Process, Not Results

Why do we focus so much on results?

This morning as I painted my nails, I found myself impatient with needing to apply several coats of this particular polish for full coverage, and thinking about brands that claim to only need 1 coat… which reminded me of this post on a friend’s blog about nail polish toxicity.  I don’t have any real idea what is in this stuff that I regularly slap on my body to “enhance” it.  And I don’t have any idea what happens to a formula when it’s modified to need only one coat, or dry more quickly, or not chip, for my convenience.  How is that achieved?  What cost is there to my health; the workers’ who produced it; the environment?

I say that I am striving to consume less and to think more about these important issues, yet so often, I completely forget about that resolution; or I am overwhelmed by the amount of research necessary to find ethical products, or to decide how to begin simplifying my own needs, that I just give in and buy what is convenient or what I like in that moment.

I’m also concerned about the bigger-picture psychologically of focusing on results (faster nails!) rather than process (if I do choose to paint my nails, doing it in a “healthier” way; being “in the moment” as I apply the polish – savoring the process, instead of trying to get it over with; being grateful that I’m able to paint my nails).

Such a deeply entrenched cultural idea may be hard to overcome, but at least I can start by recognizing when I fall subject to it.

Photo credit: https://wall.alphacoders.com/big.php?i=104284