It’s supposed to be hard.

But that’s not a reason to make it hard.

It would be fun and maybe easier to stop after the above two lines. Fun, because I could imagine how much thinking this may or may not generate. Easier, because it would allow me to stay away from explaining what I’m seeing.

A way to look at these lines is to consider perception.

Someone who only considers the title will easily focus on the challenge of things, the obstacles they have to overcome, and maybe how they feel about it.

“It is supposed to be hard” is an invitation to notice that accomplishment rarely comes from things being easy. Reaching that perception transforms one’s ability to deal with a given situation and accept the challenge it delivers.

Obstacles have much less relevance when one accepts that it is supposed to be hard. However, it is necessary to integrate the idea to be able to see obstacles in that light.

Once that idea is integrated, it also becomes easier to understand that “it’s hard” isn’t a means in itself. Seeking a benefit from having had a hard journey will often be more about comparing oneself with others. Accepting how hard can belon go one’s experience then can lead to the insight that it isn’t hard that makes the experience better or worse. What “hard” often does is enable an accomplishment. However, an accomplishment doesn’t gain value from making it harder on oneself.

The outcome one is seeking to create is more relevant than a challenging journey.

A perception that only becomes accessible when the outcome has become known. Until then, the focus might have been on the idea that it is hard and invited to stay with what feels to be hard in the hope that it is the accomplishment.

Sharing more details didn’t make the reading easier, maybe not even the understanding. That’s because the additional explanation invited you to play with my idea and get some grasp on it. May it help you develop an understanding of how your idea would have been different from my explanations.