Going with the Flow Vs Forcing the Issue

The ideas of going with the flow and forcing the issue are a part of my philosophy, despite both views being seemingly opposite.

This notion that they are the opposite is wrong. Learning when and where to apply each idea will open you up to productivity, growth and happiness.

Let me explain.

To show where and when to apply either idea, I will use the situation of reaching a goal.

If you go online and consume content centered around reaching goals, you will inevitably come across two types of people:

• People who tell you to go with the flow (not to try)

• People who will tell you to grind (till your eyes burn off)

But I am here to tell you they are both wrong.

The first set of people are lazy, procrastinating and scared because if they fail at reaching their goal, they will always have the excuse of not trying.

The second set of people (unless a part of a small subset of people) are bound to be burnt out, unhappy, and in most cases, give up.

Why you should embrace both philosophies:

Combining the two will put you ahead of most people who set out to reach any worthwhile goal (aka goals you are scared you might not get).

It will give you the abilities to:

• Be happier

• Persevere

• Grow

• Be more productive

How?

Embracing both ideas makes you strive to reach the goal while detaching from achieving it.

Detaching from the outcome is beneficial for 2 reasons:

• You won't beat yourself up and be down if you don't achieve the original goal

• You are more likely to stick it out

Not caring about whether you reach the goal gives you the ability to keep doing the work when you don't see progress, which is necessary for growth and achievement.

Forcing the issue and doing the necessary work is beneficial because you won't achieve success without action.

It gives you the most important trait for success...

Falling in love with the process.

How do you do it?

Let us pick the goal of building and monetizing a personal brand online:

In the beginning, you will define that goal.

Then you will do this:

Work towards that goal daily by setting a specific amount of time you will work for the given day, not by assigning tasks to complete.

For example:

Instead of saying you will...

• Write a blog post

• Film a video

• Write a Twitter Thread

All in one day.

Do this...

I will work for 4 hours today

Write out the projects you have to work on (let's say the ones above).

Work on one project at a time until it's done

If you finish none of the projects, that's okay. Now you won't feel bad about yourself for not doing so because you completed your goal of getting 4 hours of work done.

Working this way detaches you from achieving (or moving towards) the goal while working towards it.

Going with the flow while forcing the issue.

One last part

You'll notice that your vantage point will change as you progress toward the goal. You will have a more precise image of what you should and shouldn't do. Perhaps you'll even need to reframe or define your goal, to reach what you (actually) want. Another reason why detaching from the outcome is essential as the outcome may not be what you want.

So if you have a goal, you want to achieve. Do the work regardless of the outcome and fall in love with the process.

- The Babbling Mind