It comes out of the blue.
A life changing opportunity.
You have limited time to decide.
It will disappear just as suddenly.
Will you be ready?
Will you have time?
Will people understand?
Will it be worth it?
The thing about a life changing opportunity is…
…you need to say “yes” for the life changing to begin.
Will you say “yes”?
It is inevitable.
You will make a mistake.
If you think you won’t, then you are mistaken.
You will wish you hadn’t.
You will prefer that it go away.
You will offer explanation.
You will seek forgiveness and understanding.
You will remember how it made you feel.
You will say you didn’t mean to.
You will need to own it.
How do you recharge?
When you are depleted, tapped out or overwhelmed, what brings you back?
Find what works for you.
Take a walk.
Listen to your favourite tunes.
Read a book.
Go for a drive.
Watch a sunset.
Exercise.
Rest.
Have lunch away from your desk.
Socialise with friends.
Seek solace in solitude.
Sleep.
Whatever works for you, take the time to recharge.
You might think you know it all.
And just when you think you do…
…along comes someone else with something new.
A new perspective.
A different way.
A better method.
A new idea.
A different strategy.
An improved design.
An efficient process.
Are you open to the something new?
Are you playing within your comfort zone?
The comfort zone is…well…comfortable!
There is stability in the comfort zone.
You know your stuff in the comfort zone.
You cannot fail in the comfort zone.
And also…
There are no challenges in the comfort zone
You will not grow in the comfort zone.
Your full potential is not within the comfort zone.
The comfort zone won’t get you where you want to go.
To meet a challenge is rewarding.
But there is more to it than that.
To successfully meet a challenge you must become something that you were not before.
What have you challenged yourself with lately?
When the routine comes undone.
When the new habit is not yet ingrained.
When you fall off the wagon.
You can beat yourself up.
You can say “I can’t”.
You can get frustrated.
You can listen to your negative self-talk.
You can give up.
Or you can recover and start to build the habit or routine again.
Until it is built-in.
What do you need to deliver?
How daunting is it?
To deliver, there is a plan.
The plan is broken down into many steps.
The steps cannot all be done at once.
So, focus on the next step that can be done.
Just the next step.
Not so daunting now?
How do you deal with the unexpected?
Technology will let you down.
The meeting will be postponed until later.
The meeting will be brought forward.
They thought you were going to do it.
And you thought they would.
The flight will be delayed.
The backup will fail.
The phone call will upend your day.
The delivery will be late.
People will not show.
This stuff will happen.
How will you handle the unexpected?
Are you communicating or talking?
If a delivered message is not understood, then you are just talking.
When the message is understood by the receiver, then you are communicating.
For the message to be understood by the receiver, it is the sender that must communicate.