not do it, yet here I am.
And that is the antidote.
You work when working is tough.
You exercise when exercising is inconvenient.
You show up when showing up is burdensome.
If it were easy, you wouldn’t need motivation.
If it were exciting, you wouldn’t need convincing.
But then it wouldn’t be rewarding.
This is perhaps the greatest paradox you have to accept.
Rewards are only rewarding when you struggle for them.
Blessings are only blissful when you wrestle for them.
Because without challenge, gifts are burdens.
Why else are lottery winners miserable?
Why else are rich teenagers prone to substance abuse?
Is it because they’re ungrateful for their gift?
Or is it because they’re incapable of seeing that gift as a gift?
Without gratitude, a gift is not a source of happiness.
It’s a weight on your shoulders.
The Buddha was a prince with everything he wanted.
Every desire he had was fulfilled.
But as he became enlightened, he understood that each desire was a source of suffering.
What was once a gift was now a burden.
So he left it all behind, and went on to change human history.
Gratitude isn’t about being thankful for what you have.
It’s about being thankful for the challenges you had to face to have what you have.
Remember this the next time you feel unmotivated.
Or the next time procrastination rears its head.
If you don’t do what’s important today, you’re robbing yourself of the gratitude you’ll feel tomorrow.
Don’t let the next precious challenge go to waste.
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