The Real Struggle is in Not Struggling
I have been working with a leader for about 6 months now who has been courageous in his desire to make a fundamental change. The SVP of Sales for a regional services company, "John" has had a hard time seeing any point of view but his own- which lead only to revenue.
Many of his decisions about strategy, priorities and even contract conditions were flawed because he recognized the short term reward over long term profitability. Early in our work it was clear that he had to learn to make decisions differently, and John was both fearless and fastidious.
This week however, he reported proudly that for the first time, he made the right call not after a struggle, but immediately. and he did it with a clear head and as he put it "...with almost no remorse." John compares it to the scene in The Legend of Bagger Vance where Rannolph Junnah calls a penalty on himself. The victory is not in doing the right thing- but in being able to do it without a personal struggle, without first checking to see if you can get away with it, and without expecting a brass band in your honor.
What decisions do you labor over? Which ones are the most challenging when you know what you should be doing, but have a hard time setting aside what is comfortable, familiar, easy or self serving? What would it feel like to have the clarity of Rannoph Junnah, or "John" the next time you face that decision.
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