Why I'm Thankful for 2020

2020 By all accounts has been a year that after a couple of minutes on social media seems like most of the world would like to forget, or at the very least move past and get to 2021 as quickly as we can. I’ve certainly had those thoughts, but as I look at back at the entirety of 2020 I’ve realized that I’m incredibly Thankful for everything that has happened to me this year.

At first glance like most people 2020 has been devastating. The world has dealt with a terrifying pandemic that has decimated families and businesses around the world, we’ve also been witness to social injustice with countless murders that hurt our very souls. On a personal level our own businesses have been hammered by the COVID pandemic, the professional soccer team, Stumptown Athletic, I was so proud to help launch was crushed as COVID not only stopped our promising season prematurely, but also forced us to pull out of the league for the foreseeable future, putting numerous people out of work, as we wait out the pandemic and the ability to have fans return to games and replenish investment needed to make the club sustainable. Our HappyFeet Charlotte youth soccer club and ShiningStars theater programs that both work primarily with children ages 2-8 saw it’s revenue drop by some 75% as preschools and daycares were forced to shut down. All of this while bills continue to come, revenues and income drop and the responsibility of not only providing for family still ever present but also added to the fact that all of the players, coaches, and other people that help all of our businesses looking to us for answers.

The reality of the pandemic is that many just like us were forced to stay home, to not work, and to seek answers. There are certainly times when it feels very difficult, and that you can’t dig your way out. Times where you want to give up, to just sit, stop fighting, but then I look at the blessings this pandemic has brought. Never have I been more connected to my wife and two boys. I’ve been given time to look at everything we are doing, to build systems to help us not only continue to survive, but to thrive. I’ve gone on walks with people I’ve come to admire. We’ve housed young professional soccer players chasing a dream that became a part of our family, and changed the way not only I, but my kids see the world. I’ve found a renewed motivation in building our businesses and using the game of soccer to teach, empower, and change lives.

The pandemic has taught me many lessons for which I’m thankful, but here are three of the most important.

1. Go for a Walk,

2. Systems are more important than goals,

3. Focus on what you can control.

Go for a Walk

I’ve written previously about the power of a walk, but I’ll address is here again as it’s made a profound difference in how I’ve approached this pandemic. Early on in the pandemic as we were all locked in our homes we were able to do one thing. Go outside for a walk. Like many I’ve always understood the importance of working out and how doing so impacted my energy levels, my mood, etc. what I wasn’t as acutely aware of was how slowing down and going for a walk could open your mind.

My walks started as a way to get out of the house, to listen to a podcast, make a few phone calls, and think about how we were going to deal with all of the mess of COVID. As I walked more and more I realized that I craved those walks because they were incredibly productive. Then the killing of George Floyd happened and I had to get out, I had to walk, I had to process, I had to think. As Killer Mike so eloquently put it we had to Plot, Plan, Strategize and Mobilize (if you haven’t seen his speech you should take a few minutes and watch it here).

Afterwards my walk I talked about it on twitter and went on a walk with Jonathan Brabson. I wrote about it in a previous blog post. That walk led to many more walks, meetings, ideas, etc. and a friendship with Brandon Miller and Jonathan Brabson that continues to grow and develop. I’m excited to see where this concept of “Taking a walk” goes. A recent text exchange with Brandon suggest that there is tremendous upside and potential in this concept to build and heal communities. He actually wrote an incredible post (far better than mine) about walking which you can read here. We will continue to explore it more, but here are a few suggestions.

• If you are a professional club - leadership, players and fans - take a walk together through your community

• Community leaders - take a walk with police, citizens, and others who care about your community.

• If you are struggling to solve a problem, take a walk, listen to a podcast. Clear your mind and listen.

The walk allows you to listen, to think, to communicate with others. To ask powerful questions, to feel comfort in the movement while you tackle difficult subjects. It’s powerful. I can’t wait to hear from you on what you accomplished by taking a walk.

Systems > Goals

For years like many I’ve set goals. The end of the year and beginning of the year are often a time where we reflect on our old goals and set new ones. Prevailing wisdom often tells us that we should set “SMART” goals, or in other words specific and actionable goals if we are going to achieve success. We point to successful people in business, in athletics, in life and show how they set ambitious goals and were ruthless in achieving them as proof that this is the way to reach success. The question though for me is, “is that really true?” As James Clear in “Atomic Habits” points out don’t the losers also set goals, we tend to hyper focus on those that win as the only ones who set these type of goals, but in reality the setting of the goal is not what helps these people win.

To give a more personal example, my kids both play competitive soccer. As part of their club soccer experience they are often tasked with setting goals for the season. For my youngest that meant “scoring more goals.” At first glance that seems like a good goal for him. He’s a creative midfielder who loves to create for others so trying to create for yourself seems like a good goal. Here’s the problem though most of the team set the same goal because for most, its just sounds good, it seems like something the coaches would like it. The issue here though is setting a goal to score more goals, or even more specifically to get 5 shots per game and average 1 goal per game as an example, which seems specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, and timely doesn’t actually do anything to create habits that will improve his game.

Here’s what I mean, by focusing on the end product score x amount of goals we do nothing to change the behaviors, or build a system of success. If we started with a statement as simple as “I’m a goal scorer” vs. “I want to score more goals” and then build in daily habits, and a system of training based on what “the best goal scorers” do on a daily basis then the chances of achieving success are much better. We become the identity that we are giving ourselves.

As an example if you talk to most prolific strikers they are ruthless with their targets for the year. Ronaldo talks about setting goals for assist, goals, etc every season as something to chase. Mbappe is known to count every goal even in training. The reality though is that setting those goals is not what puts them ahead of anyone else. The systems, and processes they use make the end product or results forgone conclusions, and that is what makes them different. These players have a daily system of working out, resting, types of movement, touches etc. all designed to make them just a little bit better every day. This system is what sets them apart. The habits of taking care of their body, focusing on only what helps them improve on a daily basis is what allows them to be ruthless in attaining their goals. The goals largely are a formality because they have a process that allows them to continually improve, to dominate, to succeed. Other strikers set goals, why are the likes of Ronaldo, and Mbappe so different? It’s not just god given talent, it’s the environment they have designed, the systems that are in place that help them achieve to a higher level.

In business corporations every year spend this time of year setting goals for the next year. Sales people set their goals, marketing sets theirs, etc. This exercise is common amongst all companies. They set “smart” goals, everyone knows how to do it. Why then do some succeed and some fail. Is it because they set “better or more audacious goals” or is it because their companies, or the employees themselves have environments, cultures that promote systems of continual improvement. Triggers that prompt daily positive behaviors that have a net positive impact on the company and individuals success. That compounding of daily movement in the right direction is what leads them to victory. Not setting an audacious goal. We love to celebrate when we set a big goal, leaders talk about how their sales person set’s huge goals and thats why he or she is successful, but didn’t the other sales people who missed their goals set Big Hairy Audacious goals too, they had to right, why don’t we talk about them? The reality is setting the goal without setting up a system to succeed is pointless. Developing a system and environment with repeatable daily cues and habits, that becomes almost automated is the key to success. The goals become a product of our systems. Remember we don’t rise to the level of our goals we fall to the level of our systems. Want more insight into this check out books like “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, “Flawless Execution” by James Murphy or even “Purple Cow” by Seth Godin all of them discuss systems, processes, and formation of habits and cultures that help you succeed.

So again I would ask when you are setting your goals, focus more on setting your systems than on the goal. The results will speak for themselves.

Focus on what you can control

The third lesson from this pandemic is the idea of focusing on what you can control. I’d like to think that the two lessons above are built from this concept. By taking a walk I was able to focus on what was controllable, how I reacted to circumstances (social injustice, covid, financial stress, etc.), what I could do to move forward, to learn, to change my perspective. By building systems or daily habits that allow me to focus on what I can control I’m able to build an environment that allows for continual daily improvement vs. anxiety or stress. The idea of making those improvements act like compound interest on positive things that impact my life and those around me is not only one that makes a lot of sense it is incredibly freeing to the mind and soul. We can’t control the fact that people wear or don’t wear a mask, that COVID continues to ravage the nation, but we can control what we do with the time we are given, how we react to it. We can control how we react, the environments that we build and the lessons we teach.

Too often we let things out of our control change our behaviors. While we should learn from things like COVID, we should also learn to find what we can control in that environment. Waiting, or Hoping is rarely a good thing and is certainly not a strategy. Taking advantage of down time to look at your systems, to take a walk renew your spirit and focus on what you can impact today is critical. I can not make a vaccine happen faster, but I can control how prepared our companies are for the present without one and for the future with one. I can’t control that preschools and daycares don’t let in outside vendors during this pandemic (a huge source of revenue for companies like HappyFeet and ShiningStars) but we can control increasing our focus on park programs, and preparing for growth when schools do open, reevaluating and building or systems and processes, communicating with parents, schools, etc. of our plan, our options and where we are going.

Take control, Take a walk, build a system and be thankful for what 2020 has brought us. This vision, the optimism for the future, the time I was given with my kids is something I will never forget and am incredibly thankful for.

Want to take a walk? Send me a note and lets connect.

Want to get more insights make sure and subscribe to our blog and follow along?

Most of all thank you for reading.

Thanks,

C