I have recently been coaching people on the concept of reengagement. There are some disciplines in our businesses and lives that we know are critical to future greatness, but they require us to take steps in order to get back on track.

So we ask ourselves, “Why did I get off track to begin with?”

There is just no easy answer to that question. In fact, trying to figure out why we stop doing those activities that we know are good for us is a funky form of deflection. It can distract us from simply stepping back up and getting with the program.

Exercising is a perfect example of this.

Here is the pattern: we make a commitment to exercise. We adjust our schedule, and we actually execute for a while. One day, something comes up, and we miss a workout. It could be illness or just an urgent project that took priority, but one workout turns into two, and then three. Slowly, and with amazing subtlety, we stop altogether. We say things like, “I got busy,” and we walk away from an activity that we know is good for us.

The fact is, we could probably teach a course to others on the benefits of any of the disciplines we know we need to do.

This pattern ubiquitously repeats itself with so many activities in our lives. It is so common, in fact, that most people get fed up with the incessant repetition and simply stop trying to reengage. They think, “Why even try? I know I will eventually fail.”

With this mindset, too many people choose to live life and conduct business at a level that is far below their potential. This is exactly why Dale Carnegie speaks about “the humble willingness to start over.” It takes humility to look in the mirror and decide to try again.

Not only is it okay to start over, it is mandatory if we are to become the people we want to become. Humility is necessary because you have to choke down your pride about why you fell off the discipline track again.

Today, instead of thinking about all of the reasons why you don’t do the things you know you should, just go do them. Yes, you had past moments of greatness, but you can and will have future ones as well. It is completely reliant on your own will.

The choice is simple: stay amongst the ranks of those who play at a mediocre level, or get back up and endeavor to hit the fundamentals like you know you should.

In the end, we may learn that greatness was more of a choice than we ever imagined!

Coach Steve

Tags: Discipline, Engagement, Failure, Greatness, Humility, Starting Over, Sustaining

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 14th, 2011 at 8:48 am and is filed under Self-Development. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.