A “Schönwetterskifahrer” – this is how you call in Germany, but most likely more in Bavaria, where I live, a person who will only head out for skiing when the conditions are perfect.
It is not a compliment. 😉
It goes instead to say: “This is a person who will only show up when things are obvious and easy.” Many people in Munich have that tendency, so each winter, there are two days when everyone decides this is the day they will go skiing.
You can already guess the results: Everyone ends up in a traffic jam towards the mountains, in a bulk on the slopes, and it will probably be a sunny day, yes, but also a stressful one. Or weirder stuff happens…
My brain is coming back from the archives with this term, as I have an early morning swim in the lake on one of these imperfect mornings.
I am swimming over to the “Mule D’Or”, an a bit worn but charming sailboat.
The sky is overcast, with the sun trying to break through, but not too ambitious. After some rain overnight, everything is still a bit damp.
A handful of other people and I, for whom these conditions were good enough, now get to find out that they are pretty magic indeed.
When you head out when conditions are not perfect, you have several factors playing towards your advantage:
- Your brain and system get the idea that, even though it doesn’t look perfect, it might actually be pretty okay.
- You get more data points into your system—and thus more intelligence to work with.
- You train your “muscle” in whatever it is. Rather do whatever more often and on a smaller scale, than do it once in a while and overdo it. Your consistency will be higher – you can’t even prevent that from happening.
- Typically, in reality, you find easier and less risky conditions. As in a marketplace, it will be less crowded, so it is easier to stand out, and relate. The ‘perfect’ days can make us humans feel too lightheaded. So, more often than not, overplaying one’s skills happens on those “powder days”. While understandable, this can easily get you into trouble. This is precisely how my one and only ski accident ever happened: A hyped lady crossing over my skis as she was having no control over her speed.
Doing things when it is less obvious,
- a) adds up over time,
- b) means you have an advantage over others who are not doing it
- c) gives you a much better chance for solid stats. Those 2 days per year – what if they end up annoying which they most probably will?
So, reminder to self:
If you are in doubt whether the conditions are good enough, cut off that line of thinking. As long as it is not about real danger or damage in the air, do it anyway.
Chances are, you will not regret it.
Ever headed out to do something in life, business, in imperfect conditions these days? How did it play out? How do you get yourself to do it anyway?
selfcoaching #mindset #resilience