When engaging in activity, I find people referencing their experiences as one of two things: HARD or EASY. If we limit ourselves to only the things that fall naturally into our fiber, we don't ever have the chance to find out what we COULD be successful at. We also give up quicker as these terms are limiting and finite. Let's redefine these terms to COMFORTABLE and UNCOMFORTABLE. The change is in the mind and in our relentless pursuit for excellence.
If it is HARD, we don't allow ourselves to ever grow away from that thought. There is no way out of HARD...it just gets HARDER and HARDEST. UNCOMFORTABLE frames the challenge as something that is temporary and that can be overcome. What in life hasn't been UNCOMFORTABLE? Watching people slowly and successfully get out of the UNCOMFORTABLE feeling is one of my greatest joys as an educator. Sometimes it is fast, other times it is wretchedly slow, but with focus, work, and commitment, it WILL become more COMFORTABLE!! If it is EASY, we don't affirm that we had to do work to create it or have success in it. There is no internal value to our commitment to the task. It almost sounds like LUCK. If something is COMFORTABLE it means we have spent time and worked hard at it. We have worked hard to achieve the most common behavior....we just don't remember. I hear people say all the time that something comes EASY to them. It didn't at the beginning. It has been COMFORTABLE for so long that it seems like you have been doing it forever with ease. Need an example....how about walking, talking, eating. Next time you are with a baby or toddler, ask them how COMFORTABLE those things are (my son could prove to you that eating without a mess is not an achievable behavior for him...YET!) I hope you can change your vocabulary to give meaning to the things that are COMFORTABLE to you and to realize that you can move away from UNCOMFORTABLE with determination, desire, and plenty of time and energy! |
Thanks for stopping by. These are musings on how I see leadership in the world and how I continue to try and grow through my lens.
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