Work it Out!

When I work out...I have this intensity that I would love to infiltrate into all aspects of my life. I know exactly what I want to accomplish and the only thing that stands between me and my goal is my own personal will. Most times in life though that does not seem to be the case. I have often worked tirelessly towards a goal or a task only to find that all of my efforts were for naught. This often left me feeling like I was "less-than". It is possible to have given your all and still not make it to the finish line. 

I remember when I was working as an assistant branch manager for a rather large bank. I had a manager who would jokingly say "we should never strive to be number 1. We should always strive to be number 2 and in the end we will end up in that number 1 spot".

This concept often baffled me. I thought to myself, this may be the silliest thing I've ever heard. We spend approximately 4 months in the number 2 spot always just a couple of loans away from being number 1. This constantly irritated me. I could not understand why our manager would promote such a senseless conceptually flawed way of thinking.

I was all about the WIN. If we were gonna work this hard, then we may as well WIN. We got so use to being in the number 2 spot that we knew exactly what we needed to do to maintain it.  Additionally, the number 1 branch knew what to expect from us as well. Then suddenly there was a shift. The number one producer in that office took on the management of another branch and it suddenly became extremely obvious that the ease would being number one was now a painstaking struggle.

I finally got it! The thing I learned was that it's not about intensity, its about momentum, developing and maintaining intensity that is continual. We moved from number 2 to number 1 and we maintained that position and ended up being recognized as the number 1 branch for the year in our region. 

It's easy to have intensity when your starting off. Sometimes it's easy to run hard and gain the number one position. But, can you maintain that spot? Often in life, we don't see the big picture. We can see where we want to go and we start on a road to accomplish big things. However, along the way there will be some bumps and curves.  Are you going to be able to withstand the changes in life or will you be knocked off your path? 

This was not a story about being number one, this is a life lesson about strategy, and the importance of developing a really good one. Write the vision and make it plain. Develop a strategy that will allow you some ups and downs, but will still get you to your desired ending. Detours can often make the trip more interesting.  

Well begun is half done. Lets Grow Together.