Learning the Hard Way

Have you ever been through a difficult time in life and once you have passed it looked back and wondered, “What was that all about?”  Several years ago, I went through a big change in my life and career.  I did all that I knew I was to do and felt great about my decision at the time.  Not long after I made my needed changes, the bottom seems to fall out of my life.  It was more emotional than experiencing bad things happening to me, however, if you have been through a difficult emotional time, you know how bad it can be.  This experience lasted for about a year and then things improved.  Soon, I was my old self, feeling positive and moving in a good direction.

                I look back on that difficult time, even today, and for the life of me, I cannot see why I had to experience it.  There was nothing I can see that I could not have learned in a different way.  But I can say this, I learned (to use the thoughts of C.S. Lewis) my God how I learned.  Where I may not understand why I do understand that the lessons during that time are burned into me forever.

"Experience: That most brutal of teachers.  But you learn, my God do you learn."

- C.S. Lewis

(1898-1963)

Author/Educator

                No one likes to be taught hard lessons.  Success-minded people believe they are constant learners and look at every experience as a lesson.  So why are some lessons harder to learn than others?  I will be very honest with you: I do not know.  But I do know this, once these hard lessons are learned, we never need to repeat them.  They not only make us better, but they also make us wiser and less likely to need to go down that road again.

                Remember that the lessons of life’s experiences are there for a reason.  You will never experience anything needlessly.  You may not always understand at the time, and you may not always like it.  However, if you learn the lessons life has to offer, you will always accept it, even welcome it.  Our main goal as success-minded people is not to achieve dreams, money or a better life, however, all are important and good.  Our main goal is to become better people.  To be the best that you can be.  To develop character, integrity and be honorable.  Life will teach us many things on our journey to achievement.  The greatest is to be the best person you were created to be.  That my friend is a hard lesson indeed.

You can learn more about Personal Development from author and speaker, John Patrick Hickey.  To get his books, training and book him to speak to your church, business or group, visit our website at www.johnpatrickhickey.com. Be sure to sign up for free membership and get even more tools to help you achieve your dreams.  

© 2019 John Patrick Hickey. No part of this may be reprinted or published without the permission of the author.