Some sunsets are gifted to us – like a spontaneous moment of stillness, or the view on your evening walk on a clear evening. They ask nothing of us but our presence. They invite us to pause, to breathe, to feel. These are the sunsets given.
Others, however, must be earned. You know the kind. The sunset at the summit – after a gruelling hike that pushed your body and tested your resolve. Blisters on your feet, legs aching, heart pounding – and then, at the top, the view: a sky ablaze in colours that feel like a reward. This is the sunset earned.
Both are beautiful. But one holds a particular kind of power.
There’s something deeply satisfying about earning your view. The joy is richer, the moment deeper, the meaning more personal. In psychology, this is known as the effort justification effect – the idea that we assign greater value to outcomes we’ve worked hard to achieve. Research in the field of cognitive dissonance theory, supports the notion that when we invest effort – whether physical, emotional, or mental – we derive more satisfaction from the results.
It’s why a handwritten manifesto means more than a borrowed quote. Why a relationship you’ve nurtured through hard conversations feels stronger. Why a goal reached through struggle sits differently in your soul than one landed by chance.
We’re not suggesting every joy must be earned to be worthwhile. Life generously hands us grace, and we’d be wise to receive it. But let us also not forget the beauty of building, striving, and ascending. Of finding our strength, not just our comfort.
So here’s an invitation: seek the sunsets. Accept the given ones. But don’t shy away from the earned ones. Lace up your boots, take the steep track, and trust that the view will be worth it.
And maybe, just maybe, your personal manifesto – your declaration of what matters most – is one of those earned sunsets. A reflection not just of where you are, but how far you’ve come.
Other reminders to keep close:
“The harder the climb, the better the view.”
“What we achieve too easily, we esteem too lightly.”
“Things given have charm. Things earned have power.”
Go well.