Things will take the time they take

Life is good at training us to live by timelines. It starts with schooling. We eventually graduate. Society sees the logical next step as university. Then there is the time line of getting a job, getting married, having kids, the list goes on.

We hold ourselves to unrealistic standards in business too—how much we need to create and put into the world, and at what speed. We can’t always keep up with these self-imposed timelines.

Our life doesn’t always match the timelines society has put on it and that’s confusing. And as if we actually knew what the timing should be before we even start! (I’m fully convinced the universe has a whole other timeline in store for us, if only we’d trust the process.)

We’re told to make a plan and stick to the plan, and the plan will work. Except when it doesn’t. Inversely that often makes us want something even more.

But what happens when there are factors outside of our control? Or timeline is thrown off? It’s often in these moments we can become more controlling. Especially the closer we get to what we want we can cling harder. It is also in these moments when we must learn to surrender.

Surrendering and letting go are not part of the messaging we grew up with. The win-at-all-costs mentality no longer serves us. Are we even striving for the right thing?

With age and time we get wiser. We know the value of our being and our bodies, and the cost of burnout. Mental health is gaining “normalcy” rather than taboo. Yet, still, through it all, we can feel like “ok, I did the work, I’m fixed, the situation is fixed, where’s my reward?”

The patience is golden mentality we were raised with has been washed aside.

The thing I’ve learned is that things will take the time they take. We can’t force, control, or will our way to what we want. We can, however, take aligned action to show the universe we’re taking it seriously and we’re not going to give up just yet. The best way forward is to trust the timing of life. It takes a hell of a lot of pressure off too.

Once we learn to release the “when and how” of things happening we can invite a lot more magic into our lives. That’s not to say it’s easy. It’s definitely easier said than done.

It was actually my brother who first taught me this lesson (unbeknownst to him) last summer. He surprised us with a big announcement—something I’d wanted for him for a long time—and then SURPRISE! He did it. He didn’t tell anyone what he was working on until it was done. For me, it became a masterclass in people having to do things on their own time, and sometimes things really do take the time they take. Even if we think we know the best time frame for ourselves, or others, we must be reminded that sometimes life needs to unfold at its own pace.

What happens when we allow ourselves to take off the pressure of the timeline?

What if instead of forcing a deadline, we allowed a project to tell us when it was ready for the world?

What if we could slow down and be humane with our timelines?

What if we could learn to accept that things take the time they take? (And even if it’s slower than we’d hoped, it’s still worth it.)

If you’re looking for added support in your life, the next 3-mo cohort of Mapping Your Path: Let’s Play opens for enrollment in mid-May (June kick-off). It’s designed to be a container to help support you on your journey as you move the needle forward on something that’s meaningful for you. Magic has been known to happen in MYP. Sign up to be the first to be notified!