May 15, 2023

"You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them." - Michael Jordan

This message from the G.O.A.T. rings just as accurate today as when he uttered those words. I have heard the phrase "I can't" too often in our world; I can't because...followed by an excuse about why someone can't do something. Whenever we utter that phrase, we set an expectation for ourselves, our team, or our business.  I try to teach my kids from a young age never to say the word can't. Instead, I try to teach them to say, "I haven't figured it out yet." With just a simple turn of phrase, we set a completely different expectation.  We go from expecting to fail at something to expecting ourselves to succeed eventually. It is incredible what we can accomplish when we set expectations that we will be successful at something.  In the bible, there is a parable about a mustard seed. In the parable, Jesus says that if we have faith, even a little bit, we can accomplish great things. The story of the tiny mustard seed growing up to a large tree illustrates this point accurately. What starts as the tiny seed grows into one of the giant trees, so much so that birds come and make nests in its branches. We should always strive for our potential. Let's eliminate the word can't and replace it with, I still need to figure it out. We should always take our potential seriously.