A few days ago, I wrote about “Setting Minimum Limits”
This is a continuation of that writing.
If we intend to make changes or improvements in our lives, our habits, and our routines, we should set moderate targets. Moderate in the sense that they are not too high but also not too low.
One of the staff members at PT Aktiva Kreasi Investama (a SaaS company where I work besides Excellent) told me that he wants to focus on working as an application tester because he feels incapable of being a front-end developer.
One should not force themselves to do something one doesn’t like. Nor should they be held back by work they don’t want to do.
However, we should not underestimate our own abilities. If we undervalue ourselves, we may set targets that are too low.
If we are young, we should not extinguish our spirit to progress. We should not be satisfied with the minimalistic life we have. We should strive to learn and work harder to achieve a better standard of living. We should not be content with the knowledge we currently possess. Our minds should be open, and we should be willing to learn new things that are beneficial to ourselves, our families, and society as a whole.
We should not feel satisfied because we believe we are experts in a certain field. We should not complain about obstacles. We should try our best to overcome them.
We should not stop learning just because we think we are not capable. We should find out the reasons for our reluctance to learn. Try to make learning a regular habit so that the thought of learning becomes part of our lifestyle and not just a means to achieve a target.
It is true that we start with something small, something little, and something simple. But we should not be satisfied with that alone. There should be gradual improvements, moving towards the level of our desired goals.
For example, start exercising for 5 minutes. But don’t be satisfied with just 5 minutes. Gradually increase the target every week so that we can achieve two benefits at once: a foundation for a regular habit and a gradual improvement.
Try learning a foreign language, don’t just be satisfied with your native language. Don’t just be satisfied with English. There is nothing stopping us from learning various languages in the world. We can start learning the official languages of the UN, then move on to other languages.
Some colleagues say, “It’s easy once you get used to it. The problem is, how to get used to it?”
Yes, how do we get used to it? The answer will be recursive, so it repeats. How do we get used to it? Yes, we must get used to it. Hehehe…
Yes, the answer is that we must get used to it.
For example, I am learning Arabic and Spanish. I set aside at least 10 minutes every day to study. I installed Mondly for learning Arabic and Babbel for learning Spanish. Every day, I have a target to learn new vocabulary.
Because Mondly uses a scoring system, I have a minimum target of 100 scores per day.
Can learning a language through applications like Mondly and Babbel make us immediately communicate fluently? It depends on each individual, but one thing I believe in is the concept of atomic habits:
“Real change comes from the compound effect of hundreds of small decisions or habits that accumulate into remarkable results over time.”
“Improving by just 1% is not always noticeable but can be extremely significant in the long run. The overall concept is that if you can become 1% better every day for 1 year, you’ll end up 37 times better than you were at the beginning of the year.”
I may not be able to communicate fluently in the language I’m learning immediately, but I believe that within the next month, my level of mastery in that language will be different.
I just started intensively learning Arabic a week ago. From only a few vocabulary words at first, I’m confident that I can dramatically improve my knowledge and vocabulary related to the Arabic language within the next month.
If just one month can make a difference, let alone if I continue to learn for 6 months or a year consistently, the result may be extremely significant.
If I learn IT-related materials such as DevOps or cloud material to support my work, I believe that I will become a different person in a few weeks if I continue to learn consistently.
I don’t want to be satisfied with just one point or level. Not because I don’t want to be grateful but because we must use the gift of ability that the Almighty has given us. I share this thinking with the Excellent, Aktiva, and Zeze Zahra teams that we must continue to improve the quality of our lives, not just be satisfied with a target that is too low.
Image by hakan yıldırım from Pixabay
