Chilled under fire

Today, I had about the most difficult start to a training session I have had, as it was a webinar delivered to people globally, but I didn't have access to their corporate environment as my credentials had expired. Getting access refreshed on short notice (8 minutes) is near impossible in massive companies and in the end, I was forced to use a little creative technology usage to put together a patchwork quilt of a presentation. Although not ideal, the contact person said, "that wasn't anywhere near the disaster I was expecting it to be".

Success?

Well, it was the best solution possible under a tight schedule using the tools I had available, do I will take it. My supervisor overheard the conversations I was having and later said, "Wow, you keep a cool head".

I'll take that as a compliment.

It is interesting to observe behaviour whilst under pressure and I kind of enjoy it, but the intensity of the lead up and then greatly altered delivery took a lot of mental energy. I felt quite drained after, but also relieved and content with the performance.

I have done a fair bit of client training dealing with change and coping in mentally stressful situations - but as they say, those that can't do, teach. It is a nonsense saying, although if a teacher has only known the inside of classroom, holds done truth.

Experience is something that can be learned from however and if aware and reflective enough, the lessons can be transmitted to others to give them at least a better foundation to deal from. While I sometimes wish life would have been a little kinder, it hasn't been so I may as well take all the value I can from hardship rather than waste it.

In my opinion, difficult experiences are much better growth tools than easy because easy requires very little invested energy. Smooth paths don't build strong muscles, much like calm seas do not make for skilled sailors.

I believe that if we were each to write an autobiography of our lives, we would find that the experiences we value the most, the ones that shape us into who we are today will be mostly the ones that we considered overly negative at the time.

While some people use these as an excuse as to why they can't, others use them as energy for why they can. Is it innate or do we have choice in how we see the world? What I have found is that it is most likely both, we have our predisposition, but we also have tools we can use to alter our behaviour. Those that say they can't change, are usually the ones who only invest themselves into the comfortable options, the path they can accept.

We all own our experience and if a person doesn't like how they are living, the responsibility to change it lays on one set of shoulders only.

Invest in yourself, invest into where you believe you want to be and live.

Taraz
[ a Steem original ]
_{(chilling in the rain)}