Can we all agree that we are looking for something? Something that makes us feel like we are moving along in life?
I’ve said it once, but for me, it’s always been a sign that progress was on the horizon. I wanted something that wouldn’t make me shy away when people asked me what I was up to and where I was working. I wanted something that would make me confident saying “I am doing such and such” and “I am working for this company,” in my best English accent. You know, because it sounds so much cooler and distinguished that way.
It’d be great if I loved it, if the pay didn’t suck and it helped me become the person I wanted to become. That would be frickin’ awesome, but it’s not my reality or at least not yet. It also doesn’t seem like the reality of a lot of 20-somethings who are in their fields either.
I realized that after listening to a couple of them talk about their new goals. I could tell they tried to sound confident about their new decision, but there was still traces of uneasiness and uncertainty. The details were still fuzzy. All they knew is they needed to do something different and I identified with that.
It got me thinking: Are we over-thinking what it means to progress? I can’t speak for everyone, but if we are talking about me, I can confidently answer that question with a YES.
Up until now, progress was like a scene out of an action movie where the protagonist jumps over two buildings in a single bound landing on her feet. That was supposed to be my transition from a library assistant to a banging journalism job. There was absolutely no in between for me as if that scene was real, didn’t take multiple takes and stuff like that happens in real life.
Now, I celebrate even the smallest forms of progress. I savor it like I savor my favorite dessert nibbling on it piece by piece. It doesn’t matter what it is or who the recipient of it is, it’s progress.
I posted multiple times during the week. Party! Party! Party! A friend signed a longer contract for her job. Party! Party! Party! A coworker hasn’t smoked in three days. Party! Party! Party!
If my journey has taught me anything, it’s that progress, big or small, is what you make it.
