Andy Lykens

Innovating and operating through growth

Posts

Emergencies and habits

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Spending time at the dentist isn’t a fun past-time; you don’t go if you don’t have to and if you could avoid it, you would. But when your tooth hurts, the only thing on your mind is how soon you can get to your dentist’s office. Luckily, most of us have learned that habitual attention can help us avoid emergencies.

If people aren’t paying attention to you, it isn’t because you’re not important — it’s because you’re not important to them right now. Hopefully you’ve done the hard work of helping them instill good habits when you’re not top of mind.

Play your own game

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Even though it’s possible for a professional basketball player to play baseball, you don’t typically see them doing so.

They spend their careers developing a way to play one game that is uniquely their own. Trying to translate that to another sport leaves them without an identity and at the beginning of a journey where every other player has a years long head start; even Michael Jordan was a rookie in a double-A league when he played baseball.

If you’ve spent years becoming undeniable at what you do, honing skills and building relationships while collecting useful experience, it’s ok if you want to try to play a new game.

Just don’t be surprised when people catch you making rookie mistakes.

(H/T JP)

Just keep going

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As you pursue this thing that you’ve conceived you’re on the path of ‘keep going.’ Immediately, you’ll experience feelings. In fact, there’s no opportunity to not feel things – good or bad. Either way, whatever you’re feeling, it’s temporary and just because you don’t like a feeling doesn’t mean it isn’t doing you some good.

Once you realize that feelings are transient, there’s no reason to stop putting one foot in front of the other on the path of ‘keep going.’ You’re allowed to feel bad AND keep going. You’re allowed to celebrate the win AND keep going.

The reason to keep going isn’t for productivity. It isn’t to distract yourself from bad feelings, or because you’re never good enough and need to always achieve. The path includes breaks, vacation, and fun. The path also includes distractions and mistakes. The path offers quitting something and starting over. The path sometimes means staying too long.

The path you’re on leads to the thing you’ve conceived, and this thing you’ve conceived can’t be done without you. So wherever it is you are – just keep going.