Smaller Dose #12: It’s good that you came back for more.
Reading time: ~4 minutes
Length: ~700 words
So here we go…..
I bought a used guitar when I was in college. I thought it would be a great way to meet some new people, make some new friends, get some dates, and make me look cool. I took piano lessons at an early age and played for more than ten years. I thought it would be easy to translate those skills into a new instrument. I was wrong.
A few guitar lessons and some practice over a few weeks were the next steps. And that was the end of the guitar experiment. It was too hard. That was the story I told myself. I wanted faster results. I was impatient and was not willing to make the small recurring investments of time required to practice and become a real guitar player.
There wasn’t much risk in the investment of a used guitar. Actually, it wasn’t an investment. It was a waste of $100. I didn’t hold myself accountable and no one else held me to my personal commitment. I simply put the guitar away and moved on to the next “experience.”
I was All Hat and No Cattle.
I was looking good with my used guitar. I told people about my guitar, it became a talking point and part of my identity for a brief time. Yet I had not made good on my commitment to my intention. I was all show, all talk, and no action. And as I recall, I was teased about that guitar by my friends for the next semester or two. Probably even longer.
There have been countless times during my life when I had the best of intentions to do something. Something small. Something big. Something for others. Something self-serving. Something for a greater cause. And often, those intentions dissipated after a few hours, days, or weeks. The feeling of excitement transformed into one of reality where the actions required became more than I was willing to complete. Even the smallest of steps to get started seemed like too much. All were good ideas in the moment, but which became less so as the clock ticked forward, and the commitment became more real. It’s easy to commit. It’s harder to keep those commitments.
I’m not alone. This experience is part of the human condition for many of us.
Why?
There are many reasons. It’s easy to commit to doing something when it is far in advance, and we think we will have ample time to get it done. And as the window of time gets smaller and smaller, the excitement, desire, and willingness to execute becomes more difficult. Bailing on the original commitment, especially when it is low risk or there are minimal consequences, is easy for us. Sometimes the impact is small and insignificant and at other times, we let people down.
Consider this:
Where in your life have you been All Hat and No Cattle?
What impact did it have on your life as you reflect back on that event or commitment?
How about the impact on others? Do you feel like you let someone down?
If so, what did you do about it?
As a friend once asked me, “Are you a player or are you in the stands?”
These are questions I think about often. Sometimes the answers come easily. Most of the time they do not. Yet I always value reflection and consider how I can do better next time.
The Lesson: Don’t be All Hat and No Cattle.
Jerry is the author of “Small Doses: Common Sense to Common Practice,” a book which contains 18 thought pieces about the intersection of Process Improvement, Leadership and Life. Jerry also writes short stories about life experiences (Anchor Points) and the profound lessons that can be learned from before and after those moments.
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