Like a lot of people I’ve made health and fitness a priority in my life. That means I enjoy running, biking, playing golf and just about anything else I can do on a consistent basis to keep myself active. If I could just cut back on the french fries and ice cream I could probably make more rapid progress!
Over the past few years I’ve noticed a lot more aches and pains as a result of my quest to stay healthy. Stiff shoulders, sore back, plantar fasciitis in my heel, high ankle sprains, stiff neck, sore knees, you name it I’ve probably had it. While I realize this is nothing new when it comes to fitness and also a result of my aging body, I still can’t seem to help but complain about the state of my soreness.
The other day, my wife, who owns a small private gym and is a personal trainer said to me “Aches and pains are all part of the process” and being that she’s a lot tougher than me instructed me to “suck it up and keep moving!” I laughed as that statement reminded me of an old coach I had back when my body seemed to be more resilient and recovered from pain much faster.
Of course she is right. In order to get the results I’m looking for and the outcomes I desire there is going to be a little bit of stress and struggle during the process. At that moment I realized that to achieve anything worthwhile, some hard work and sweat is going to be required. As a result of that effort there are going to be the inevitable aches and pains.
Many of the businesses and organizations I’m currently working with, including my own are going through massive amounts of change and growth. In discussions with various clients, I’m hearing more and more about the strain this is putting on the business. The sales team is outpacing the support and operations group, or the systems are ready but the sales team hasn’t filled up the pipeline to use it just yet.
Other organizations have people in leadership roles that were extremely good at their previous jobs, but haven’t quite made the jump to being a leader. Some have become so uncomfortable with the “new normal” of the business they once knew that they’ve decided to move on, taking with them the institutional knowledge and relationships they built along the way. Maybe the culture has shifted so much that some are no longer a good fit for where the organization is heading.
All of these situations and more are creating organizational “Aches and Pains.” As you and your business change and grow the one thing that will hold true is that things aren’t going to go perfectly. In the quest for the outcomes you desire, you are going to make a lot of mistakes, drop a lot balls, zig when your probably should have zagged, and get up the next morning only to do it all over again. And as a wise women instructed me recently-“Suck it up- it’s all part of the process!”
This week ask yourself the following questions:
- What are the aches and pains in my business and in my life that I keep complaining about?
- How do I plan to address each of them?
- Where can I have the biggest impact this week to help alleviate the strain and stress of these challenges?
- Where do I need to “suck it up” and accept that where I am is all part of the process?
Thoughts for the week:
The secret of change is to focus your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new. – Socrates
Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything. – George Bernard Shaw
Change is hard at first, messy in the middle and gorgeous at the end. –Robin Sharma
One reason people resist change is because they focus on what they have to give up instead of what they have to gain. – Rick Goodwin
Nothing amazing ever happens inside your comfort zone. Unknown
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