February 28, 2025
There's a historical story of a man named Lot. He and his wife were told not to look back as they were being rescued from violence. Unfortunately, Lot's wife looked back. When she did, she was turned into a pillar of salt. There's a painful lesson there. Sometimes, looking back at where you come from does more harm than good.
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| Move forward; look forward |
Earlier today, I spoke to some colleagues about how to navigate the hidden culture of the higher education industry. I told them, you gotta be willing to make yourself uncomfortable and do things you aren't used to doing. I got a lot of head nods, which is always encouraging. My hope is that all attendees will move to the next step and not be like so many others.
I'm over the people who keep recycling the following idea: I want things to be different [but they don't change anything]. They don't really wanna change. They want better results with old strategies. Too many people refuse to acknowledge an important truth: we like the idea of change but not the process to make it last. We want to remain in a state of comfort even when we need to accept being uncomfortable to get the results we want.
In February 2019 I wrote a blog post ( I’m Not Afraid of the Hustle). Growing up where I did, I had to learn to work smarter. Hard work does not guarantee anything because the rules for success keep changing. There's a podcast called The Pivot. The podcast has had several guests that have been interviewed, so that the audience (and the hosts) get details of the journey that has led to their guest's success. The last question they ask their guest is about a pivot in their life that was a game changer. This thought process has value beyond the podcast.
Pivoting isn't a one-time thing…if you want lasting success, your pivoting effort must be on-going. The change you want ain't for everybody! Some of you reading this need to know your biggest barrier is YOU! Life and/or circumstances have beaten you down to the point you believe your possibilities are indefinite impossibilities. For some of you, you must deal with the haters who don't wanna see you do well. Often those haters are people you admire and are part of your inner circle. Regardless of which one is your biggest barrier, you need to break free. You gotta move that barrier from your presentation to your past.
There's a time and place to look back. When you have emerged out of the storm and you are thriving, then it's OK to consider looking where you came from. (If you gotta question if you are ready to look back, you ain’t ready!) But, when doubt and fear are leading the charge, put their sounds on mute! Don't look back! Keep your eyes on the prize that's in front of you!
Be well!
- Elgrie J.
