Have you ever walked into a grocery store convinced you didn’t need a list? You might have said, “I know what I need. I’ll remember it easily. No big deal.” Then, halfway through the store, you realize you forgot if you already have olive oil at home, and you think about how much ketchup you have left in the fridge. The chips and cookies on sale start to distract you as the lure of getting a treat to keep in your pantry begins to take hold. You start picking up random items “just in case,” and by the time you’re checking out, your shopping bags are packed, your wallet is lighter, and you completely forgot the eggs you actually needed for the week.
If that sounds familiar, you might need to consider that you’re avoiding one of the most critical pieces of success: the process.
Broken processes start with a lie. We don’t skip the grocery list because we love to see what kind of financial shopping crisis we can get into on a random weekend. We skip it because we’ve convinced ourselves it’s easier. Making lists takes a few extra minutes, and it feels like an effort. We convince ourselves that more effort means more burden, and so we automatically conclude that we’re doing ourselves a favor by cutting corners. We even convince ourselves we’re “saving time.”
Humans rely on memory, and the brain, even though it fires billions of neurons millions of times each day, isn’t all that trustworthy. In fact, it’s easily manipulated by distractions, perceived patterns, creative marketing, and prices marked “special” that end in “.99.” The brain, however, is actually quite adept at improvising. It loves to convince you to say, “I’ll remember,” so that you give it more opportunities to improvise different things. That’s why you go into the grocery store thinking you need ingredients for one thing but eventually start to think of all the other things you could cook or eat. It tricks you into being lazy under that guise of confidence because it knows you’ll give it more opportunities to fire off those neurons and create more improvised chaos.
The fact is, we want things to be easier, but when easier becomes distorted into inconsistent actions and last-minute catch-ups, we start running into missed deadlines, unclear goals, and ongoing stress. The real kicker is that we keep convincing ourselves that our scattered approach is working.
It takes a while, but eventually, the disorganization and lack of processes start to become comfortable. It lets us believe we’re doing well because we’re just stylistically chaotic. We actively tell our friends, “I’m really good with my own mess. I can tell you where everything is in my room, including the paperclip on the ground next to my nightstand.” We create this loop of accepting disorganization and adapting to the inefficiency. We even say we’re putting out more fires than others could understand. In reality, we’re just spending more energy fixing the mess we keep trapping ourselves into rather than building.
If there’s ever been a moment that you’ve said you’re too busy to run through a list, to strategize something correctly, or to think of ways to improve, you are taking the lazy way out. You might think you’re saving time, but you’re actually stepping into a cycle that ultimately drains more energy in the long run. The excuses you create only seem valid momentarily. We do it with friends when we allow their negative influence to keep us out late, with work when we take shortcuts and conceal untaken steps, and alone in moments when we avoid flossing because it takes too long. We skip a process, and it creates difficulties later, ranging from a lack of sleep to poor work product and even cavities.
The difference is that instead, following a process leads to clear decisions, calm days at work, fewer return trips to the dentist, and even more cost-effective trips to the grocery store. Processes mean that someone took the time to think through something in advance, whether it was you or not. They created a logical system, checklist, or plan to help eliminate complications. Processes aren’t meant to be time-sucking frustrations. They’re meant to be tools to help you reach a better outcome. It’s about focusing on results, which, as any professional coach would tell you, is more critical than focusing on the idea of goals.
Processes matter more than talent. You can be smart, creative, and even confident but still underperform if you don’t respect the strength a process can bring. While you might admire spontaneity and “going with the flow,” without structure, you’ll quickly get lost in the noise. Processes create confidence because you know where they lead. They keep you consistent, focused, and prepared. Plus, if anything goes wrong, you can identify exactly where the problem is and make improvements. Understanding and following a process empowers you, making you feel in control and capable. Without an understanding of a process, you’re just guessing how to repair issues you encounter.
Success does not come from luck or acting off whims. It comes because we create routines founded on logic that get to our desired outcomes. In the same way a shopping list helps you avoid wasting time, money, and energy, a process does the same. It’s not just about the immediate benefits, though. A well-structured process can lead to long-term success and a happier life. You don’t need to overcomplicate things when following them, either. In fact, constant problems imply a lack of attention to the process more than anything.
If you look at the people in your life that you admire or who seem to have it all together, you’ll see that they aren’t necessarily working harder than you, they’re simply following better steps. From daily gratitude statements to morning workout routines and screen-free bedtimes, the people who succeed are those with a process in place. Instinctively, as parents, we teach our kids to follow specific processes as they grow up. We tell them to make the bed, brush their teeth, and do their homework. They’re all processes we know are essential but take for granted as we get older. They’re no different than writing a grocery list. In fact, the next time you decide to skip one, ask yourself how much easier it really made things. If it gave you one more excuse to complain about having to cook, needing to carry more, or impulsively buying that pack of cookies, you fell for your brain’s trap.
Success is rarely about working more or doing everything from memory. It’s almost always about working smarter, and that starts with a process. When you follow a process, and it leads to successful outcomes, you feel a sense of achievement, pride, and accomplishment.
The bottom-line is don’t trust your memory. Trust your method. It works better, and you won’t forget the eggs.
