Pushing A Rope
I recently heard a pretty impressive saying that made me think of a pretty crazy word picture.
Consider this: It is the middle of winter. A wet snow has been falling from the sky for hours and there is close to 8 inches of snow already on the ground. You have just finished up your last tasks at work and are ready to leave for home. So, you grab your lunch pail, get in your car,and travel home. A couple of miles away from your home, you hit a patch of ice and slide into a snow bank. Luckily, no damage was done to your car, but you are unable to get yourself out. So, you pull out your phone and call a friend with a vehicle heavy enough to get you out.
Your friend arrives a few moments later with a sizeable towrope in hand ready to get to work. They quickly clear the snow from under your vehicle and find a solid point to connect to. Then the rope is stretched out and connected to their vehicle. With as much confidence as they could muster, they announced, “On the count of three, I’m going to push you out!” One. Two. Three. They slowly accelerate but nothing happens. Looking confused your friend disconnects the tow rope and realigns their vehicle for another try. One. Two. Three. The same exact results. Not willing to give up yet, your friend moves to the front of your car and tries to once again push the rope forward to get you unstuck. One. Two. Three. After you stop uncontrollably laughing, you remind your friend, “You cannot push a rope!”
Questions to Ponder
I presume none of you would physically try to “push a rope”and hope that work would be done, but I do wonder how many times we metaphorically “push a rope”?
Have you ever purchased lottery tickets hoping to make it rich for retirement instead of investing in your company’s retirement plan? Random chance is not actively preparing for your encore years. Instead, you are pushing a rope!
Have you ever tried to use the social media endorsed plan of“velocity banking”? Debt is not a tool to get out of debt. Instead, you are pushing a rope!
Have you ever tried to argue for a raise at work, but your performance doesn’t reflect strong effort and diligence? Hard work encourages recognition. You are officially pushing a rope.
Have you ever shared with your spouse the “right way” to load the dishwasher? I need not say more. You are definitely pushing a rope!
Although the last one is rather silly, you get certainly get the idea. We all foolishly try to get results by pushing the rope. Although I could clutter your mind with tips and tricks for goal setting in the new year, I think it is far more valuable to emphasize that you must only focus your efforts on the things that you control. You must discipline yourself to make responsible choices to build phenomenal relationships. You must discipline yourself to be hard at work when on your employer’s clock to provide new opportunities to learn and grow. You must discipline yourself to make responsible choices with your finances today to leave a better legacy for tomorrow. All of the rest is icing on the cake!
Here is to pulling instead of pushing a rope into the new year.