If you’re paying attention, you’ll often find that everything that happens in your life is more interconnected than it seems on the surface. Themes and life lessons often are simultaneously applicable to professional and personal Greg. The first few months of 2017 are saying, “It’s lesson time!”
I am not much for personal boasting or for being as confident in myself as I could be. I don’t often tell myself I’m particularly good at things for fear of becoming too proud or seen as arrogant. Maybe it’s a mentality of “I can always do better” or a false humility that prevents me from appreciating and owning the fact there’s stuff I’m legitimately good at. I often need some reinforcement and reminders from friends and others that I should be utilizing my strengths more often.
In my head, I know I am capable of quite a bit and probably more if I seriously applied myself. I can look at my life so far and find some notable accomplishments. There are also those less visible achievements that almost nobody besides myself is aware of. There are natural fits for where I should utilize my skills and expend my energy.
I’ve mentioned before in previous posts that I often end up in positions of leadership and influence, even in times when I wasn’t seeking those roles out. In reality, most of the time I wasn’t looking to be “the guy” who took on the responsibility of collecting money for and tracking the apartment’s utility bills or of discerning the next best steps for optimizing work processes. All paths lead me to a place at the front of the pack and in most cases has stretched me beyond my original capabilities and made me see the world with a different perspective.
This is a year where I am strongly sensing and seeing a need to bring my best to the table. If life is a constant training ground for that next big moment to step up, 2017 feels like that moment for me. There isn’t time for coasting and watching the world go by. The only exception to that rule is if I’m outdoors on a run training for a race.
What goes along with being given any skill is a responsibility to use and share it for the good of the world around you. I’m not trying to present myself as some superhero here to save the day in every situation I find myself. Though when the time comes when I’m called to do my part, I can’t be hesitant to step up to the task for fear of standing out or of failing.
The hardest and sometimes least prominent part of accepting any new challenge is choosing what needs to be removed to make space for what lies ahead. For example, I can’t successfully simultaneously train for a marathon and eat fast food daily or go to bed at 2 AM. For me to increase my intake of books and write more, that means I have to make a conscious choice to cut back on TV, Netflix, and Hulu.
The overall 2017 challenge theme for me is this: lead. Lead by example. Lead by doing. This is no simple feat. It will require discipline, rest, time, focus, and help to succeed.
I mentioned recently that I need to make space in my life for what’s important and I’m continuing to figure out how to properly do that. Because like most humans, I fall into my old habits thinking I can take on new ones without internally breaking. Removing the excess and unimportant is difficult and requires some uncomfortable decisions that force you to face the priorities you have set for yourself.
So, to 2017: Challenge Accepted! I hope I succeed more often than I fail and try more often than the times I give up.