There is No Promotion Without Progress

The dynamic T.D. Jakes left me with quite the word, from a sermon I listened to on last week. He simply said that there can be no promotion without progress. And, I couldn’t agree more.

We live in a society where instant gratification is set on a pedestal. There are an alarming amount of individuals who feel that hard work can simply be bypassed for the glory of obtaining Polaroid success. And, this cannot be further from the truth, my friends. Greatness takes time, sacrifice and consistency. No matter how you look at your current situation, overnight success is a farce. The reality of the fact may be that that “overnight success” is the product of ten years worth of sweat, blood and tears – you just wasn’t there to witness it.

Michelle Obama was not built in a day. Rihanna was not built in a day. Hell, even Oprah endured her own struggles, before she was able to establish her own empire. Like J. Cole so eloquently spit it, “there’s beauty in the struggle…”.

Just remember: be great at your current level, so you can continue your ascent to even higher levels. Greatness does not come without practice. Practice manifesting your goals, practice laying the foundation for your faith and practice cementing your version of a work ethic. You cannot have stats without a story, point blank.

So, set aside that notion that you are not where you want to be in life because, little do you know, you may very well just be getting started. So, enjoy your process. Bask in the light of your struggles. Live in your moment, progress is inevitable, just keep pushing.

Model: Esmesha Campbell

Photography by: Bi Be, @Gau2708