Tonight I went for a swim at the local pool in Lone Tree, CO. I wanted to get a workout in but I haven’t been swimming much and I was looking forward to having a lane to myself where I could cruise and go at my own pace.

But when I showed up at 4:45pm, I found the pool SWAMPED with junior high and high school swimmers.

So, there’s 38-year old Scott and all these kiddos that are 20+ years younger than me and A LOT better at swimming than I am.

My first thought?

“Man, that hot tub next to the pool looks good. I’ve had a tough week, maybe I’ll just go sit in there and relax. I’ve earned it.”

My second thought?

“Dude, you came to the pool to get a workout in. Ask one of these kids if you can share a lane and eat your humble pie as they effortlessly swim faster and easier than you. You’ll be better for it.”

So, that’s what I did. I jumped in a lane and swam with these kids for almost 45 minutes. And they were super cool about it – resting a little bit at the end of the pool so they didn’t have to swim over the top of me.

Me, complete with goggle marks and chlorine hair :-)

 

Environment and who you surround yourself with are powerful tools to #Outperform in 2019. I could have taken the easy way out and sat in the hot tub, and I could be beating myself up because I was BY FAR the worst swimmer in the entire pool, but I actually had a ton of fun eating my humble pie and being forced to “raise my game” to keep up.

We are surrounded by situations like this all the time, personally and professionally, that stretch us and make us uncomfortable. I hope you seek them, embrace them, learn from them and use them to your advantage. It’s how we grow and get better.

Keep Outperforming,