So much of our lives is spent staring at the finish line, anticipating the ending. We overemphasize the touchdown, but forget the preparation that leads to it.

We all have those moments of glory we look forward to in life; the moments when everything comes together and it makes sense. But life isn’t just the ending. There’s beauty in the process. The beauty is in the in between.

Sometimes, we want that finish line so bad, though, that we forget all the work that goes into the base layers of life.

When I’m working on a painting, it’s not uncommon to spend 80-90% of the time working on rough base layers that few people notice, and only the last 10-20% on the top layers that people really even notice. If, however, I rush those base layers, the work won’t have near the same level of quality, and depth.

It’s this time we spend on the ‘base layers’ of life, those in between times when no one really knows what we’re working on, that are so important to the product of who we are. Take the time to work on those base layers that no one notices. They’ll matter even more later. Don’t shortcut yourself.