Kids are funny…most of the time. E.J., our 2.5-year-old son, loves hoops. When I was watching Oregon’s unreal win over Kansas in the Regionals Finals, E.J., for some unknown reason, was ready to shut it down. Not once this year has he done the stroll over to the Comcast Box and turned off the power for a hoops game. Never. And now, this. Normally, he would shoot me the curious look with his palms up as soon as I raised my voice (not that I was raising my voice with four minutes to go in the game and Oregon hanging on for dear life), followed by the question, “Why?” Not this time though. E.J. must have sensed this was a much bigger violation of a father/son code of ethics than the usual, “mashed potatoes in his hair at dinner,” thing. Instead, he shot me a defiant look and said, “Why Not?!”
That seems to be a recurring theme this March, as Mark Few of Gonzaga and Frank Martin of South Carolina both said the same thing with regards to their teams making the Final Four. Why not? Why not us? Why not now? It seems to me that there is something there. So, I gave E.J. a little fist bump and told him to go do some wall sits, and to be sure to keep those palms up. When the game was over, I would let him know as long as he kept his back straight. After that, he could stand up (that was a joke for anyone who does not know me, yet)!
Folks had every reason to wonder if either team was going to make it to the 2017 Final Four. Gonzaga was once again ranked in the top five all year and had their big man back and healthy, but they had that monkey on their back. South Carolina limped into the tournament after losing six of their last nine games and, on a side note, before this year had not won a single NCAA Tournament game since 1973.
Now, they both find themselves in Glendale, AZ playing for a spot in the National Championship game. Both teams had to have some lucky breaks (Northwestern fans, that was for you and the “no goal tending call”), and some had to have individual contributors step up in ways they never had this year. But that is what tournament time is all about. Hey, s–t happens! So, Why Not?
What if you took that approach to business and life each and every day? Why not you? Why don’t you deserve the job promotion? Why not close the sale that would bring the mother-load of a commission check? Why not crack the code with a potential client and begin to build a long-term partnership? What is holding you back? What is holding your team back? S–t does happen; it happens to you, to your competition, to your colleagues, to the person who bags groceries. It happens to everyone. What is holding you back? Why not you?
What is it that is holding you back from achieving massive success in business and life? This is something I spend a great deal of time on with my Executive Coaching clients.
Could some of these be the reason?
- Your planning and focus are in disarray.
Are you planning your day in such a way that you are running your day, and your day is not running you?
- You change nothing and expect different results.
That would be another version of the definition of insanity, doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Get outside of your comfort zone.
- You close your mind to new ideas and perspectives.
What is more important, being right or doing the right thing? When we stop learning, we start dying. Plus, new ideas and fresh perspectives make life more fun.
- You let a few negative people rent space in your brain and trash it.
You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with and whom you listen to the most. How is your inner circle influencing you?
- You keep telling yourself the wrong story!
You keep repeating the same limiting beliefs to yourself, so it is no wonder that you believe them. Our minds cannot differentiate between what is real and what is imagined. Why not write the story you want your mind to buy into?
- You aren’t taking small steps every day.
Earlier today I had the opportunity to record an episode for the Be Better Than Yesterday Podcast with Jake Thompson of Compete Every Day. We talked about the significance of the feedback loop and small victories. Celebrate those small victories and embrace the fact that success is a journey, not a destination.
These are issues that often come up with my clients and we take a systematic approach to working through them. I have clients ranging from entry-level sales, to the EVP of a major global corporation, who deal with these issues.
What is it that you want to achieve? What is that one dream that seems to be alluding you? What is holding you back from being the best version of yourself that you can be? How incredible would it be to accomplish the things you know you are capable of? Can you do it?
Why Not!
