Are You Willing to Run Through the Storm?

Hello Difference Makers!

According to studies by Oracle, 85% of leaders have suffered from decision-making distress, meaning that their decisions have left them with feelings of regret, guilt, or, even worse, regretting a choice they made. Furthermore, 70% of individuals admit they have given up on making a decision because the situation was too overwhelming.

Have you ever been caught in the middle of making a decision and felt as if you did not know which way to turn? Better yet, have you thought running away from a situation would be better than facing it head-on?

We have all been there.

Let me share a real yet powerful story or analogy with you, as the author Rory Vaden shared in his book Take the Stairs: 7-Steps to Achieving True Success.

At the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, one can find the great, wide-open Kansas plains, where mile after mile consists of open fields for animals to roam free. One particular area of Colorado is known for being the only place in the world where both cows and buffalo live.

In the plains, storms brew in the west and travel eastward. Imagine living in the open prairie without protection or a safe haven to turn to during a thunderstorm.

 How would you face or weather the storm?   

Cows sense storms approaching over the peaks of the mountains and instinctively know that they must get away from the looming weather. As a result, they run east to outrun the intense conditions. We all know cows are not swift animals. As the storm approaches, it catches up with them, and the cows continue to run WITH the storm. As they are running, the storm follows along, hovering over them, which, as a result, maximizes the amount of time, pain, and frustration they experience from the storm.

Newsflash! We humans often do the same thing. We spend so much time and energy attempting to avoid the challenges we face from different circumstances that our choices have led us to that we end up staying in a storm longer than we need to.

The buffalo's approach is uniquely different. They wait for the storm to peak over the mountain before reacting. As it crests or rolls over the ridge, buffalo turn toward the storm and charge straight through it. Instead of running away from the storm, they face it head-on. By charging through the storm, buffalo minimize the pain, time, and frustration they experience.

We all have storms in our lives, both personally and professionally. At home, we face bills, personal finances, relationships, balancing work, family, busy schedules, and health.

Meanwhile, we face a myriad of storms at work, too. As a facility administrator, your top priorities are budgeting and finances, hiring, scheduling, reporting, and compliance with updated policies and procedures. If that were not enough, your role is crucial to cultivate and maintain a positive morale among your staff, residents, and their families.

While we may have the best intentions, the reality of day-to-day life is that storms will come our way, but the good news is that they, too, will pass.

We don't get to choose whether we have storms or not, but we do get to choose how we decide to respond and when we respond.

Choosing to face the storm is what we call the buffalo mentality.  

Rather than procrastinating and allowing our problems to grow larger, the buffalo mentality demonstrates the ability to face them straight on to resolve them. How many times have you waited to address an employee or put off an important deadline? Over time, that situation probably brewed until you were forced to do something about it.  

"Problems that are procrastinated on are only amplified, and we're the ones who pay the price."- Rory Vaden.

We get it.  

Sometimes, it seems easier to push a situation off until later, but at some point, "later" must turn into "right now."Charging toward our most challenging circumstances head-on takes a lot of strength. In fact, it is a skill we have to consciously learn, practice, and maintain.

How many times a day are you faced with a decision? Research indicates that the average adult makes 35,000 decisions daily, but not all decisions are equal.

• "Should I go for a run? Or should I relax and watch something on Netflix?"
• "Should I invest in continuing education or save the money for a rainy day?"
• "Should I address a staff member who consistently arrives late to work?"
• "Should I put in the extra effort now or can I get by with the minimum amount required so I can be finished for the day?"

We've all faced these decisions.  

When we face a decision, two sets of criteria impact our choices. One part of our brains analyzes our emotions and encourages us to decide based on what feels good right now. Meanwhile, the analytical side of your brain takes an entirely different approach. It evaluates and rationalizes to determine what makes sense logically. These two approaches constantly find themselves in the boxing ring with one another, battling out which decision will win.

When we lean into our emotions and feelings, we are drawn to make decisions based on the force that impacts us in the current moment. We naturally want life to be easy, and if we do what is easy now, we "win" in the present, but it typically sets us up for more stress down the road.

For example,

• When we choose to lean into making poor diet choices by regularly eating comfort food, we may face a future filled with medical expenses and physical discomfort.
• If we do not address a staff member who consistently talks negatively about another team member or resident, our staff will find more things to complain about.
• Emails often flood our inboxes faster than we can address or respond to them. If we wait to address them, not only will their quantity grow, but some situations or problems may also grow in intensity.
•  Lastly, if we think giving our staff space by working all day in our office is best for everyone, our staff may interpret the situation as us being unapproachable or uncaring. Thus, they may not come to us when thoughts and situations are minuscule. Over time, this could breed more significant issues that must be addressed.

All in all, focusing on short-term comfort may lead to unhappy emotional, physical, and financial consequences.

An easier life in the long term comes from facing more complex tasks in the present. When we decide to do the "tough work" now, we set ourselves up for success or pave the way for a smoother road.