Daily Prompt – Pains and Gains

Do you agree with Jane Fonda’s favorite exercise motto, “no pain, no gain?” Is it impossible to attain greatness without considerable hardship?

Jane Fonda is a fucking legend. She was a pioneer in the fitness industry and even to this day, remains as one of the most iconic fitness ‘legends’. The motto of “no pain, no gain” is something that has been heard by every man and his dog, and even still is used in all certain types of scenarios.

However, I don’t necessarily think that it can be considered a ‘blanket statement’. It actually IS possible to gain without having to endure any hardship – it happens to people all the time, it’s just that people tend to put a focus or emphasis on their struggle to gain, so people can then pat them on the back and say ‘good for you… you went through all that shit, and it’s paid off. Well done.’ But what about those who get the achievement without any hardship whatsoever. That whole concept of ‘no pain, no gain’ would perhaps be completely foreign to them.

But surely they would only be a minority, right?

How many people do you know who just have things handed to them on a silver platter for whatever reason – because they’re pretty, or wealthy, etc.??

Personally, I’m yet to experience any gains without the associated pain and effort and hard work behind it. Regardless of whether it’s physical, personal or professional – I have to work really hard to achieve anything. The only thing that’s perhaps even harder than putting in the effort and not getting the reward for the efforts, is to put in all the work and have somebody else get the reward for it. I’ll be damned if I’m going to let somebody else take credit for my work and steal my thunder.

That’s how I approach my work. I choose to take on as much as I can, and take ownership (read: control) of tasks so that when it succeeds, then I’m entitled to receive the praise and recognition for all my efforts… but on the flip side, if it fails, then I only have myself to blame.

I’ve learnt the hard way that you can’t rely on anybody else except yourself, because when other people become involved, they inevitably just let you down.

 

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