“Don’t get stuck doing something you’re good at.”
I heard this in a speech by Joe Calloway.
Someone asked me (okay, many people) recently:
Why don’t you do triathlon any more?
Other people have called me a sellout (see prior post).
Not to say I was good at triathlon (LOL), but I KNEW what I was doing in swim, bike and run. I knew how to train, to talk, to show up, to race, to drag my arse across finish lines, to inspire, to teach beginners, and on and on.
I was “good” at the schtick.
And my soul NO LONGER BURNED an ounce for it.
That doesn’t mean that I don’t love the sport (still).
That doesn’t mean that I am not grateful for every lesson, opportunity, race and moment.
That doesn’t mean that I don’t cherish the people I met.
That doesn’t mean I am angry or sad.
In fact, I am not “anything” about triathlon. It’s a sport that I used to do every single day; and now it’s a sport that I think about every single day (because I coach people) and love from afar.
People are ALLOWED to change.
The worse thing?
People who do NOT change.
People who are stuck doing the same thing–just because they are “good” at it.
I was “good” at being “Swim Bike Mom.”
It’s not easy to let that go.
It’s not easy to take a step in a direction and “lose” a chunk of your audience just because you made another choice for yourself.
But the art of growth is learning when to LET GO, move on, and plow bravely forward.
Because there’s more to life that doing something – just because we are “good” at it.
In this crazy time… this is a perfect opportunity to think about what we can let go of. Things may force us to release. We may be forced into all sorts of situations in the next months.
At the same time, don’t fear it, my friends.
It’s never too late to start a Year of No Nonsense.
It’s never too to:
– start over
– walk away
– reinvent yourself
– cut your hair
– prove your value
– shut a door
– burn a bridge
– build a bridge
– ask for forgiveness
– forgive someone else
– bring someone in
– cut someone out
– change your pace, place or pettiness
And STAND in your GLORIOUS present…
and be excited for the future.
Even when the world is crazy.
There will be a way.
There always is.
I love you all.
M