Limitless Monday – The benefits of rebuilding yourself

A few years ago, I had what I believed was a successful investment business. However, my business partner and I decided to employ someone more experienced than us to run the sales side of the operation. After a few days on the job the new Director of Sales invited us for a coffee to explain that the sales operation would have to close for a few weeks in order to get the basics right. It would take at least six months until we were firing on all cylinders, he told us. We fired him instantly before he had time to finish his Starbucks’s coffee. We had come to rely on our regular income, and while we also believed a lot more could be achieved, we decided that there had to be another way.

The concept of getting broken down and starting again does not come naturally to any of us. And it certainly didn’t sit comfortably with me in those early days.

Breaking ourselves down requires unlearning old habits and learning new ones. It is a case of taking some pain now for bigger rewards later.

Here is another personal story. When I was young, I fancied myself as a future tennis star. No one else did, but that didn’t matter. My parents kindly paid for my sister and I to receive coaching lessons. Predictably the coach gave me the bad news. My serve and grip were crap. I would have to change these if I was to be any good, she told me.

As soon as I adjusted my forehand grip the ball flew over the fence and landed in a corn field. That happened over and over so I reverted back to my old grip. That was a big mistake. My tennis never really progressed beyond club level, when my potential was far greater, in my humble opinion anyway.

In order to improve, we sometimes have to dismantle and rebuild. However, most of us avoid this process at all costs because we are afraid our confidence will be destroyed.

The great champions are the ones that accept that change is necessary in order to reach greater heights. They understand that certain fundamentals have to be reconstructed. Whether it is the boxer who realizes his limited defensive skills, the tennis player who recognizes they possess a weak backhand, or the entrepreneur who understands that his lack of social media knowledge is holding him back from taking his business to a wider audience.

Let’s take the story of Chuck Norris. He was not just an actor who appeared in Bruce Lee movies. He was the middle weight world karate champion. He was once challenged by Rickson Gracie, from the founding Jiu-Jitsu family, to a fight. Rickson choked him out in under a minute. The story doesn’t end there. Norris decided he must master the art of Jiu-Jitsu to become an all-round fighter. He went on to earn a black belt in that, too. That transition would have taken a great deal of commitment and, most significantly, a dent to his ego and pride. Karate and Jiu-Jitsu are very different disciplines. On his Jiu-Jitsu journey he would have had to be humbled by many a white belt before he mastered his discipline.

Once the realization that you are deficient in some area hits you, you have two choices: live in denial hoping your weakness will never be exposed, or accept change is necessary to thrive.

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Yes your confidence and ego will take a pounding. But not for long. As soon as you take that first step in the rebuilding process, you will glimpse what the future looks like. It’s at this point you will realize the wisdom of your choice.

We should all be looking for opportunities to break ourselves down and rebuild in areas where we either believe we have reached a ceiling or where we think our skills in a particular area are below their full potential.

It only takes one chink in the armor to weaken the whole. Today you must identify the areas where you are weak, focusing on the weaknesses that if strengthened will lead to great success in your chosen area. It could be public speaking, communication, writing, or physical weaknesses such as a lack of flexibility, core strength, or stamina. Get started today. Your new life is waiting for you, but it won’t wait forever!

Happy Monday!

Banner Image: Rebuilding. Image Credit – Alberto Bigoni