2013 was the year it all began. For fans of the NBA franchise Philadelphia 76ers, there was a different “sheriff in town.” After years of underperformance, a new General Manager arrived with a mandate to rebuild the program. As is usually the case, he brought this own perspective and methodology to the pursuit of winning basketball. With him came the hope of contending for a championship in a few years. His proposed pathway to success began with embracing the practice of losing games. The worse the record, potentially the better the draft pick they would secure. Building a stronger team of young talent through the draft was the strategy. It would take a few years. There would initially be some pain to endure. Be patient, fans were advised. Trust the Process.
Trust the Process became the controversial mantra of the day. There has not yet been a championship year for the team since 2013, but the 76ers did become more competitive over time. Whether or not the Process was a success remains a contentious topic among basketball pundits to this day.
College basketball titles were recently decided for 2025. The NBA is in the midst of playoffs, and the WNBA tipped off its season this week. Despite this coincidence of timing, these matches are not what have me recalling the 76ers’ trademarked phrase. Rather, life itself is responsible for its resurgence. As we all can attest, life can be tough at times. Challenging. While we may never embrace losing now in the hope of later success, it could be prudent to lean into the idea of trusting the process. At the very least the mantra is a call for patience. It could also be a manner of deflecting criticism or postponing accountability. However one interprets it, it is a call for more time, allowing things to develop further.
To be sure, life is a process—and not a fair one at that. Some have undeserved, unmerited advantages over peers, whereas others struggle from day one out of the womb. In either case, life develops over time. It usually doesn’t unfold in a nice linear fashion. It comes with ups and downs. Curves and hills. Triumphs and failures. Moments of tranquility, along with spots of exhilaration and occasionally a dose of fear. Joy and sadness join us, all sprinkled over the span of time we know as our life. When happiness and contentment prevail, what’s to worry about? But in those moments – or worse – those long drawn-out periods where anything that could go wrong does so, then what?
Advice and encouragement in the form of clichés is easy to give, but I find them mostly aggravating even if the advice-giver means well. Even when it is good advice, the truth is sometimes I really dislike the process for a few reasons. For starters, the process is time consuming. I am part of a religious group that loves process. It is built into our identity and governance processes. We have no use for parliamentary procedure, preferring instead to seek the “sense of the meeting.” Everyone’s voice is given space. We will listen and labor until we come to a decision, however long it takes. It is a beautiful process, except for when it isn’t. If there is such a thing as a Quaker version of hell, I’m guessing it involves a committee meeting where unity can’t be achieved! Granted, we are stronger in our decisions than we would be with a rushed vote, but take my advice. Pack a lunch and find a comfortable seat because you’ll be grateful for both after a while!
The biggest drawback to the time-consuming element of the Process is that consequently, it is wearying. In someways, it resembles what occurs with group dynamics. At the outset, enthusiasm for the cause propels engagement and creates a positive mood. Great energy moves us forward. Then, about halfway through the project, reality sets in. We lose our rose-colored glasses. We discover each other’s warts. Interactions drain us like an hour on the treadmill machine. At least when we watch a bad movie, we have the option to turn it off or walk out of the theater. However, life does not provide a convenient exit strategy. There is little option except to soldier on.
A few days ago, a couple of service guys were swapping out appliances at our home. They were good and capable people. What we thought would be about a half an hour swap turned into about three hours. They didn’t really do anything wrong. It is just that stuff happens. One thing doesn’t go quite as planned. Another brings its own surprise. Fifteen minutes turns into forty-five. You can see the weariness creep onto the face, forming circles under the eyes and turning down the sides of the mouth. Meanwhile, we are left to wonder if they will actually resolve the matter, or if we should get involved. It ended with sweet success, but it would have been a little sweeter two hours earlier! Trusting the process can leave a person exhausted!
If that isn’t enough, after a while, thanks to the process pessimism or apathy can settle in. That is a natural by-product of losing hope. Hope is a source of motivation and stamina. Its determination makes us nearly unconquerable; losing it has a disabling effect. Even if we avoid that pitfall, fatigue shows up – as should be expected when we work long and hard. I saw it in a worker’s eyes a few days ago about halfway through a 4-day project. As the end of day 2 arrived, he was pooped. You could feel his exhaustion just by looking at him. It carried over into day 3. About midway through day 4 his enthusiasm returned. That is what happens when the end is in sight. I recall a now mostly forgotten article read during my time in higher ed that stated the most fertile and imaginative times on college campuses were immediately after a president announced their intent to leave their position and in the early months after a new president arrived. Both brought brief periods of hope and opportunity to those wearied by recent process.
When the process succeeds and goals are realized, then whatever ordeal we’ve endured seems worth it, at least for a time. However, there is a twist to the 76er mantra that often goes unnoticed, or at least is unspoken. “Process” is merely one part of this strategy. In order for it to succeed, it must be accompanied by “trust.” Hmm. An already demanding approach may have just taken a more difficult turn. In order to be able to trust the process, we need to have some confidence in the ones facilitating it. Or we may feel the need to have a voice in the conversation, or at least that our concerns are represented. Are those facilitators competent at the tasks that must be undertaken? Are they trustworthy with regards to their motives? Do they have our best interests in mind? What is our recourse if the process fails us? Those are the kinds of questions that nag us as we try to trust the process. These days they have personal as well as national and global implications.
Trusting the process can get us to a much better place. If the players are trustworthy. If their intention is honorable. If the strategy works. If patience can prevail. That is a lot “ifs.” Perhaps we should amend the strategy to something like, “Support the process, but question it as well.” There is a lot a stake — perhaps more than we realize!! Trust me.
