Have you ever been around people that give off the vibe that they’re “too cool” for something? Or people that act like they don’t care or are super nonchalant? These sometimes are the people that also make subtle excuses for why they won’t succeed at something.
“I won’t do well on this presentation because I haven’t had enough time to prepare”
“I won’t PR this race because I didn’t sleep well the last few nights”
“I can’t go to any workout class times because I have a million things to do”
“That group of people probably won’t invite me back to their next event”
Not to say any of these things can’t be legitimate – they definitely can be, and in a lot of cases might be accurate. But sometimes, people are just looking for an out. Something to point to if things don’t go how they want them to. If they predict that the outcome will not go in their favor, they’ll feel better because they predicted it would happen. It’s self-sabotage.
Sometimes (a lot of times), people are just afraid of failing. Failing is vulnerable. So if people act like they don’t care or have a pre-determined reason as to why they won’t succeed, they have a reason it doesn’t work out. It’s a protection mechanism for the self. In a society where our identity is driven by “success” and failure – it can be damaging to the ego to fail. We have to learn to separate our identity from the outcome.
It’s really scary to care about things. It’s really hard to put yourself out there and admit that you want something to work out. But more times than not - it’s worth it. To put yourself out there and to take the leap to go for it is to succeed. Do the thing that is hard. Do the thing that is scary.
What people find along the way when you start to take the things you care about seriously and admit that you DO care and you DO want it to work out, is that the outcome stops being the thing that defines you and inspires you. Your fulfillment comes from the process and satisfaction of giving something your best effort, doing something hard, and being proud of yourself for doing it.
Caring is cool. It is worth the risk of potentially failing or not getting the exact outcome you want. Caring is rewarding. Caring about yourself is worth it. You only get one life…what are you going to do with it?
Are you going to run that race? Are you going to turn years around of inactivity and start caring about your health? Are you going to go on that 12 mile hike with your friends? Are you going to start something you’ve always wanted to try?
What if you PR? What if you land that job you want? What if that new friendship you pursue teaches you some of the greatest life lessons? These things can only come to fruition when you admit you care enough to put yourself out there to give them a chance to work in your favor.
It’s cool to care. It’s vulnerable to care. We encourage this every single day with our people. We encourage bigger thinking, vision casting, and out of the box thinking. It’s vulnerable, but what makes it better is sharing it with people that also care about you.
And guess what..we care..a lot.