We live in the age of instant gratification.
Texting allows immediate communication without needing to mail a letter, call, or meet someone physically. Online retailers let you order from a near infinite catalog of products that can arrive at your doorstep within a day. Food delivery services can satisfy any cuisine craving right to your doorstep. Streaming services provide access to any movie, tv show, or song you want to hear on demand.
We rarely have to wait on anything to reap the dopamine rewards of success. And while that can sometimes be a good thing, I believe it to be overall deterimental to our lifestyle and psychology.
When my first child was born I remember thinking how long it took to even get to the starting line. It takes some years of physical and emotional effort to make the decision to have kids, succesfully get pregnant, and go through the entire delivery process. And then for the first few months the child is largely a routine task filled with feedings, diaper changes, and hopes of them sleeping.
But then a few months in, you get your first smile! 😀
Then a few months later they roll over. Then they crawl, and then they walk. Around 2 years you start hearing some words. Then they grow their cognitive capabilities, start to learn grammar, go through learning basic motor tasks, picking up social skills in school, etc... Until finally you have a 4 year old you can converse with, who is just starting to become independent enough to where you don't have to watch them every minute of every day.
And that's great. But even with all the effort and progress after 4 years, you're still several years away from having a fully functioning independent adult.
The point is, you can't speed up raising a child. There's no app, there's no service, there's no way to pay more to achieve this goal more quickly and fast-forward to adulthood. And not that you'd really want to - much of the reward of parenting comes from being forced to go through that rate-limited journey and slowly achieve each milestone along the way.
That gratification is far from instant. And thankfully it's one of the few life experiences that will stay that way.