… eight more, four more, two more… Hold it… Higher… Now it’s over!
Until I was eighteen, sports and exercise were completely unknown territories to me, but since then, I’ve always been active in some way. I reached my best shape during COVID, but at that time I completed an online Yin yoga course, which I definitely shouldn’t have done with hyper-flexible joints. Due to injuries and various aches and problems, my enthusiasm and performance have fluctuated since then. Since I hold the axiom in my head that one MUST exercise, I don’t give up. If I can’t do much, I at least put in a few minutes to keep the habit alive, and if necessary, I start over every two weeks.
And when I start over, I somehow always return to Réka Rubint’s ancient “Give Yourself” program. Because it’s short, it’s strong, and anyone who has watched anything from her knows that her tone is impossible not to follow; it simply crawls into your brain and doesn’t let you lose focus.
I used the video on Friday, struggling with the one-kilogram dumbbell, and during the continuous “Don’t put it downs,” I connected the experience with an afternoon conversation.
I received interesting questions about change: How can you influence someone who has been thinking, acting, and doing things the same way for 15-20-30 years? And has there been something I couldn’t change?
The first question was relatively easy to answer: I think there are two paths. Either through the intellect, by achieving understanding through conversations and joint work, the AHA moments, because once this happens, they can no longer return to the old pattern. Or, if this path is not feasible for some reason, then through endless, consistent repetition, continuously and consistently conveying values, goals, and expectations. Both require complete commitment from the leader to react in every situation the same way, to ask, correct, talk it over, and try to achieve understanding.
Whichever path we choose, change is rarely quick. It’s more like many small AHA moments rather than earth-shattering ones, and the repetition method can literally rewrite an organization’s functioning step by step, thought by thought, which can sometimes be a years-long process.
The second question, however, is trickier. If the question is, has there been someone I couldn’t change, then yes, there has. I fundamentally believe that someone who is valuable professionally and personally should be tried to be involved and retained, and we “only” try to address the problem. If neither of the above tools work, an external expert, coach, or team coach can still be sought. And if it doesn’t work with them either, change still happens: those who cannot adapt and align with the new norms of the organization, and grow with it, will leave the team. This is a new situation, an opportunity for a new operation.
And here comes Réka, along with the mantra and the focus... Any malfunctioning process, situation, or organization can be changed. The key is simply that you don’t put down the dumbbell, but lift eight more, four more, two more, and still hold it even when you’d rather wish it all to hell because the end result is worth it, and because you really want it. I believe, that You can still lift it ;-)
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