The Importance of Challenging Yourself - The On A Limb Way
I am often asked why I decided to sit on a 1500 pound beast only to get bucked off 3.2 seconds later or why I would jump out of a perfectly good airplane. Am I insane? I don’t think so. Do I want to risk my life? Not particularly. I want to experience life. I want to see what my limits are and what I am capable of so I know when to push harder. When asked why he climbed Mount Everest, George Mallory, British mountaineer and member of the team on the first three expeditions to Mount Everest answered “Because it’s there.” This is the same outlook that I have on life. It doesn’t make sense to me to pass up on a perfectly good adventure and an opportunity to grow as an individual.
You never know what you’re good at or what you need to work on until you do something that you’ve never done. You get instant results and feedback. Do something that tests your strength. Push your mind to the brink. Once you know your limitations, push those limitations even further. That is the only way to reach your true potential.
I have done many things forcing me to overcome challenges and testing my strength, stamina, and courage which has allowed me to see what I am truly made of. Like everyone, I am made of flesh and bones. However, because of all the experiences that I have undertaken, I know that I also have the confidence to face new challenges, the perseverance and endurance to push through, and the mental strength to deal with what comes next.
I know my limitations. And I know that they will not be my limitations forever. Mountain bike riding used to be challenging for me at Fountainhead Regional Park. Over the years, my skills have improved and biking at Fountainhead has turned into a joy ride. In high school, my family went to Moab, Utah where we biked Slickrock and Porcupine Rim, two advanced technical trails. There were moments on the Porcupine Rim Trail, merely 18 inches of loose dirt and littered with rocks, where my wheels were inches away from a one-thousand foot drop. Even though I’ve been riding in the past, this experience showed that I could take the skills and knowledge that I have and apply it to a new environment and handle more rugged terrain than I had ridden in the past.
If I never stuck out all of the biking, duathlons, or other adventures, then I never would have wanted to go bull riding. Bull riding is more involved than just having the strength to be able to hold on to the bull. It requires guts and a certain level of audacity to be able to sit on a bull that is bucking in the chute, swinging its head trying to stab you with its horns. The bull is a 2,000 pound beast that wants you off him. You get on in the chute and when you want them to open the chute gate you have to nod your head. When you get on the bull in the chute and feel the beast under you, you can back out, say “I’m not doing this,” get off the bull, and walk away like nothing ever happened. Or you can sit on the bull, feel the power of the animal, and nod your head, knowing that you will be tossed like a rag doll.
Like me, everybody should challenge themselves. Not necessarily the same way I do, but challenge yourself. If you’re afraid of dogs, visit a dog park. If you don’t like heights, climb a ladder one more rung than the last time. If you’ve never been on a train, go for a train ride. One thing you can do is overcome your fears. Push yourself and your limitations. If you accomplish something, try something harder or try it a second time and do it better than the first.
Challenging yourself in business
To me, the business world is similar to the adventure-filled world. There are many routes that you can take, but taking the path less traveled makes a world of difference. You can sit idly by and do mundane daily tasks in an office to make a living, but I’m going to do something that truly drives and excites me. I want to be able to see the impact that my effort has on the company and the people around me. I want to provide the world with a product or service of value. I want to learn and grow from whatever it is I call “work”.
Most people don’t know what they want to do in life, myself included. I believe that figuring out your passion and goals in life requires experiencing things you like and doing what you’re good at as well as those moments where you’re uncomfortable and participating in something you aren’t good at. It is important to stay optimistic in each situation and focus on the tangible skills that you learned along with key takeaways about your personal growth through those experiences. This forces you to be present in the moment.
Growing and learning from work does not only mean learning new knowledge but can include taking information and skills that you have and applying them to a new situation. I learned this because I had to adapt to the terrain while mountain biking in Moab to complete the rides.
Often in business there are moments where you don’t know what the outcome is going to be. As in bull riding, you can expect to be bucked up and down, thrown around, and if all goes wrong, even stomped on or kicked. Most of the possibilities are unpleasant and you can see this even before you put on your spurs, but if you do not nod your head in the chute and take the risk, you never know what might happen. You might survive 8 seconds on the bull, jump off, and land on your feet, taking the championship money and belt buckle. If you let others’ opinions or the fear of failure influence you not to take a chance, you will never hit the market with the “next big thing” or change the world.
All of these experiences have positively influenced my optimism, courage, as well as my confidence in myself and others. I now see the importance of not fearing failure, but rather welcoming the possibility of a breakthrough. My challenge to you: If there’s ever an opportunity to escape your comfort zone, go Out On A Limb and do something just “because it’s there.”