My son and I were in the hills of Arkansas on a mountain bike ride. He is quite experienced at it, but it was a relatively new sport for me. I love biking, but mountain biking is a bit more rigorous.The trails were beautiful. Some of them are curvy and narrow and quite scenic, but around some corners were real surprises. My son biked ahead of me and would occasionally say, "This next part gets a little technical, Dad."He said that so calmly. Part way into the ride I learned that what he really meant was that it's not only curvy, but we were going to be riding right on the edge of some very high cliffs…the kind of cliffs that make you say some things you wouldn’t normally say.Although it required complete focus, I was proud of myself for handling those parts of the trail. I don't know if I would have done it as well if he had fully described what lay ahead.I guess that's the way we ought to handle big challenges or scary times in our organization. If we approach it calmly enough, it may not be as rough as we think. When we hit a real challenge, what should we remember? ACTION STEPS FOR A TOUGH CHALLENGES
1. Think positively about what you are going to face.2. Listen to the wisdom of someone who has faced a similar situation.3. Remind yourself you've been on a similar road before and handled it well.4. Keep your mind on the road (goal) ahead and how you want to achieve it.5. Execute it smoothly and confidently like an expert.6. Pat yourself on the back for accomplishing it.7. Thank the person (or people) who helped you accomplish it.
