Putting All The Pieces Together
Putting together puzzles can be challenging. Puzzles are created to get people to think. Every piece fits perfectly in it’s place in order for the image to be correct. Every piece has it’s place and every piece has the image and shape it was given and created for. As a husband, father, and leader, I have to put together each puzzle with care, precision and accuracy. There are different degrees and complexities of puzzles. Just like everything else in life, if you take time and find solutions the chances are you will be better at the next puzzle. The same goes with learning to increase your potential as a leader. There are many different shapes and sizes to the pieces, but when all the pieces are placed in their correct spot the picture is beautiful and looks as it was intended.
If you haven’t had a chance to read my previous post on Traps Leaders Fall Into During Growth, you can find them here. “Don’t Fall Into The Growth Trap,” and “Stop Making Excuses & Just Do It.”
Trap no. 7- “I don’t have the motivation to keep growing.”
I too find myself at times giving into distractions instead of narrowing my focus. Your goal should be to focus on and lead from your strengths. When you are not working from your strengths you lose your momentum and get distracted by your failures. See the good in your failures and let that motivate you to keep growing. When you don’t feel like doing something, do it anyways.
Trap no. 8- “This growing process is taking a long time.”
Asking the question, “How long will this take?” is always the wrong question. I have never met a successful person that says they got where they were in their professional career overnight. The best thing you can do as a leader is to be patient through the process. You must be consistent to be disciplined and keep your motivation active. When you repeatedly do the same thing over and over again until it is habit and a routine is built. I too have underestimated the importance of discipline in my personal growth. However, the more I prioritize the things I want to do on my calendar, the more freedom I have in my calendar. The longer you are in the process of growing the more reasons you find to keep at it. Be persistent. Make a commitment to yourself that you will continue on through the pains of growth. Your future benefits may not out-number your failures, but an evaluation of those mistakes can help you from making the same mistakes again.
Trap no. 9- “Learning to grow my potential is harder than I thought.”
You cannot let the circumstance or situation you are in rule you. Growing pains are never easy, but they are necessary. You must be willing to learn. We make it harder on ourselves because allow fear to creep in and distract us from our potential. We fear failure, security, finances, others opinions of us, and what success may bring. The good new is that we also have hope. We should rejoice in our sufferings, it is through our sufferings that we find endurance, our endurance creates character and our character produces hope.
So, I challenge you to endure the hardships of growth. You must add value to yourself before you can add value to others. My hope is that you do not fall into these traps, but just know if you do; you can always find your way out.
