Canada Day the Empower coaching team gathered in Hastings Mill Park for a productive picnic meeting. One of the subjects we discussed was the less desirable aspects of coaching. For us, the dream of coaching includes the fulfillment of helping another person achieve and exceed their goals, playing an active role in a vibrant community and being on a passionate, dedicated team. We love so many of the components of coaching.
But our dreams of coaching did not include the heart break of clients leaving, the struggle to generate sales, the discomfort of enforcing standards, conversations about collecting membership fees, the unpleasantness of listening to complaints, the drudgery of cleaning up after classes, and so many other distasteful responsibilities.
This is no different than any other endeavour. Many people dream of being an elite athlete without dreaming about the hours of unheralded toil spent in training, the constant nagging injuries, missing social events to train, the repeated failures and defeats. Others dream of owning their own business without considering the constant insecurity and total financial risk, the bookkeeping, the bills, personnel challenges, lease negotiations, navigating the government bureaucracy…
So it is with fitness. Everyone dreams of being fit but no one dreams of the discipline of showing up when you don’t feel like it, the struggle to get through a workout, the aches, the set backs, skipping that slice of cake, cutting out the beers on the weekend, starting at the bottom.
We all have dreams but dreaming will not get you very far. Better to embrace reality’s bitter pill with stoic resolve. There is no easy route to fulfilling your dreams and that is why so many people never do. Luckily at Empower we have a whole community of people working together to support one another in the journey of dream fulfillment. It’s the perfect place to chase your dreams!
