The struggle

We remember the outcome.  We remember the wins.  We don’t always remember what it took to get there.

We’ll remember Jordan Spieth winning the US Open long after we remember he almost blew it with a double bogey on the next to last hole.  And we certainly won’t remember the fact that he couldn’t hit a fairway to save his life to start the final round.

You’ll remember that amazing Q2 where you crushed your number long after you’ll remember how hard it was to achieve, how many prospects didn’t close, how many deals actually fell through, how the quarter was actually saved by a couple deals closing that weren’t even in your forecast.

The making of sausage isn’t pretty.  But it’s not the making you remember, nor is the making what you enjoy.

We measure, report on and are remembered by our outcomes.  We highlight our accomplishments but quietly forget the failures.  We focus rightfully on the finish line but don’t dwell much on the struggle.

But the struggle is always there.  It’s a requirement to success.  It’s impossible to avoid.

The smart ones lean into the struggle.  They don’t enjoy it, but they know the struggle is where others give up.  It’s where others start making excuses.

The struggle is an ingredient to success.  It’s a means to the ends you care most about.

I’ve talked to numerous salespeople the past couple days who are in the very midst of the struggle.  Their quarter ends next Tuesday.  This is sausage-making time.

It’s halfway through the calendar year.  You’re on pace to hit your number, or you’re not.  Either way, you’ve already faced the struggle.

Did it block you?  Did it slow you down?  Was it frustrating?

It may have done all three.  But what separates winners from also-rans is pushing through the struggle.  You fight and push and adjust and keep making sausage until the struggle gives up.

Keep pushing.  Keep selling.  Keep struggling.