Episode 59: The Art of Being a Good Employee - Slow Growth

Hello my friends, welcome to episode 59. Have you ever had the experience where you had to wait for something really good but once it came it was so worth the wait?

We live in world of fast food, and get-rich-quick schemes, now are better than later, and fast is better than slow.

But good employees know the power of slow growth.

Now, why would slow growth be a good thing when everyone wants fast?

And how do you make slow growth work?

The benefits of slow growth.

Development:

We don’t know what we don’t know.

We need time and space to develop into the next version of ourselves.

We need time to be a beginner again.

We need time to get it wrong.

We need time to figure it out.

We need to act in the present and sometimes think from the future.

We need to set our future selves up for success by acting now.

Good employees know that sometimes you get to work and you will see very little results from it at the beginning. But that doesn’t mean you should stop working or that your work isn’t good.

“Complaining about not achieving success despite working hard is like complaining about an ice cube not melting when you heated it from twenty-five to thirty-one degrees. Your work is not wasted; it is just being stored. All the action happens at thirty-two degrees.”

-James Clear, Atomic Habits  

These foundational things that we do. These character traits that we develop by doing hard things are so important. So we don’t want to give up to early on things because it is taking the time or because it is hard.

How do you make slow growth work?

“The secret of your future is hidden in your daily routine.” ― Mike Murdock

What are your daily habits?

Are they developing you into the person that you want to be in the future?

This can be as simple as what are you saying to yourself every day?

This can be what actions are you taking every day.

I have seen this in weight loss, clutter reduction, and project completion.

If we get to work on the little things, we become the person whom the big things are easy for. This is the true power of slow growth. 

And when I say little I mean little!

For weight loss, we drink our water every day or walk around the block every day.

For clutter reduction, we put 5 things away every day or we throw away 5 things every day.

Project completion – we do one task on the project every day.

Don’t discount achievement just because it takes you a while to achieve. This is so important for motivation. Find achievement in the little things so you have the motivation to continue.

Stop the comparison.

Just because it seems another lost weight, made the money or got recognition faster than you, don’t discount the achievement that you have made or are working toward making.

This is truly about the journey of accomplishment and not about the crowning moment of accomplishment.

I see this all the time when I am hiking in the mountains.

I spend hours hiking up to the top of a summit.

I maybe spend a half hour at the top.

And I spend hours hiking down.

Slow growth is like every step of that hike.

If I find joy in the changes of scenery.

If I find joy in the meadows along the way.

If I find joy in the wildflowers.

If I find joy in the challenge of the hike.

If I find joy in thinking I am almost to the top.

I will have a joyful journey.

But if I only find joy at the top of the mountain – I will have so little joy in my life.

If I think there is a purpose in every step then every step is easier to take.

So good employees have goals.

But they understand the person they have to become to achieve the goal is far more important than the goal.

They understand that just because something takes time doesn’t mean that it isn’t just as worthwhile, valuable, or as big of an accomplishment.

So what are you willing to work for?

Let’s make a plan to accomplish something great.

Whether that is money you want to make, a lifestyle you want to create, a business, work-life balance, or projects you want to be completed. It can be anything.

And then be willing to do the work of slow growth.

Find the things you can do every day/week/month that will move you toward that goal.

Find the emotion you want to work from.

Be ok with a journey filled with surprises, unexpected turns, challenges, and development.

Just because it doesn’t come fast doesn’t mean it is worth it.

Develop the skill to be able to keep working on your goals and yourself even when success doesn’t come right away.

It will be fun.

Have a wonderful week.