All Limits Are Self-Imposed

I take that quite literally when it comes to my own growth. Every six months I pick a Sunday morning, grab a coffee and think back over the previous six months. How many moments did I feel truly stretched or uncomfortable? If I can’t remember many, or I see too many signs of putting things off, that becomes the plan for the next six.

That habit helped me get promoted eight times in eight years. Whenever I caught myself getting comfortable, I’d ask myself a few questions. Was I still being stretched? Had I settled into other people’s view of what I could do? What work did I still need to put in to get to my next level?

The last one is the one that counts. Wanting more means being honest about where you’re not ready yet, and then working on it. One year the gap was self-advocacy. I’d been waiting to be noticed, so I nominated myself for promotion and pulled together a pack of evidence to make the case. The whole process felt uncomfortable, but I got the promotion.

Comfort is hard to read. The way I think of it: if I can’t remember feeling stretched, either my skills have actually grown or I’ve been stuck in a cycle of avoidance. To tell which, I just look at the results. If there’s been growth, the results will show it. If it’s been avoidance, I can usually name the thing I’ve been dodging.

This Sunday, grab that coffee and ask yourself:

• When did I last feel genuinely stretched?
• What have I been putting off?
• What did I say I’d have done by now?