By Grace Sweeney
Diligence is something that should be valued, but instead, we often push it to the side under the guise of “procrastination” or “being too busy” or “being too tired.” We don’t like to pursue it because it’s hard. Being diligent is a lot of work! But it is also something that is necessary to succeed in whatever we do. Learning to pursue and maintain diligence now when we’re young is so important.
At times however, it’s easy to disregard it and focus on other things because it’s hard and we don’t want to put in the work. In this post, I’m going to tell you why all the effort that goes into maintaining diligence is worth it.
As sort of a review, the dictionary definition of diligence is:
“a steady, earnest, and energetic effort, devoted and painstaking work and application to accomplish an undertaking.” (Merriam-Webster)
Even that simple statement sounds hard! And it is.
As a writer, diligence is especially important for me. Without it, I’d never finish anything! I would have a hundred thousand half-finished novels lying around and never get published.
Imagine this: Your history teacher says on Friday that you have a test on Monday. It’s a complete surprise to everyone. But, because you’ve been working consistently on your schoolwork and applying yourself, you get an A, even though it was such short notice. If you had not been diligent in your work before hand, you probably wouldn’t have done so well.
In hobbies and sports, diligence is equally important. Say you start learning how to draw and paint using an online course. Someone who does that course weekly and practices every day will improve so much faster than someone who only does it when they happen to remember.
Staying diligent and focused on something is hard work. It’s not something that should be taken lightly. It involves the consistent work on whatever you need to focus on, as well as the mental effort to keep working on it.
For me, diligence means four things:
1. Remembering things we were asked to do and/or said we would do. When my mom asks me to start some pasta for supper, sometimes I want to finish reading “just one chapter.” One chapter turns into two and then three. Eventually I completely forget about the pasta and dinner is thrown off as a result.
2. Doing what we “should” do, even when we don’t feel like it. Trust me, I know how this feels. Some time ago, my family bought a Spanish course for homeschool. My sister became invested in it and applied herself, but I was… less than interested. I only ever did Spanish when my mom asked me to. I would rather have been doing something else that I found more fun. Now, because of that, my sister is nearing full fluency and I barely know the basics of the language. Diligence is doing what we know we should do, even when we weren’t specifically asked to. It is remembering, like I said up above, what we need to do and then doing it, even if we don’t want to. Especially if we don’t want to.
3. Being responsible. Sweeping my bedroom doesn’t seem that important sometimes. I mean, I only skipped one day, and I’m tired. What’s the huge deal? The next day I’m also too tired. But it’s just one day, right? Or I think, “Well, I wasn’t asked to sweep the floor today, so maybe I don’t need to.” Then the pattern continues throughout the week and inevitably, the dust will pile up and then I’ll have to work twice as hard to get it clean again, all because I faltered one day. Being responsible enough to continue with something is one of the biggest pieces of making diligence a part of your life.
4. Working hard consistently, with enthusiasm and persistence. I know, it’s hard to be enthusiastic about chores or schoolwork or some other everyday task. Even if we enjoy doing something, like I do with my writing, it can be hard to stay enthusiastic and motivated over a long period of time. But that is a huge part of diligence. It is not just working hard and remembering to do things; it’s doing those things because we want to. It is sticking to it with all the stubbornness we can muster up. (Now, that doesn’t mean you should be diligent in annoying your siblings and being stubborn in that.... Please don’t do that. :) ) We need to have enthusiasm for the tough projects, like schoolwork and chores, because we know it will benefit us in the end. If we want to do things and want to see them completed or maintained, we will work hard and that is a step toward mastering diligence.
Okay, that’s all well and good—but this is still a lot of work! Why should I work hard at maintaining diligence? What does it give besides a lot of completed projects that I only half-wanted to do in the first place?
Diligence is an important habit to have. Knowing how to apply ourselves to a task will serve us immensely throughout our life. Learning diligence now in our family life, our school, and our hobbies is one of the best things you can do to prepare yourself for the future. You’ll find yourself miles ahead of your peers if you are able to focus on something and do it, rather than putting it off or not doing it at all because you don’t want to, or it’s just not interesting. Learning to apply ourselves now to whatever we need or want to do is an enormous life skill that is so important to learn.
It will also improve our reputation. Proverbs says that “A good name is more desirable than great riches and to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.” Becoming a person of diligence and responsibility and hard work elevates us above those around us who don’t focus on those virtues and in turn, we are given more responsibilities and more privileges. It will make us seem more mature in our parents’ eyes and our friends’ eyes. People will look at us differently if we have diligence.
Lastly, it will make us feel better about ourselves. You probably know how good it feels when you accomplish something big. When you get that good grade or finish that report or when your mom thanks you for sticking with something, it feels good. It feels satisfying. It helps us know that we can do it.
So, is diligence worth it? It’s important, but is the end result really worth all the work?
Diligence improves ourselves, our work, and our reputation. It is hard, I’m not denying that. Is it worth it? Yes! Having diligence will benefit us for as long as we live. It will improve us in our own eyes and in the eyes of others, and it will give us habits that will serve us forever.
“She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks.” Proverbs 31:17
“Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in forced labor.” Proverbs 12:24
Post a Comment