How focusing on results is stopping you from living your life
For many, it is not a revelation that the process is much more important than the final result, if only because the result may not coincide with your expectations.
Lately, I have begun to notice negative factors in my life that result from a focus on results, at a minimum:
moving away from your expectations leads to negative, destructive factors (the brain does not like inconsistencies): anxiety, panic, fear, etc. – to inhibitory processes.
the expected result may not be, then you are left with nothing but the process, which negatively affects your general condition.
Everything is very simple at first glance:
you have to concentrate on the process,
you have to follow the process,
you have to pay attention to the process,
live here and now, look at what surrounds you, pay attention to what is happening,
and so on.
However, nothing is simple in this life. Your brain may simply not allow you to concentrate on the process due to the lack of the necessary neural connections and triggers. Then the whole process will turn into a struggle with yourself, because of which you can jump off, still succumb to panic, etc.
Of course, fighting with oneself is a working method, but, firstly, not for everyone and not always, and secondly, only if it is positively consolidated at the end.
For myself, I found an alternative way to solve this problem, which I want to share with you. Yes, it may not be accurate, it may need adjustments, it may only work for me, I'm not arguing, but perhaps it will help you be more effective and/or make you happier and more confident.
Law of nature
Everything that happens around us changes dynamically – these are the laws of nature, they work always and everywhere. Nature has no goals, only process. And the result is a consequence of various processes.
At a minimum, therefore, the process itself – the entire context of situations, actions, etc. – is the most important part to achieve the desired result.
The skill of flexibility, quick adjustment, focus on the whole context – this is what is really important for a good result. Concentration on the result, or rather its negative factors, destroys all this.
In the end, it turns out that you need to make sure that the process itself is interesting, you should enjoy it, enjoy its beauty of diversity, consequences, etc.
The brain is not in the mood to enjoy the process
In fact, this is the real problem. Easy to say, but difficult to do.
The problem is that basically a goal is something that is not yet real, something that is known to your conscious part, but not known to your unconscious (hereinafter referred to as the brain). The unconscious part does not need this at all, it is used to working in the here and now mode, saw a banana – ate the banana (I’m exaggerating).
It is clear that if the brain has already received something and has experienced positive emotions, then it will be able to help you achieve the desired goal. BUT provided that once the goal was already achieved! It is most important.
The brain only knows that if you do a certain behavior that you have exhibited before and it led to a positive result, then you will get the same result!
But there is one BUT – the model may not fit the current situation, and we may end up with the same negative factors as when concentrating on the result – fear, anxiety, etc.
Therefore, it is very difficult for the brain to be in some process and get high from it.
Let's look at the example of mastering a new profession, namely learning new material.
Example
The ultimate goal: mastering a new profession.
Reason: interest in a topic due to a positively reinforced experience.
For example, you bought a cryptocurrency for $1, sold it for $100, then told your friends, they were delighted with you, received social approval – satisfied the need.
Well, after that you decided – this is an interesting topic, I need to understand cryptocurrency, I can earn a lot of money, get even more positive emotions.
But the problem lies in the fact that your brain only remembers this set of actions:
Find money
Buy crypto for money,
Sell crypto
Show me the result.
All! It is for this set of actions that he will give you motivation and concentration. It is in this set of actions that he will help you, rewarding you. No more, no less!
The fact that you need to master statistics, analytics, and a bunch of other material – you understand this with your consciousness. The brain doesn’t understand this, your training will be violence for it, it won’t understand why you’re doing it.
It is for this reason that many still slip and follow the lead of their brain, its hardwired program. It doesn’t seem logical, but the logic is simple – that’s what their brain remembered, and that’s what the brain gave them the command to do something.
Magic pill
An option to solve the problem is to fight, force yourself, and someday it will bear fruit. But maybe not – that's the problem. Then you will slip into depression and the fairy tale will end.
However, there is another solution to please everyone, so to speak. And this solution lies in the positive reinforcement of any of your actions aimed at achieving your goal!
Everything seems simple, but no – there is little certainty about how to positively consolidate this or that action, here you need to understand the basic needs of a person (by needs I mean what is inherent in us evolutionarily for survival) and rely only on them, precisely on them We are programmed with positive reinforcement.
Unfortunately, this seemingly obvious fact is rarely discussed. In the modern world, needs are understood as anything, but not the basic ones that are inherent in us by evolution.
For example, a person may think that he has a need to go to the gym. But it may turn out that the real need is to lead the hierarchy pyramid in your environment. One cannot but agree that to satisfy the first, you only need to go to the gym, and to achieve the second there are a huge number of other ways, simpler and even more reliable.
Consider an example of learning the same new profession.
Example
So you take on a textbook on blockchain and cryptocurrencies. And that’s it, stress begins, you can’t remember anything, you have to force yourself – you won’t last that long.
It is better to start looking for satisfaction of some needs with the help of acquired knowledge. The most trivial thing is that just pass on this knowledge to someone, you will satisfy a bunch of needs at once:
occupying a position at the top of the social hierarchy (you become a source of knowledge and an expert authority in your field, which gives you the opportunity to occupy a prominent position in the social hierarchy).
need for self-affirmation and respect (when a person shares his knowledge, he can gain recognition and respect from others. This can strengthen his self-esteem and self-esteem).
the need for procreation (in some cases, the transfer of knowledge may be associated with the instinct to pass on experience and knowledge to the next generation, which helps to preserve and continue the development of society).
Thus, the brain will remember a new algorithm for obtaining positive emotions:
read this book
tell someone
satisfy your needs.
And in the end it will give you the fuel to study all the material in this book.
Conclusion
I hope this material will help someone in life. I will be glad to hear any opinion on this matter.
This material is my personal conclusion from various observations in everyday life. Perhaps you can also help me look at this topic from a different perspective, thank you!
