Surprise, surprise, surprise! Every day gives us moments where we say ‘Where did that come from?’
So what does it for you?
Listening to the sermon on Sunday the minister asked a thought provoking question ‘ Are you surprised by moments of success surrounded by failure? Or are you surprised by moments of failure surrounded by success?’
Deep question for a Sunday afternoon. I just celebrated my birthday this weekend, my good friend called it my 41-1 party. One day past my 41st birthday. I looked at turning 40 a little differently than many of my friends, having fully lived 4 decades I felt it deserved a year long celebration to have survived, been married for 22 years to an amazing man, borne 4 children, held down wildly different jobs started and failed at a small business, began another, and another and have been very, very busy. So this question made me reflect this afternoon on what surprises me… and my clients that I coach…
Every coaching session begins with the question – what have you accomplished? This is normally followed by long periods of silence while my client contemplates their week to find the moments of success. Which often time get overlooked because something goes wrong. And many successes get forgotten when there is a failure in there. We think about it, agonize over, relive it, think about what if, instead of just taking it as one moment among many, experience it – then move on.
So what happens over time?
If I have a coaching client who gets stuck in the ‘mullygrubs’ where it’s hard to stay positive – I have them summarize all the good things that happen in their day. A journal of positivity. No negatives or ‘rubber bands’ where you start with a negative and snap it, it sounds like ‘At least I lived through it’.
It takes about 2-4 weeks to notice a shift. And, a lot depends on how accountable you will remain to the process. I require a summary via email daily with the positive steps in sales – asking tough questions that stretch a comfort zone, dealing with a difficult client at the beginning of the day instead of procrastinating, making the daily appointment quota, etc.
Those positive steps begin to stack up, and a new habit is formed. But it’s easy to lose it if you forget about what matters most. It’s not about the failure and becoming accustomed to it so you aren’t disappointed – but reveling in the successes and realizing that life is a beautiful thing. And as long as you are blessed with remaining on the ‘right side of the sod’ as my Grandma Mattie used to say, you owe it to yourself, God who gave you life, your family who supports you and loves you, and all the people you encounter as you live – to fully experience the joy of success. The good things.
So take the positivity challenge, keep a journal, take small steps and recognize the good things, experience the bad things as a moment in your day and move on, but keep track of how many great things life gives you!
Make it a wonderful week!