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Fall is officially here and football season is in full swing in the USA (I have to qualify that now thanks to my new global audience!).   Professional, college, high school and youth leagues all collide in a swirl of grit and athleticism.  The discipline displayed by these players takes me back to my days of youth football.  I vividly remember one particular practice which underscores the importance of effort and resiliency.

Our coach was frustrated because the players kept going “offsides”.  We were running a drill in which the linemen were supposed to move forward on “two” (i.e. the second count from the quarterback) and we kept leaving early.  Player after player would take a tentative misstep and then grab their facemask in frustration.  When it was my turn, I sprinted up to the line determined to wait for the second count.  Unfortunately, I left early but continued the play with confidence and plastered the defensive lineman.

“Clark, get over here!”, screamed the coach.

Uh, oh. Coach was about to unleash the fury.

“I want you guys to use your head and stop leaving early,” he hissed.

Then his scowl turned into a broad smile and he gave me a thumbs up.

“But if you’re gonna make a mistake, do it at full speed!”

Point taken, coach.  And so it goes with all of us in our personal and professional lives!

It is easy to get paralyzed in our work lives.  We are so fearful of making a mistake or making the wrong choice that we take a tentative approach.  This is a recipe for mediocrity.  Why join that new company when it could go belly up?  Why speak at the conference if we don’t fully grasp the subject matter?  Why visit that extra client when they might challenge us?  Why take a chance and hire based on your gut when the candidate might not pan out?

None of us want to make mistakes.  But history tells us that it is inevitable.  So you might as well make those mistakes at full speed!  If you are stuck, why not take a chance on a new career?  If your sales are down, why not see that hostile client?  If you have a chance to increase your exposure, why not risk embarrassment?  If your gut tells you a candidate is right despite the model, why not pull the trigger? You may make mistakes along the way.  But they will be mistakes of action!  Life was meant to be lived at full speed.  If you decide with conviction and act with confidence, you will put yourself in the best position to maximize your potential.   And that kind of effort will never be a failure.

The same is true in our personal lives.  Why ask that person out if we are going to get rejected?  Why train so hard when we might get injured?  Why make that investment if it might not pan out?  Why volunteer to coach if we don’t have the athletes?

We can’t live in a cocoon and pretend that life is perfect.  We are going to make mistakes.  Just be sure to make them on your terms!  You may get rejected, but at least you took action.  You may sustain an injury, but at least you pursued greatness.  You may lose money, but at least you took a calculated shot at improving your situation.  You may lose every game, but at least you gave your players a positive experience.  Opting for stagnancy and the status quo guarantees mediocrity.  Tiptoeing through life will never deliver true happiness. Full speed is the only gear!

And resiliency stems from this incredible effort and these bold actions.  It is easier to recover from our mistakes if we approach life with conviction.  It is easier to rebound from our failures if we have given maximum effort.  This gives us the confidence to try again (and again, and again!).  We know there will be heartbreak and pain along the way.  But we can overcome those disappointments and mistakes if we live at full speed.

There are only two mistakes you can make on the road of life; not starting, and not going all the way. –Buddha

We cannot sit back and let life happen to us.  We were not put here to be tentative and unsure.  We know our lives will not be perfect.  But if we keep moving forward, we can overcome any obstacle!  Make bold decisions!  Follow your gut!  Take action to ensure a better future!   Regardless of the setbacks,  acting with conviction and purpose will eventually lead us to success and happiness.

This is your life.  It’s time to stop coasting.  Full speed ahead!

Until next week, keep smiling!