Spring is in full force and there are so many reminders about new life all around: trees starting to bloom, spring flowers opening wide to the sunshine, birds nesting, and days growing longer. Yet all the beauty we see now didn’t just happen overnight. The birds were busy building their nests weeks ago. Bulbs were planted months or years ago. Beyond the natural world, the recent burst of buzz around Susan Boyle was also a great reminder of the seeds we plant and cultivate throughout our lives. After all she didn’t become a fabulous singer overnight. She spent decades cultivating her craft (planting and nurturing seeds). Tori Johnson at Women for Hire had an excellent post on “What Scotland’s Susan Boyle Means for You and Me” recently. (If for some reason you haven’t seen the Susan Boyle video you can see it here)
We live in a time where we all want something instantly. I know I can often be tremendously impatient. Yet that is not how things work. The get rich quick schemes and instant success mantras that float all over the web are just a hook. I’m not saying you can’t succeed in short order nor does it have to be a struggle. However, it is part of nature’s rhythm to plant, nurture, grow, bloom, harvest, and rest. You see it all around us in the seasons, the flowers, animals, and even our own human rhythms. The same holds true in business as well…expansion and contraction. Cycles are inevitable and of course right now we’re experiencing an extreme example of that with the economy. But if you can ride the rhythm of nature you can succeed and feel fulfilled no matter what the season.
So what seeds are you ready to start planting this season?
What seeds have you already planted that are now getting ready to blossom?
What do you most need to do each day to nurture this natural cycle and reap the rewards?