One of the truths in life is that we’re better off always assuming two things at once – we’ve made it and not made it.
Assuming we’ve made it means we don’t worry about having to prove something to someone all the time. We show up ready to take swings we believe in, be plainspoken and say what we think, and back ourselves to learn from the many inevitable mistakes we make. It gives rise to the confidence that enables us to say – this might not work, and that’s okay.
Assuming we’ve not made it on the other hand reminds us that we cannot rest on our laurels. At any given point, it is how we perform at the project at hand and the next one ahead of us that matters. That’s how we guard against any sense of complacency – the day we stop looking around corners and anticipating where things might go wrong is the day we sow the seeds for dysfunction in the future. We’re never “set” – there’s always work to be done.
These sound like contradictory ideas. But the opposite of a good idea is often a good idea. And accepting and embracing these contradictory ideas helps us make progress.
