Struggle Through: Get It Done

Embrace the Struggle: Turning Challenges into Stepping Stones | Leadership N-Sight

In this episode of Leadership N-Sight, we explore the importance of pushing through struggles rather than seeing them as reasons to quit. Join the discussion on the inevitable obstacles leaders face and learn how to shift your mindset to view struggle as part of growth. Discover practical steps for breaking down challenges, setting micro goals, and leaning on support systems to keep moving forward. Remember, every successful leader has faced challenges - it’s how they navigate them that defines their success. Dust off your boots and let’s grow together!

00:00 Introduction to Leadership N-Sight

00:54 Understanding the Role of Struggle in Leadership

01:52 Shifting Your Mindset on Struggle

05:10 Breaking Down Struggle into Actionable Steps

08:28 Building a Support System

10:16 Conclusion and Recap

Transcript

 Hello and welcome to Leadership N-Sight, where today, struggle through, but get it done. I should have said struggle through and get her done, but struggle through and get it done. Hello everyone and welcome to today's Leadership N-Sight. Whether you're navigating the challenges of leadership, whether you're climbing the corporate ladder, or balancing personal and professional responsibilities, one thing is certain, struggle Welcome.

Now, last week we talked about finding balance in life's chaos,  if you missed it, make sure you go back and check that out and also send it to someone who you know needs it.

Now back to today's session.  People see struggle as a sign that they're not cut out for leadership or they're not cut out for whatever particular job they're on. But that's not necessarily the case.  Here's the truth. Struggle  Failure is a part of the process. Struggle does not mean you're failing. I need you all to reframe.

And start to think. Struggle is a part of process. It doesn't mean you're failing. It means you're moving. And that's what we also need to do. We do need to move forward. So today we're going to talk about why struggle  is not a sign or a signal to quit. That's right, it's not a sign, it's not a signal to quit, but rather it's an indicator that's going to help push us forward.

So it's pushing towards something worthwhile. We're going to break down two critical areas that will help you keep moving forward when you feel that it's impossible.  Our two points for today is going to be shift your mindset. Stop seeing struggle as a stop sign and break the struggle into actionable steps.

Now let me tell you something about leadership.  Leader struggle.  And I had to chuckle because I'm a leader. And there are times that even I may struggle. So it's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when. Every great leader has faced moments of doubt, failure, and difficulty now what sets them apart is not their ability to avoid struggle, but their mindset.

And approach when struggle comes struggle doesn't mean you're weak. It means you're human  What matters is how you respond? There are going to be days that you're going to feel extremely exhausted You're going to feel overwhelmed  If you allow overwhelm to take over your mindset, and there are going to be days you may feel stuck.

Days when you question whether you took the right path. Ma'am, you took the right path. Sir, you took the right path. But those are moments when you have to dust those boots off and keep going.  The only way to truly fail is to stop trying.  Every successful leader, every person you admire has had moments where they wanted to give up and thank goodness they didn't and neither should you.

So how do you struggle through? You just get it done. So let's go ahead and break us down into our two areas.  

Shift your mindset. Stop seeing struggle as a stop sign.   📍  📍  The first step in pushing through struggle is changing  how you see it. Many of us were taught that if something was hard, we must be doing something wrong. And that's false. Growth is uncomfortable.

And honey, let me tell you, when you aspire to grow on a daily basis, do not expect to just sit there and. feel like you're just going to feel super great, that there's not going to come a struggle, that you are not going to be faced with resistance because that's just not the truth. We are taught, yes, if something is hard, we must be doing something wrong, but that's false.

Growth is uncomfortable. Struggle is proof that you are stretching beyond your comfort zone and that is something that we want. Think about it. A muscle grows after it's been challenged and torn down during exercise.  Okay, a diamond only forms under pressure, a leader only emerges after they push through obstacles.

So instead of seeing struggle as a reason to quit, start seeing it as part of your development. Ask yourself.  What is this moment teaching me?  What skills am I gaining from this particular challenge? How  will this experience make me stronger in the future? The leaders who rise above aren't the ones who avoid struggle.

They're the ones who learn how to navigate it.  Now, our second point,  now our second point is break the struggle into actionable steps.   When you're deep in struggle, everything can start to feel overwhelming. You might feel stuck because you don't know how to tackle the challenge ahead. The key is break it down.

And let me tell you how.  Identify what's in your control.  Everything isn't. So, Instead of focusing on what you can't change, I need you to focus on what can you do right now. What is the one step that you can do?  Do that step.  Set micro goals. If a task or a challenge feels difficult, too overwhelming.

You are just almost spun out. I need you to start breaking it down into smaller, manageable steps. So ask yourself, what is one thing that I can do today to move forward? And then do that.  Just one. Take it, stop trying to do it all in one setting. That's great if you can, but that's not always where we, or that's not always what we have left.

Sometimes, you all, you need to break it down into these bite sized chunks. Now, if you're a person that can tackle the whole thing, good for you. Teach us how, teach us your ways.  For most of us, we need to tackle it in small, bite sized pieces.   📍  📍 So get comfortable with  imperfect progress. That's right. Get comfortable with imperfect progress.

 You all want to be, everything has to be on point. There can't be, and if there's something that's just, it's like if there's a hair out of place, you're about to fall apart.  I need you to be comfortable with, look, you see, I got curls that are all over the place right now, and I have to learn to be okay and let them do their thing.

And it's that, I know I'm talking about hair, but it can be if you choose for it to be that simplistic. Some of you, your curls, Are beautiful as they are but you see them because they don't lay flat perfectly They're not stretched out enough. They're not this they're not that you see that as Failure you see that as my hair doesn't look good today you don't see that as my hair is expressing itself and by expressing itself It's being authentically who  and i'm talking about here and i'm going to say in my for from me or from my standpoint She is authentically who she is.

Let the queen just be queen but we want to Change her. We say, Oh, she can't be like this. She has to have a part down the middle and she has to hang a certain way. Let your queen be her queen. Stop looking for perfection. Get comfortable with imperfect progress. Not every step you take is going to be perfect.

And that is okay. Forward. Movement is where we're going. Even if it's messy, it's still progress. Forward movement. Doesn't have to be perfect. Build a support system. Struggle doesn't mean you have to do it alone. Find mentors. Find peers. Find a coach. Find a person in your church or in your synagogue.

Wherever you may go. Find someone that can help.  Even if it's a friend who can remind you of your strength when you start to doubt yourself. So it's important through this journey, self doubt will come about. But if you're surrounded by a support system that has your best interest at heart, and some of you, your support system does not have your best interest at heart.

So I implore you, if they are not with you, choose a new circle. You can create even, I don't care if you're 25, you can create a new circle. If you're 30, you can create a new circle. If you're 40, you can create a new circle. If you're 50, you can create a new circle. And if you've never had a circle at 60, I'm telling you mama, you can have the circle of your dreams that will still support you and catapult you to your next level.

It doesn't matter what your age is. Your circle matters. The biggest mistake people make is waiting for struggle to pass before they take an action. So they're just sitting in a struggle. They're not moving, they're not doing anything because they are frozen in fear.

I need you to take action, even if you don't feel it's the right action. Take an action, and then let's move forward from there. The reality is, you have to move through struggle.  Action creates momentum and momentum can help you to get unstuck. Please don't forget to like and subscribe from whatever platform you are watching us from.

Let me do a quick recap. Struggle is a not a stop sign.

It's a stepping stone. Every leader, every person, quite frankly, is going to face struggle. It's not a sign of weakness. It's a sign that you're growing and that's what we want and especially if you're a leader, we need you to grow. Shift your mindset. Stop seeing struggle as failure and start seeing it as a necessary process.

Break the struggle into manageable, actionable steps. Don't freeze in the face of difficulty.  Identify what's your control, set those micro goals, and take imperfect action and lean on your support system. At the end of the day, your ability to struggle through and get it done is what will separate you from the rest of the pack.

The people who rise in leadership aren't the ones who always have this, uh, it's just easy. It was simplistic. They're the ones who keep going when It's hard  when they feel stuck. They still move forward. I want you to move forward. Join me next week for more incredible insights. You deserve nothing but the best.

It's my goal to ensure that you move to your next level. Let's take your career to new heights together. So when struggle comes your way, remember dust your boots off, stand tall, and keep moving forward because you got this.