While writing these lines I’m fighting the thought of giving in to some junk food or to stick with my self-imposed diet since I feel the need to lose some weight. The temptation is huge, but I’m constantly reminding myself to stick to the plan!
So I need to sacrifice this impulse so I can get a step closer to my goal. This made me wonder if sacrifice is always required. Think about whatever it is build in this world. Think about all the plans people have and what they are willing to do to follow them. Some concentrate more on their careers whilst ignoring their families, others do the opposite. Some make huge financial investments in random thing, others do in themselves. Some spend their money on immediate pleasure whilst others try to save up for their future. Some people “sacrifice” junk food whilst others sacrifice their health. Whatever people do, they don’t have everything they want.
Most of us have to choose. We can have either one thing or another. Sure, sometimes we can integrate the two so we can try to satisfy both things. We try to create a balance. The thing is that when a balance is it place, none of the two are extraordinary. Yes, a balance can make things great, but to have excellence, a sacrifice is required.
This is actually why I’m wondering if sacrifice is always required in order to achieve excellence. Think about top athletes. They train most of their time and because of that, they don’t have time for other activities, like playing around or going out with their friends. When excellence is achieved, things can change, but until that point, people need to decide what’s the most important for them.
Okay, I know that a sacrifice might not always seem a sacrifice for the person doing that, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t present. For me it’s like this: I choose immediate pleasures (because of my instincts) or I choose long term achievements. For me, there is no other way. I can discipline myself and invest my time now in order to have some results later on, or I don’t do it and obviously no results can come.
How is it for you? Is a form of sacrifice always required so you can get what you strongly want?
In a way, yes. Because to devote your attention to some thing, well it requires your attention and that is going to be taken away from something else. It’s about choices. Selecting something is essentially de-selecting the option to do something else.
Yup. Life is all about choices
Yes… Actually, I think that the word “choice” indirectly transmits that something needs to be sacrificed in order for something else to be achieved.
This is something I was thinking from few days.
We can’t get everything, we have to chose.
If someone is rich, working in a good company or business, professionally satisfied. It may seem successful life to some, but some may say that the person does not have time for the family or simplicity in life.
If we need simplicity, we have to sacrifice riches.
Now it is upto us what kind of life we want.
Sacrifices will always be there.
Yes, life is all about Balance 😊
Yeah!
Yes, it seems like it. I guess that’s how life goes 🙂
Yes DM, we choose, we let go off, we sacrifice.. instant gratification drives most but the wise look for long term gain.
If I want to have junk food but don’t give into temptation that I would call self control. If I have food with me and am hungry but give it to someone more needy – that I would call sacrifice. And that feeling is always so good.
I guess it does, unless the sacrifice is related to someone being hurt.
I think no matter how you slice it with things both big and small some level of sacrifice will always be there. I know at least for me personally I will never be able to achieve every single thing I wish I could out of life but that for sure doesn’t mean I’m gonna stop trying my best to do everything I can complete on my own personal list! I love all yours posts usually, btw! 🙌😉✌🏻
Thank you very much for reading and for your kind words! I love that you love them! I think that in order to achieve something, we need to let go of something else (time, sleep, people, ideas and so on).
Completely agree coming from a girl who is slowly approaching honestly being close to the 48 hours mark on no sleep for one example! 😂
I have sacrificed so many things to get to this stage I am now. Sometimes you have to let go of certain things and people if you want to grow. Change comes with a price and a new attitude. You have to let go of certain things that would stop you from achieving that goal. Sacrifice is always required but some can be tough to make. It depends on your willingness
Very true! Do you ever regret the sacrifices you made?
Never .i have learnt in life never to regret anything but learn the lesson and become better .
We sacrifice everyday, consciously or unconsciously, but the sacrifice that will benefit us is a weaker sacrifice compared to that which benefit others. And that I will call the real or actual sacrifice. For example if I go hungry for someone else to eat, that’s real sacrifice. If I investment in me for the benefit of someone else, that’s real sacrifice.
Great point, especially the fact that we do it consciously or unconsciously. Whenever a choice is required, some form of sacrifice is involved.
This is a great question. I think whenever one is trying to achieve a goal, yes, they will always have to sacrifice. There is actually a great podcast episode on this very subject. Its called Chasing Excellence (I always listen on Spotify). It is for athletes and they were talking about this very thing. However, I think the word “sacrifice” is such a strong word to describe the action in the moment. I think it’s more of a string of conscious acknowledgements that a person has to make in order to stay on the path that leads to their goal. For example, “I want a candy bar. But I’m want to loose 10 lbs. So I can not have the candy bar because it will not help me loose those 10 lbs.” I think that is more of a conscious acknowledgement of something that will not help you reach your goal. Now, Im sure for some people, it feels like a sacrifice. That’s why so many people are of the mind-set that you have to have “balance” (only eat half of the candy bar). Like with any true GOAL, it takes dedication and laser focus in order to stay on that narrow path. With that being said, we are human and by design, we have a natural default to fail over and over again. Which is why it is so important to make realistic goals and use plain old hard work to achieve that goal. Its gonna be hard, and it should be.
I think that dedication and focus require some form of sacrifice even if it feel likes it or not…
Sacrifice seems like a harsh word. The implication that something is being destroyed in order to appease someone or something else is uncomfortable to my mind. There are always choices to be made – how you spend your time being the one thing that is going to be “sacrificed” no matter what else is going on. Time is the truest resource that we can’t reclaim, and therefore the most precious. So in that respect, yes, one must always sacrifice.
Here’s the important thing to remember – not just balance, or priorities, but peace. Peace and balance go hand in hand. You’re not really balanced if you’ve got 50% work and 50% family, but no time to appreciate it. Peace or balance shouldn’t be the trade off, they should be the goals.
Peace and satisfaction. Some people are not satisfied with 50% – 50% even though it seems balanced and it brings them peace. If they’re not satisfied with that, there probably isn’t peace in their own mind, so yeah. Piece should be a goal, especially the peace of mind.
I think it all goes back to gratitude and appreciation for what you have in life…it won’t be a sacrifice if you feel grateful for what’s already in front of you…
So when you concentrate on what you have, you don’t have the time or the resources to think about what you don’t have, right?
Isn’t it about priorities?
Yes, but does a priority implies sacrificing things that are not priorities?
Really a good article
Thank you! 🙂