OK, that word isn't allowed anymore, but in the 70s, it was used all the time. I was born with an atrophied left leg - muscles underdeveloped, bones not put together all that well - I had many, many surgeries between 2 and 10 years old just to enable me to walk. Not well, mind you, but I could limp around with the best of them. Even played basketball - if only in the neighborhood. Had a great fake to my left, and a killer three point shot.
I was told to slow down, get a desk job, and preserve my leg as much as possible. I figured if I was going to end up in a wheelchair (as the doctor told me at 16) - I might as well remember what it was like to enjoy myself to the fullest before then. I didn't slow down. Even my job choices - often as an outside salesperson for newspapers and magazines - had me on my feet. Got married, had a bunch of kids - who all kept me on my feet.
In January of 2006, you know what hit the fan. Woke up, stepped down, and couldn't put weight on my ankle without excruciating pain. Admittedly, it wasn't sudden. Every year, I was less and less able to stay active as much as I had been - and by evenings, I was often too sore to walk. Going to the zoo, or the concrete floors of the mall, was no longer an option. But this morning...I couldn't walk!
Long story short, the doctors gave me a couple of options - including one I never planned on. I could start using a wheelchair - permanently, OR, I could let go of my left foot. It was beyond further repair.
What would you do if you were told your only option to keep moving forward was by letting go of a part of you you'd worked your whole life to hang onto?
You probably face these decisions more than you think. Staying in a relationship, a job, even your place of worship or social group. It happens on a corporate level as well. This employee, product, division...isn't working as we'd hoped, but they've worked here for years, or it's a foundational part of our business, or they made us millions two years ago - we can't just give up on them/it.
Yes. You CAN.
I chose to let go of my leg - to go with what my kids called a 'Super-Deluxe Robot Leg' - essentially I upgraded. But I had to lose to win. To let go of what was so important to me, to get something better. To keep standing, to keep walking, to move forward in my life.
Sure, there have been bumps in the road, and it hasn't been exactly as I'd envisioned. But it sure beats the alternative. In hindsight, I probably should have upgraded a year or two earlier. But I was 'anti-doctor' - because I didn't want to face the truth.
Are you willing to face the truth in your life, in your business? Are you holding yourself back from greater success by settling for what you are used to, by holding on to what you've always thought is important? Is it really as important as you think it is? Are you doing yourself and/or your employees and investors a service or a disservice by hanging on, well past time to let go?
A lot of speakers like to talk to audiences about 'following their dreams' - and a lot of companies don't like it - it leads to employee turnover! Think about this though: if all it takes is a little push to get them out the door, you're both better off.
Don't hang on too long. Be willing to lose to win. Be open to an unexpected upgrade. Heck, in 2023, I'm not even 'crippled', I'm 'differently abled'. And I'm here to tell you: There's nothing like that New Foot Smell!
Does your team need strategies and inspiration to live their #WinAnyway Life, both professionally and personally? Let me transfer my experience, energy, and outlook by bringing me in to deliver a tailored #WinAnyway presentation. Contact me at Rich@RichHopkins.com, or right here on LinkedIn.
