In life and leadership, there are days where we are just trying to break even. Those moments that we feel like we just can’t get ahead. As we get back to even, here comes the setback. Then, we find ourselves surviving just to just break even.
Try to Break Even
In Georgia, spring is springing. This season offers cool mornings/evenings and warm, sunny days.
I take great pride in my yard in the spring, summer, and fall. Winter…not so much. That leaves me starting the spring season from behind. It takes a lot to just get back to even!
I have spent the last few weekends grinding to get the yard back to even. Like clockwork it’s time to trim overgrown bushes, pull weeds, plant flowers, mulch beds, and clean the patio.
On yardwork days, the last thing that I do is cut the grass. It cleans up any mess I’ve made of the yard and puts a finishing touch on a hard day’s work. Then, it’s time to step back and admire my work. I can even envision the yard of the month sign planted in it!
The Setback
As I peered out with pride, I noticed a dark, liquid substance on the driveway. It was right under where my son, Grant, had parked his truck earlier. Yep…it was oil.
This was all quickly compounded by the fact that we had just (the day before) got my daughter’s car out of the shop with a major, costly repair. Just as I thought I had gotten back to even…here comes a setback! Good grief!
In life and leadership, it seems like setbacks are a constant struggle. It can seem like every time we get back to even, something sets us back. Car repairs, bad news, sudden illness, unexpected bills, physical injuries, or just name the issue. One step forward…two steps back. These experiences near the break even point frustrate, discourage, and at times depress.
Breaking Even
My AirPods are a necessity when doing yard work. While I have never possessed the least bit of musical talent, I have always appreciated music. The carefully composed words of a song always bring depth and reflection to my world.
Shortly after that setback, a song came across my playlist that I hadn’t heard in a while. It was Dierks Bentley’s song Living. In the chorus, there were a few lines that stuck out to me:
Some days you just breath in
Just try to break even
Some days you just get by
Yeah some days you’re just alive
The words of a song can speak to our souls in these situations. This is a place we all land too often in life and leadership. We find ourselves in survival mode, just going through the motions.
The Comeback
The song ended up providing me what we all need in the midst of setbacks like this…perspective. Rember this…setbacks always setup the comeback!
The song leads off with a guy waking up early. He steps outside in time to catch the Rising Sun. One is to assume that it is a beautiful spring day. As he looks at a tree that he had “seen a thousand times” he says, “It’s a beautiful world sometimes I don’t see so clear.”
The chaos of dysfunction can easily cloud our view of the world we live in and all the good things in it. Sometimes, it is the slightest adjustment in perspective that can shift from a setback to a comeback mindset. We just have to place ourselves in a position to see past the setback and envision the comeback.
Conclusion
As the song concludes, the tone changes. It goes from the struggle of breaking even to a clearer view of his world, a perspective of gratitude:
Somedays you start singin’
And you don’t need a reason
Sometimes the world’s just right
Your clear eyes ain’t even blinkin’
Got a heart full of grateful
For all you’ve been given
There is a lot I don’t know about Grant’s truck. I don’t know the cause of the leak, to the extent of the damage, or how costly the repair will be.
Here is what I know. I have the financial resources to fix whatever problem exists with his truck, not everyone does. I have two healthy children, not everyone does. I have a yard to maintain with a house that has a roof over our heads, not everyone does.
Most of all, I have another day to try to break even, not everyone does. It’s what I choose to do with that gift that matters. Got a heart full of gratitude?
