Go through the process

“You must go through the process to own the space”

This phrase was said to me at the start of my professional education and I didn’t understand it at first. It didn’t make sense but that was more about me and my poorly tuned ears and mind. I heard it as “Do your work!”. An admonishment as motivation. But it wasn’t.

I set out to get a job teaching people how to use gym equipment and eventually found myself leading people in rehabilitation of injuries and conditioning for sport. I set out to deadlift 80kg and eventually lifted 227.5kg. This isn’t world class lifting but it was a world of difference from where I started. It is years later I understood the statement fully. “You must go through the process to own the space” was an invitation. Commit to the process and become the person you want to be.

By committing to a process and following it through, you are changed. Sometimes the change is obvious and expected such as a following a diet to lose 5kg. However, the most important and most valuable changes are often less obvious and intangible. In losing 5kg you develop discipline and a sense of value for food and the awareness of the effect it has on you. In improving your strength and breaking personal records you develop courage, trust in yourself and expand your horizons.

So I say to you… Go through the process and own the space.