This is one I think I've touched on before but for some reason it's stuck in my mind and it's another good time to bring it up again. If you're driving, if you're riding a bicycle, if you're running in the trails, in the woods, it's always true, and I think a lot of people would agree with me that the potholes that create the most problems are the ones you don't see until you hit them.
I hate driving my car and making a turn around the corner and I don't have time to see a pothole that's gonna rattle my windshield and make my teeth crack together. Potholes that come unexpectedly are brutal and they're the ones I find that we've got to be proactively thinking about, even if they're not there.
I find that when people are overly optimistic, that everything's gonna be great, the road is always gonna be smooth, they think they thought of absolutely everything that could go wrong they're the ones that seem to end up with the biggest problems and the greatest disappointments when they hit the proverbial business pothole.
I love optimism, I'm an optimist at heart in almost everything that I do, but I've learned some really hard lessons because of that perspective in the way I've lived in the past. So now after frankly, I gotta tell you I've got some bumps and bruises and scars from not thinking about this
earlier in my life, I try to look at everything with an optimistic view, but I sprinkle in a heavy dose of “what if” or “what am I not thinking about” or “why isn't this as easy as I think it's gonna be” and I find that the more I get my eyes ahead of myself and I look down the road for any potential potholes, the better prepared I am to deal with them when they actually do show up. When I've lived a life of don't worry about it, it's all gonna be good nothing could go wrong, frankly without exception, I find those things have a hiccup that I really don't wanna deal with.
So I encourage all of you eternal optimists out there to continue on your merry way through life, but spend some time thinking about “what should I be thinking about” that I don't wanna think about, “where's the next pothole” “where's the next problem” “where's the unexpected uh oh”
that you don't think you're ever gonna run into. At least open up your mind, don't think everything is gonna be perfect just because you wanna believe it will be.
Have a little realism in your life and be ready for the things that are unexpected. Pick your eyes up look down the road and be prepared to see some things that you've got to deal with sooner
rather than later. Don't let your optimism get in the way of success. The devil is in the details, think about the devils that we don't expect to encounter, that's my advice. Practice it in life, practice it in business, and you'll find yourself better prepared when you hit those moments.
Take care and have a great weekend.
