I have come to understand that when you follow after the same process and procedures that got someone a certain result, then you also have a chance of achieving the same result. It is sad that a lot of people only see the bad thing in people and tend to imitate it while they sideline the good things and they end up having a negative result. If you want to get a good result from someone by imitating them, then you need to copy the good things that will bring the kind of results to you. The truth is that there are lots of good things that you can learn by just observing and imitating people, but only if you are willing to.
It is worthy to note that what is rewarded is the end-result. No matter how long it took you to achieve it, the attempts are not what is rewarded. So why waste so much time in trying to figure out everything all by yourself when you can simply learn from someone who has already mastered it and gain enough experience? You need to know that what has taken someone a very long time to master through many trials and extensive experiences can be passed on to you.
While I was doing my internship during my university period, I was privileged to serve briefly in a department with some systems of machines before I was moved to my own field. During the few weeks I spent there, I learnt how to operate the machines so well that they would leave me to operate them without having any doubt. But it was not so at the beginning. When I entered there, I found the machines so complex and everything looked strange. In fact, the manual I was given to read about the machines looked like a textbook and it was so tiring.
When I had a discussion with my direct boss then about the machines and how they looked so complex and how I was finding it demotivating to read the manual, he smiled and just told me "watch how I operate them and learn." For a few days, I was just paying attention to how he ran the machines and from there, I learnt how to operate them and I started. I got good with operating them and when I asked my boss if he also had ease with learning how to operate them, his response shocked me. He told me that he had to go through the rigors of reading the manual cover-for-cover and figured out things by himself which took him close to one year to master. The same thing that took him about one year was what I learnt in a couple of days simply because I learnt by imitation.
I normally hear a lot of people say that they are to take full responsibility for their lives. Yes, this is true, but imitating someone does not mean that you are not taking responsibility as long as the person has a proven result. After all, you are imitating to learn from them in order to assume bigger responsibilities and get the required results. For example, if you learn how to fish from a fisherman, it does not mean that you will become dependent on them for life's supply of fish, but it means that you want to assume the responsibility of fishing for yourself. In life, your learning is what makes you a better person and also gives you the empowerment to take responsibility. However, learning can be facilitated by imitating others in order to replicate their methods and achieve the same success they did.
It is worth noting that there are things that you may never gain or may be difficult to gain until you have followed the path of those who have achieved it. For example, before you can become a licensed pilot, you have to come under the training and tutelage of a very experienced pilot. It is by observing how they fly and taking instructions from them that the student pilot will learn how to fly. In many other ramifications of life, the journey will become easier when you learn from the people who have travelled far in life.
It has been said that "when you stand on the shoulder of giants, you will not only be taller but you will see far." This means that when you have leveraged on the experience of the people who have gone ahead of you by imitating their processes, you will also achieve the same result that they did.
Thanks for reading
