If you're an NBA fan you've probably heard this before (76ers mantra because they suck) but - trust the process.

If you're on your journey of self improvement and you've laid out a good plan and you're taking the correct steps then have faith in the process.

Many times people abandon strategies that would've given them long term success because they don't see an immediate reward.

We all know this. But most people assume it's entirely due to needing instant gratification. That may be part of it but I also feel like we lose faith in the process if the results are not immediate due to a fear of wasting a few weeks or months of our precious time trying an ineffective strategy so we jump ship.

Understand self improvement is the result of several thousand self improving actions.

Imagine you have a jar of "self improvement" and every time you eat a healthy meal, workout, do something productive, you add a granule of sand in the jar. At first, it's not gonna look like you've been doing shit but after a year's worth of actions that thing may be half full.

Example: If your goal is to get fit, understand it took years and years for you to be as unfit as you currently are. You binge eating on the holidays didn't do it, hitting that buffet last weekend didn't do it. Your eating and workout habits, or lack thereof, over a number of YEARS cumulatively brought about your current state. It might have been awhile before you finally looked up and say "Wow I'm fat". Maybe you hid it with bigger clothes, compared yourself to other people and said "this ain't so bad" or you just completely embraced it and stopped worrying - Fact remains is it happened SLOWLY and over a LONG period of time.

Trusting the process takes a lot more psychological strength than people give credit for.

It means you may be busting your ass the same way a ripped athlete does for 2-3 weeks straight, wake up, look in the mirror and barely notice a difference and think "wtf". You'll be tempted to either unnecessarily ramp up your efforts, which will burn you out and make you quit. Or you'll just say fuck the strategy and try a new one which may be more effective at first but will require the same trust and you'll get frustrated with that one and never adhere to one philosophy long enough to see real results.

Only by carefully curating a plan and religiously sticking to it with the faith that it will get you to your desired destination will yield success. Of course you should make adjustments if you're falling behind, but until you have verifiable proof you are, then just relax.

This principle is true of TRP strategy too if you're using it to be better with women. I see posts occasionally that read "I studied the sidebar, lurked here for months and I'm still getting [fill in the blank] result!"

Be patient and allow yourself an opportunity to understand the philosophy and tweak it to get your desired results.

This brings me to monk mode:

I'm not against it. I think it's useful when used correctly, but it's dangerous in the hands of people in certain situations.

If your problem is with women and social interaction then monk mode may be counterintuitive to your goals. Harsh reality is no matter how many books, online material and "game" you study or read, you have to put it in practice somehow.

Not doing so is like studying everything about the game of basketball for a few months and then being shocked when you step on a court and you don't seem any better at dribbling or shooting. There's no use of someone teaching you the strategy behind basketball if you're not even practicing how to dribble and shoot.

Just like you'll miss shots as you get better, you'll have some awkward conversations and blow it with girls.

This isn't what I mean by dribbling and shooting though. Dribbling and shooting are the basics. The equivalent in this metaphor would be general social acumen. Are you likable in general? Are you successful at just having friends and building a decent social circle? If not, then why would you expect to be amazing with women? That's like expecting to master post moves without knowing how to dribble the damn ball. It won't happen. Make sure that THIS fundamental is at least solid. Being a personable and affable individual goes a LONG way and you'll find that you're doing less "finessing" and more of being your natural self.

It's going to be hard in the beginning.

Your fears will probably be confirmed. Some girls may be cruel in their rejection. Some people may laugh and point and say "haha look at him!"

Fuck them. You're doing what a LOT of grown men don't have the nuts to do and there's no shame in that, win or lose. In my book, I respect the guy who's willing to put his ego on the line and go for what he wants way more than the guys who pretend they get bitches but never talk to them - or they only talk to ones they know they can get.

Trust me I understand these words are hardly worth their weight in your head and you might still feel anxiety. That's why I say this is the hard part because this is the part of the learning process where you will fall flat on your ass. You might get laughed at, girls may be rude, might comment on why they're "too good" to date you, etc. Take it in stride. Those situations are your proverbial falls off the bicycle as you learn to ride.

When it happens to you enough times you'll realize it didn't kill you. Any psychiatrist that helps their patients deal with phobias usually does so by slowly exposing them to it. Why? Exposure desensitizes you. If you're afraid of spiders and I consistently expose you to spiders, you'll get over it eventually. It's how we humans were built. We adapt. Once again - TRUST THE PROCESS.

Moral of the story

You have to be willing to suck at something before you can get good at it and studying strategy will have a greater benefit the better you are. Master the fundamentals too. No matter how good Tom Brady is, he still drills the basic shit like throwing 5 yard patterns, the 3 step drop back etc. If you want to improve with women you have to master the fundamentals first - having good dialogue with various people of diverse backgrounds. Acquiring friends. Being a contributing presence when in a group of multiple people. I'm not sure I know of any guy who gets a lot of girls who isn't just generally well liked. Maybe a few - but very few.

I'm not saying be Don Juan, but mix it up out there. Get familiar "dribbling the ball" and "shooting" THEN go study TRP philosophy.

This post is ridiculously long I know but just thoughts. Lemme know what you think.