What You Have To Do.

“What you want to do is overrated.”

~ Eric Guaga

I was watching a YouTube video by Eric Guaga today when he made the statement above, and I had to pause.

In a world where we are constantly told to do what we want and pursue our dreams, he was saying the opposite.

Do what you have to do. Leave what you want to do for later.

Oftentimes, what we want to do is subjective. It is shaped by our environment, conditioning, exposure, and a lot more. As we gain more insight and acquire more knowledge, our perspectives can change. The things we once wanted may no longer appeal to us.

So perhaps we shouldn't be in such a hurry to do what we want to do at the expense of what we have to do.

Most times, what you have to do is annoying, tedious, uninteresting, not your thing, or simply not your preference. But in the long run, if you stick with it and do it well, it may take you exactly where you want to be.

Growing up, I wanted to be so many things at so many different points in my life. And every phase of wanting a particular thing was influenced by what I had been exposed to at the time. The moment my exposure changed, boom! I wanted something else.

So, do you see how subjective the things we want can be?

Dearest reader, what you have to do may not look like what you want to do, but in the end, it may all align. It may all make sense.

But while you do what you have to do, give it your best shot. Your evidence of good work in doing what you have to do may eventually speak for you.

Let's take David, for example.

Even after the prophet anointed him and he knew he would be king, he continued doing what he had to do. He went back to looking after his father's sheep.

And while that may have seemed trivial, it was what gave him the audacity to face Goliath. David had evidence, he had fought lions. He had fought bears, he had seen God deliver him before.

So when Goliath showed up, David wasn't just standing on blind faith. Oga had sample space.

And perhaps that is one of the things doing what you have to do gives you: evidence.

Evidence that you can do hard things, evidence that you can be trusted with more, evidence that you are capable of becoming the person you say you want to be.

So perhaps, before you rush to do what you want to do, ask yourself:

What do I have to do? And then do it well.

Note this; what you want may change, but the discipline of doing what is required can prepare you for whatever you eventually choose.

@favvy_Okwans🖤.