Challenge Is A Great Thing!

When did challenge become such a negative thing in society?

I noticed this recently when I was texting with a friend.  Whenever I added the words hard, challenging or difficult my phone automatically registered a stressed out or sad emoji.

Since when did doing hard things become equated with being super stressed or sad.  It even registered a sad emoji when I entered the word “work”!

We all know that in order to grow and level up we must conquer things that stretch us outside of our comfort zones. As critical thinkers and high performers, we need to challenge the status quo when we see things like auto populated emojis.

The reality is, when I post a picture of a “hard” workout to my accountability partner it’s making me stronger.  When I report to my coach an assignment was difficult, I’m actually leveling up my thinking, questioning and ultimately expanding my mind.  Yes, sometimes it’s difficult to ask ourselves tough questions, to reflect and to take a hard look in the mirror, but isn’t that required to build our character?

We develop grit and resilience when we consistently tackle hard things.  Unfortunately, the majority of the population craves comfort.  As Earl Nightingale alluded to years ago, “The opposite of courage in our society is not cowardice.  It’s conformity”.  People acting like everyone else without knowing why. Without questioning.

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it should be that we can do hard things and to develop our critical thinking. Question the narrative.

I’m questioning the auto populating emojis! What are you questioning today that is “normal” that doesn’t feel right to you?