~
Henry David Thoreau
It’s dark at 5 am. It’s
even darker at 5 am in November in the Mississippi Pine Belt. Surrounded by pine
trees, the orange hazy glow of street lights play peek-a-boo between the pine needles
as the chilly breeze whispers over the hills. Homes are dark. Their tenants and
children clinging to sleep trying to liberate the last ounce of dream from
their slumber before the day greets them.
I like to walk at 5am. It’s
quiet. It’s serene. It’s peaceful. It’s just me and the deer and the road. There
are no cars. There is an occasional opossum or barking dog. Those encounters
are few and far between. Everyone and everything is hunkered down lost in sleep.
This time of year Summer
refuses to release its choking grip on the South as the northern winds
infiltrate the overnight hours bringing refreshing cooler air. As the seasons
change we get more and more fog at 5am. The other morning as I was walking, I
was quickly and without warning enveloped in a thick fog. The fog was so thick
I could no longer see the orange glow of the street lights as I passed them.
My visibility was such
that I could only see my feet touching the path I was on. I was operating more
by touch and memory than by relying on my sight.I thought about stopping my
workout, but I didn’t want to let the elements get the best of me. I didn’t
want to have an excuse. I wanted to achieve what I had set out to do.
This got me thinking about
how we live our lives and how we operate in business. It would have been very
easy for me to call my workout off at that moment. I could have said it was too
dangerous. The conditions were not right. The benefit did not outweigh the
risk. I am sure I could have come up with many excuses (which might have been valid)
of why I should not continue down the path toward the goal I had set.
I am sure many of you have
been in a scenario similar in business. Things are bumping along like usual,
the challenges aren’t difficult but they aren’t easy either.All of a sudden the
game changes. You can’t see your way forward. Do you keep pressing on knowing
the path is beneath your feet? Do you turn back to what is comfortable and
safe?
I am glad I chose to move
forward. It was difficult. It was a challenge. It was also a very peaceful and
liberating experience. My reward was much greater than when I initially started
my workout with full visibility.
I had to trust my
instinct. I had to know my path. I had to rely on what I have done many times
before to get me safely back home to accomplish my goal.
My path was set out before
I took the first step. I knew where I was going before I left the house. I have
followed my route many times before. I could most probably do it blindfolded.
What if I had chosen to
take a different path that morning? What if I had decided to walk through the
woods instead of along the road? Would I have made the same decision? I don’t
know.
Do you follow a path that
is well known and well-worn or do you have an entrepreneurial spirit? Do you
blaze your own path leaving it for others to follow in your footsteps?
As Robert Frost so
eloquently stated in his poem The Road
Not Taken, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood/And sorry I could not travel both,
And be one traveler”. Many times in our lives we will be faced with three
options; follow the well-known path, create a new path, or doing nothing.
Whichever you choose, doing nothing is usually never the best option. There are
really only two choices: do something or do nothing.
Whichever path leads you on your journey to success, whether
familiar and well-worn or a road less traveled, here’s to you finding your path,
taking that first step, and never turning back. I know our community will be
better off simply because you put one foot in front of the other.
---
* This article was originally printed in the Sunday, November 11, 2012 issue
of The Chronicle's"Planting Seeds" column.
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