We make significant gains in certain areas of our life: personal, professional, fitness, hobbies, etc. We seem to have this wiring within us that when we get to a certain level, we sort of back away.
Challenges to leveling up:
- Comfort: we like where we are and the price to be paid to level up is too great. Vast majority land here and will discover it when they are pressed to level up.
- Laziness: it is just too hard to requires too much of me – akin to comfort
- Success: been good where I am and sense that I can keep being good where I am
- Fear: I might lose something or someone if I choose to level up…this can be true as some in your circle will not choose to pursue more and will not like what you are doing
- Arrogance: why would I want to get better?
- Atrophy: a lot of muscle has been used to get to where you are and through a season of comfort (#1 above) the work and effort muscles have gotten a little soft from lack of use. Getting them back into competitive shape will take some time
You have to decide what it means for you to pursue the best version of yourself in your given season of life, interests, passions, goals and pursuits. It must be a realistic assessment of where you are and where you want to go and in what categories. The key here is where you believe you want to go…not where others want you to go and where you think others want you to go but where you want to go and if you truly want to make the journey.
Some closing advice:
- This whole process works best when in alignment with your most closely held values – never give up on the clarity of this part of your journey
- Pursue this process in “pencil”…you will self-edit and adjust through this process. Don’t give yourself excuses but give yourself grace to learn and adjust – Example…running a marathon and having to deal with my achilles tendon.
- Keep the circle of knowing small…this does not need to be your social media journey but it should be a shared journey; accountability.
- Keep others in mind…Jim Collins is right when he says “Life is people”. It’s true because it lines up with the greatest command to love God and love people. Leveling up is at its best when we keep in mind that to become all we are designed, called and gifted to be directly affects the lives of those around us. We are connected and others get the opportunity to grow when we choose to grow and vice versa.
- Just don’t quit yourself.