You can be the fastest on hill 1
BY Mike
Foti
How many times in our life do we make assumptions about what we can’t do? Our
perceptions about what frames success in a certain situation and our fear of the
unknown paralyze us and stop our forward progress. I know I have definitely had
these times in my life.
One such time happened when I was in college. I went to Carnegie-Mellon
University for my undergraduate education and one of the traditions at this
school is something that is called “buggy” racing. Every spring there is a race
through the hills of Schenly park where there is a small buggy with a push
handle on the end that is steered inside by the small, light, and brave person.
This buggy is pushed up and down the hills through this park. My fraternity,
Kappa Sigma, was an active participant in this program every year. In my junior
I decided to participate in this program on the athletic side of the program,
which is to push the buggy. In determining who would push what hills we were
timed on each of them. The first hill (Hill 1) is a steep incline for about 80
yards and the people who usually push this hill where very strong guys with
large upper bodies. In our fraternity the guy who pushed it was Joe Czsonka who
was built like a tank.
Imagine my trepidation when I went for my time trial. At the time I was about
145lbs (my weight is larger now) and 5’11” and have never been known for my
massive upper body strength. In my mind this was a lesson in futility. However,
the competitiveness in me drove me to give it my best shot. After going up the
hill I ended up being the second best in my fraternity at the hill (Joe Czsonka
was still better), better than about 12 others while not fitting at all the
perceived profile of the successful runner for this hill.
In business and in life I think we all tend to have the same problem that I had
with Hill 1. Sometimes we look at a situation or a person in awe and don’t know
how we could ever get there. It seems like such a monumental task to hit our end
goal that we never begin to try. We need to recognize some of the following
things:
-
All great things are achieved by putting
together a series of smaller successes and steps.
-
We are all capable of a lot more than we
originally perceive that we are.
-
If we truly apply our competitiveness and
determination we can rise to a lot higher level.
-
The person who tries the most succeeds the
greatest. A .280 batter that gets up to bat twice as much as a .300 hitter in
baseball will get many more hits.
The lesson to be learned is that if we really want
to succeed in life we need to push ourselves up as many Hill 1’s as we can
possibly find. He who tries the most wins the most. If you would like to have Mike speak to your group consider the following
programs:
Constructing the Framework of Success
Motivation - Begins with Me; Grows with We
Running the Race of Life with Purpose
If you want to get Mike's insights on this topic in one on one sessions
click here.
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Mike Foti is Chief Executive Officer of Cleveland Glass Block (a
Northcoast 99 recipient for best employers in Northeast Ohio and a Community
Pillar Award winner for community service) and President of Leadership Builders.
Mike is a national speaker, writer, and consultant who helps individuals and
companies get results through people. To ask Mike how he might help you, or to
receive his free tips and leadership articles, call 216-531-6085 or visit his
web site at
www.leadershipbuilders.com.
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