October 16, 2002	Volume 2, Issue 42
Recommend this issue to a friend Join the Friends of Point Lookout HTML to link to this article…	Archive: By Topic    By Date Links to Related Articles Sign Up for A Tip A Day!
Create a perpetual bookmark to the current issue
| Follow @RickBrenner	Random Article

---

Commitment Makes It Easier

by Rick Brenner

When you face obstacles, sometimes the path around or through them is difficult. Committing yourself to the path lets you focus all your energy on the path you've chosen.

About 25 kilometers from Guadalajara, Mexico, at the edge of a 15-kilometer-wide caldera, is the little town of La Primavera. Much of the caldera, which is 25,000 years old, is inside a national park, which has numerous hot springs feeding hot streams. And the park is littered with blocks of obsidian, which pre-Columbian peoples used for making blades and weapons. If you're fascinated by archaeology and geology, the La Primavera caldera is a great place for hiking.

On one hot June afternoon, I go hiking with four friends. Going nowhere in particular, the trail crosses the Rio Caliente, which really is a hot river. If you slip or fall in, you not only get wet, you also get a nasty burn.

Approaching the stream, we check it out. The water steams as it sluices between the large rocks that are clearly the trail's intended steppingstones. The rocks are solid, smooth, and spaced a bit too far apart. To make the three leaps, you pretty much have to run, to let your momentum carry you across the gaps. If you stop on a rock, or try to walk instead of run, making the next leap will be tricky — the gaps are a bit long for a standing jump.

We talk it over. Two of us go looking for another way across, but I'm pretty sure they won't find one, because there are no other trails. The far bank is soft and sandy, so despite the steam coming off the water, and with pounding heart, I make a leaping run across. Surprised and relieved, I land on my feet in the sand of the far bank.

My friends now realize regretfully that they'll be doing the same thing. I tell them it's easy if you get a running start. "Right," is the skeptical response. One by one, though, we all get across, and continue our hike.

Sometimes, it's easier if you run.

Sometimes it's
easier if
you runFacing an obstacle, we usually find several paths to the other side, all difficult. But sometimes proceeding cautiously makes a difficult path even more difficult. Here are some tips for difficult paths.

Take heart from others

When I saw that the trail leading straight across the stream was clear and worn, I felt encouraged. A path might be difficult, but if it's well worn, it's doable.

Commitment makes it easier

If you have to get across, accept that. If there is no easy way, let go of the wish for one. Commit yourself to doing what must be done.

Focus on the goal

Knowing that the far side was soft sand helped me. The goal is probably pretty good — if it weren't, you wouldn't be considering going there. Focus on the goal, not on the difficulty of getting there.

Although difficult paths are often worth traveling, sometimes they're not. You can't tell for sure unless you make the journey.  Top    Next Issue

For more on achieving and inspiring goals, see "Corrales Mentales," Point Lookout for July 4, 2001; "Beyond WIIFM," Point Lookout for August 13, 2003; "Your Wishing Wand," Point Lookout for October 8, 2003; "Give It Your All," Point Lookout for May 19, 2004; "Knowing Where You're Going," Point Lookout for April 20, 2005; "Workplace Myths: Motivating People," Point Lookout for July 19, 2006; "Astonishing Successes," Point Lookout for January 31, 2007; and "Achieving Goals: Inspiring Passion and Action," Point Lookout for February 14, 2007.

---

Love the work but not the job? Bad boss, long commute, troubling ethical questions, hateful colleague? This ebook looks at what we can do to get more out of life at work. It helps you get moving again! Read Go For It! Sometimes It's Easier If You Run, filled with tips and techniques for putting zing into your work life. Order Now!

Would you like to see your comments posted here? Send me your comments by email, or by Web form. Thank you for reading this article. I hope you enjoyed it and found it useful, and that you'll consider recommending it to a friend.

Point Lookout is a free weekly email newsletter. Browse the archive of past issues. Subscribe for free.

Support Point Lookout by joining the Friends of Point Lookout, as an individual or as an organization.

Do you face a complex interpersonal situation? Send it in, anonymously if you like, and I'll give you my two cents.

More articles on Personal, Team, and Organizational Effectiveness:

How We Avoid Making Decisions

When an important item remains on our To-Do list for a long time, it's possible that we've found ways to avoid facing it. Some of the ways we do this are so clever that we may be unaware of them. Here's a collection of techniques we use to avoid engaging difficult problems.

Assumptions and the Johari Window: Part II

The roots of both creative and destructive conflict can often be traced to the differing assumptions of the parties to the conflict. Here's Part II of an essay on surfacing these differences using a tool called the Johari window.

The Deck Chairs of the Titanic: Strategy

Much of what we call work is about as effective and relevant as rearranging the deck chairs of the Titanic. We continue our exploration of futile and irrelevant work, this time emphasizing behaviors related to strategy.

How to Avoid Getting What You Want

Why would you want to know how to avoid getting what you want? Well, suppose you had perfected ways of avoiding getting what you want, but you weren't aware that you were doing it. This one's for you.

Solutions as Found Art

Examining the most innovative solutions we've developed for difficult problems, we often find that they aren't purely new. Many contain pieces of familiar ideas and techniques combined together in new ways. Accepting this as a starting point can change our approach to problem solving.

See also Personal, Team, and Organizational Effectiveness for more related articles.

Coaching services

I offer email and telephone coaching at both corporate and individual rates. Contact me for details at rbrenner@ChacoCanyon.com or (617) 491-6289, or toll-free in the continental US at (866) 378-5470.

Get the ebook!

Past issues of Point Lookout are available in six ebooks:

• Get 2001-2 in Geese Don't Land on Twigs (PDF, USD 11.95)
• Get 2003-4 in Why Dogs Wag Their Tails (PDF, USD 11.95)
• Get 2005-6 in Loopy Things We Do (PDF, USD 11.95)
• Get 2007-8 in Things We Believe That Maybe Aren't So True (PDF, USD 11.95)
• Get 2009-10 in The Questions Not Asked (PDF, USD 11.95)
• Get all of the first twelve years (2001-2012) in The Collected Issues of Point Lookout (PDF, USD 19.99)

Are you a writer, editor or publisher on deadline? Are you looking for an article that will get people talking and get compliments flying your way? You can have 500 words in your inbox in one hour. License any article from this Web site. More info

Public seminars

The Race to the South Pole: Ten Lessons for Project Managers

On 14 December 1911, four men led by Roald Amundsen reached the South Pole. Thirty-five days later, Robert F. Scott and four others followed. Amundsen had won the race to the pole. Amundsen's party returned to base on 26 January 1912. Scott's party perished. As historical drama, why this happened is interesting enough, but to project managers, the story is fascinating. Lessons abound. Read more about this program. Here's an upcoming date for this program:

• Download to
  your calendarNorthern Quest Casino, 100 N Hayford Rd, Airway Heights, WA 99001: June 11, Professional Development Day, Inland Northwest Chapter of the Project Management Institute. Register now.
   

The Race to the South Pole: The Power of Agile Development

On 14 December 1911, four men led by Roald Amundsen reached the South Pole. Thirty-five days later, Robert F. Scott and four others followed. Amundsen had won the race to the pole. Amundsen's party returned to base on 26 January 1912. Scott's party perished. As historical drama, why this happened is interesting enough. Lessons abound. Among the more important lessons are those that demonstrate the power of the agile approach to project management and product development. Read more about this program. Here's an upcoming date for this program:

• Download to
  your calendarThe Yard, 1211 South Mammoth Road, Manchester, NH 03109: June 15, Seminar, New Hampshire Chapter of the Project Management Institute.
   

The Politics of Meetings for People Who Hate Politics

There's a lot more to running an effective meeting than having the right room, the right equipment, and the right people. With meetings, the whole really is more than the sum of its parts. How the parts interact with each other and with external elements is as important as the parts themselves. And those interactions are the essence of politics for meetings. This program explores techniques for leading meetings that are based on understanding political interactions, and using that knowledge effectively to meet organizational goals. Read more about this program. Here's an upcoming date for this program:

• TBD, Mansfield, MA: August 21, Regional Event, PMI MassBay, PMI Central Mass, Ocean State PMI, PMI Keene, PMI Southern New England.