Growth Can Be Invisible, But Inevitable
What immediately comes to mind when I think of invisible growth is the contrast between maize and bamboo.
Now, this comparison often feels unfair to maize — a noble annual crop that lives just one season, yet nourishes millions. Its roasted or boiled cobs fill stomachs and fuel street markets, bringing joy and sustenance to weary workers returning home. Maize, please forgive me for using you as the metaphorical benchmark. Your value isn’t lost on me.
But still, the contrast must be made.
Maize grows quickly. Within a few weeks of planting, its progress is visible. A testament to how rapid growth can be. Some growth happens fast, and that’s valid. But not all growth looks the same, and certainly not all growth is visible.
People often discount their own progress because they’re not seeing quick results. Yet, as it’s been said, “it’s not the last blow that breaks the boulder, but every silent, consistent strike before it.” Still, we celebrate the final blow, forgetting the unseen rhythm of effort that came before.
Success, when measured solely by immediate results, can feel exhilarating — like harvesting maize. But when its season ends, you must plant again. It’s quick, satisfying, but short-lived.
Now bamboo? That’s a different story. It spends years underground, stretching, rooting, and preparing. To the untrained eye, it looks like nothing is happening. But in the shadows, foundations are forming. And once it shoots, it grows rapidly, almost impossibly so — but only because the system beneath was strong.
Sometimes, what’s right for the moment isn’t what’s right for the future.
Effort. Grit. Patience. Consistency. These are the threads that weave lasting success. Success built on systems doesn’t just yield results, it sustains them. Again and again.
Corn is sweet. Quick success is sweet. But long-term, system-rooted success? That’s sweeter.
In the race toward results, many have chosen the fast path, even envying those who waited and planted bamboo — hoping that maize will somehow yield bamboo’s harvest.
But life doesn’t work that way.
Plant maize, and you’ll harvest maize.
Cultivate bamboo, and in time, you’ll harvest bamboo.
Both are valid. But know what you’re planting. And know what kind of harvest you seek.
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