Tackle a Challenge

Hi Everyone,

Ask and you shall receive. I recently sent out a request to the With Jess network and asked if anyone was interested in Guest Blogging for me and the responses have been overwhelming!! I am excited to introduce to you our next Guest Blogger, Karly Randolph Pitman. She is a perfect fit for the With Jess audience and I think you will really be inspired by her words.

It is my pleasure to share with you Karly Randolph Pitman's first guest blog...



Karly Randolph Pitman is the founder of First Ourselves, helping women love their bodies, feel beautiful, and make self care a top priority. She lives with her husband and four children in the mountains of Montana, although she told her husband they're moving to the beach next year. Karly feeds her spirit by running, inhaling books, watching movies, and dancing in the living room with her family. Learn more at www.firstourselves.com.

Over the weekend, I spontaneously turned an early morning jog into a speedwork session; my first in over a year, since becoming pregnant last spring. I ran down to a park, and ran 600 hundred meter repeats.

At one point, a woman walking her dog exclaimed, "Man, you're fast."

I'll be totally honest: I felt like She-Ra. Granted, I probably had a nice steady stream of endorphins pumping through my system, but I think my good feelings stemmed from more than just hormones.

I felt good because I tackled a challenge: I willingly took on something hard. I could have gone for an easy jog. But I followed my intuitive impulse, and pushed myself. It makes me think of something I saw on a coffee cup in a gift store yesterday: "May you have enough challenges to keep you strong."

Yes.

I'm all for making life easier than it needs to be. Alan Cohen's message of making success easy had a profound effect on me, a completely different philosophy from the "No pain, no gain," mentality I'd previously harbored.

But sometimes a challenge is a good thing. It gives you the opportunity to flex your muscles, to rise to the occasion. It provides an opportunity to align your integrity with your behavior: to put your beliefs into action.

I thought of this last week when I faced a difficult conversation with an employee. Rather than fearing it (assertion hasn't been my historical strong suit), I embraced it as a growth opportunity. I was scared and afraid, but I made the phone call, anyway. And afterwards? I felt just as empowered as I had after running sprints. I also realized that the conversation wasn't that hard to do, after all.

And this is how we grow: every time we confront something difficult or fearful. We move up a notch, so that the next time we face a similar situation, we're unfazed. When life throws you huge obstacles, it's really a compliment in disguise: it means you're ready for the next level.

What challenge can you tackle this week? Maybe there's a difficult conversation that you've been avoiding. Maybe you want to call about that job offer. Maybe you want to face that addiction that holds you back. Maybe it's time to wear a bathing suit and going swimming.

The challenge itself doesn't matter; it can be anything. Victory, in all its forms, tastes the same: sweet.