'Whatever we do well right now will come back to us ten-fold when we go back to normal.'
I have delivered that idea to most of the people that I come in contact with whether it be Zoom meetings with other leaders, coaches meetings, family meetings, podcasts, or webinars. We are in the midst of hard times. I've lived through enough hard times such as the D.C. Sniper, Hurricane Sandy, now COVID-19 along with the everyday stress of sleepless nights of infants, organizational crisis, mortgages, and trips to the emergency room to have identified three thematic responses to them.
The first response is when hard times completely fracture a group and expose the worst in everyone involved. In this scenario there is a lot of unnecessary hurt. Marriages, families, organizations, teams, and churches just completely devolve into something unrecognizable. You're already in the midst of hard times, don't make them worse! The second response to hard times that I've seen is paralysis by analysis. Everyone involved wants there to be a magic decision that immediately relieves all of the pressure, and individuals or groups spend too much time looking for it. Stop it. The magic solution doesn't exist. The third response that I've seen is people fully engaged, working together towards resolution. Somehow, someway this person or group of people lift their heads one day and realize that they have moved past the hard times, are more committed to each other, have learned a ton of valuable lessons, and are better for it. These people figure out how to make hard times, their M.V.T. (most valuable times).
Here's three ways to make sure you respond well to your M.V.T.
1 Keep your mission on your mind. Hard times can be very disorienting, forcing all sorts of urgent things into our path. These urgent things, many of which do need to be attended to, should not replace the important things. If you are a leader with a formal position and title, this is about your organizational mission. If you are a leader without a formal position and title, you are still very much a leader and should keep your mind on your mission. What is your mission? Your mission is to add as much value to the groups that you are a part of. Your mission keeps you focused when things get hard.
2 Keep moving forward. Mike Tyson, the former world-champion boxer known for his ferociousness, has a great quote. 'Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.' Hard times are a lot like that first punch in the face, it's stunning. You see stars, your legs get wobbly, and the room starts to spin. Often, the 'punch in the face' of hard times, paralyzes us. We stand in place, stunned at what has happened. Do not let this happen for too long. Take a breath, clench your jaw, remember your mission and start moving forward. How? Make simple, short plans that prioritize your mission. It could be as simple as balancing out a credit card statement, sending a short 'we've got this' email, or calling someone to have a 'short plan' conversation. Keep doing lots of this! You will slowly but surely keep things moving forward.
3 Keep serving others. It is amazing how accurate our perspective on our own problems become when we help people with their problems. Get your head up, look around for people that are hurting or in need, and go to them! You mission and your plans (response 1 & 2) may begin to form on their own simply out of your efforts to serve those around you during hard times.
In a weird way, I almost get extra inspired during hard times. I know that if I respond well, I will turn hard times into the most valuable times for myself, my family, and others. Don't miss your M.V.T.!
I have delivered that idea to most of the people that I come in contact with whether it be Zoom meetings with other leaders, coaches meetings, family meetings, podcasts, or webinars. We are in the midst of hard times. I've lived through enough hard times such as the D.C. Sniper, Hurricane Sandy, now COVID-19 along with the everyday stress of sleepless nights of infants, organizational crisis, mortgages, and trips to the emergency room to have identified three thematic responses to them.
The first response is when hard times completely fracture a group and expose the worst in everyone involved. In this scenario there is a lot of unnecessary hurt. Marriages, families, organizations, teams, and churches just completely devolve into something unrecognizable. You're already in the midst of hard times, don't make them worse! The second response to hard times that I've seen is paralysis by analysis. Everyone involved wants there to be a magic decision that immediately relieves all of the pressure, and individuals or groups spend too much time looking for it. Stop it. The magic solution doesn't exist. The third response that I've seen is people fully engaged, working together towards resolution. Somehow, someway this person or group of people lift their heads one day and realize that they have moved past the hard times, are more committed to each other, have learned a ton of valuable lessons, and are better for it. These people figure out how to make hard times, their M.V.T. (most valuable times).
Here's three ways to make sure you respond well to your M.V.T.
1 Keep your mission on your mind. Hard times can be very disorienting, forcing all sorts of urgent things into our path. These urgent things, many of which do need to be attended to, should not replace the important things. If you are a leader with a formal position and title, this is about your organizational mission. If you are a leader without a formal position and title, you are still very much a leader and should keep your mind on your mission. What is your mission? Your mission is to add as much value to the groups that you are a part of. Your mission keeps you focused when things get hard.
2 Keep moving forward. Mike Tyson, the former world-champion boxer known for his ferociousness, has a great quote. 'Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.' Hard times are a lot like that first punch in the face, it's stunning. You see stars, your legs get wobbly, and the room starts to spin. Often, the 'punch in the face' of hard times, paralyzes us. We stand in place, stunned at what has happened. Do not let this happen for too long. Take a breath, clench your jaw, remember your mission and start moving forward. How? Make simple, short plans that prioritize your mission. It could be as simple as balancing out a credit card statement, sending a short 'we've got this' email, or calling someone to have a 'short plan' conversation. Keep doing lots of this! You will slowly but surely keep things moving forward.
3 Keep serving others. It is amazing how accurate our perspective on our own problems become when we help people with their problems. Get your head up, look around for people that are hurting or in need, and go to them! You mission and your plans (response 1 & 2) may begin to form on their own simply out of your efforts to serve those around you during hard times.
In a weird way, I almost get extra inspired during hard times. I know that if I respond well, I will turn hard times into the most valuable times for myself, my family, and others. Don't miss your M.V.T.!
‘Bite Down and Don’t Let Go’ is a collection of writings on
being intentional about life in a way that produces great persistence. Read
about it more here.
Dr. Chris Hobbs is an educational leader and Director
of Athletics at The King’s Academy in West Palm Beach, Florida. He’s earned a few
degrees and won some awards. He’s happily married to his high school
sweetheart and they have three teen age children. Life is messy and complicated
most of the time. You can follow him on Twitter
for all sorts of inspirational thoughts and good laughs.
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