Unless you were in a place with very different weather than I experienced last week, I’m pretty sure you got a next-level kind of cold. I had friends from the panhandle of Florida who got six inches of snow. I saw pictures of beaches in Alabama blanketed in the white stuff. I saw a colleague post that it was -22 in Michigan and friends in New Jersey experienced yet another round of snow. As for me, I was in West Virginia experiencing -6 degree mornings and didn’t see the sun until I got to the airport to come home.
I think life is like this sometimes. Though we don’t want it, we get bombarded with the cold and feel covered up by darkness. There are days, weeks, and seasons where we look for the sun, but its warmth doesn’t find our faces. These times can be challenging because, for some, it feels like the darkness will not lift.
Leadership can feel this way, too. We have expectations for ourselves, what we want to get done, and how we want to create positive change in the lives of the people we serve. And yet, despite these noble desires, we get covered up with the minutia of it all. Meaningful planning gets replaced with tedious tasks, and leadership often shifts to reacting to things outside our control. There’s no doubt, these are hard moments in life and leadership.
But, those aren’t all the moments.
In-fact, as each day passes, it’s getting warmer and brighter. Don’t believe me? Look at the weather forecast and compare this week’s temperatures to last week. For most of us, it’s much warmer. Pay attention to sunset. You’ll find that we’re getting one more moment of sunlight every single day. The days are getting warmer and brighter, friends.
And just like the weather, warmer and brighter days lie ahead of those of you who have been experiencing cold and darkness in your lives. It might be hard to believe that, especially if you’ve felt stuck in it for a while, but it’s coming—I promise you. There are even things you can do to make it appear faster.
One thing you can do is simply look for those moments. I know people who have good things happening all around them, but all they ever focus on is the negative. They can’t see, or don’t want to see, all the positive things happening around them. Others can see them, but they don’t appreciate them. They acknowledge that they happen, but they don’t really stand in those moments and soak in all that they have to offer. But, there are others who always seem to find the good, even in life’s hardest situations. The difference, I think, is found in their choices.
I wonder: What do you choose to look for? Where are you giving your time and attention? This week, will you be the person who focuses on the cold and darkness, or will you focus your attention on the warmth and light that lie ahead? More than likely, however you answer those questions is how your week will go.
#ChooseToBeGreat
Angelo
CHOOSE TO BE GREAT 