Shakespeare's advice to finding joy: The power of progress in creating your 'being'

Shakespeare left us with a little dose of wisdom in our longing to finding joy in our lives,

"Things won are done; joy's soul lies in the doing"

We find joy on our journey to whatever it is we are trying to accomplish in our lives, but not necessarily in the accomplishment itself. What does that mean?

I was surprised to find an answer while reading Matthew Kelly's Perfectly Yourself and John Doerr's Measure What Matters.

The former book talks about discovering God's dream for you. The latter addresses how OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) have moved large organizations like Google to success.

Both books come from striking different backgrounds - religion vs. corporate management.

Both books have striking different audiences - a congregation of religious followers vs. ambitious entrepreneurs.

Yet, I found they both spoke the same language when it came to finding joy or fulfillment in our personal and professional lives.

They both spoke of the power of progress.

More specifically, they spoke of the power we gain by being aware of our progress - we gain motivation, confidence, knowledge, and clarity. Through our progress, we find joy in the journey to creating the 'being' we have always longed to become.

The improvement and knowledge we gain in our pursuit to accomplish our goal is what transforms us and gives us joy.

Whether in our personal or professional lives, fulfillment and happiness come from the mindset we create as we improve and change on the journey to becoming the best-version-of-ourselves.

Because at the end of the day...

Relationships are not built after two people first introduce themselves and shake hands. Relationships are built through time and shared experiences. And we treasure those times and experiences that transform our character.

Lessons are not learned when you can show you didn't make any mistakes. Lessons are learned after hours of practice and failure. And we treasure the flow we gain from those hours of practice that transform our abilities.

Babies don't walk before they know how to crawl. Babies stumble and get up with the constant encouragement from their parents. And we treasure the growth we see in those little legs that transform our hearts.

If you pursue a goal with the intention of transforming your 'being' to become the best-version-of-yourself, you will experience a joy that transcends a moment in time. You will experience a joy that accumulates through time.

To pursue that progress, you must be willing to step outside of your comfort zone to experience the transformation of your soul. And outside your comfort zone, you will find two things: doubt and joy. Choose joy.

What are your thoughts? I would love to hear from you and your journey. Don't hesitate to reach out and connect!

Trust the process. Live the commitment.