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Summary

Don't underestimate challenges you face at work or in life. Charging against challenges without fear is great! Just be sure that you're prepared enough to beat them back so it's not even close.

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Yesterday I pulled my calf (the one on my leg, not the barnyard animal kind).

I pulled it pretty badly, and it actually hurts a lot. This is a first world problem, I know.

Why did I pull my calf?

I was an idiot. I was running and my calf started to hurt and I underestimated the run. I did not respect the run. As a result, now I’m even more behind and I have to take some time off for it to heal – this drives me crazy. Whatever, I’ll be fine.

But the irony of this is not lost on me. I’ve been thinking about Achilles, the Greek warrior of legend. Achilles, as you may know, was supposed to be invincible because his mom held him by his ankles and dipped him into the river Styx. This meant that Achilles was invulnerable everywhere except his ankles because his mom didn’t dip that part (wait, wouldn’t that mean his feet were vulnerable too?). But this got me thinking, “Achilles, dude” when that guy went into battle, he should have totally wrapped his ankles in Kevlar or something. He actually could have gone into battle naked with just his ankles protected and he would have been fine! What was he thinking? As you may know, unfortunately Achilles didn’t do that, he got shot with an arrow in ankle and died and it was very sad.

This just reminds me about the importance of respecting the challenge…the importance of not underestimating the challenges you might face in life and work.

Another example: you may have seen people climbing Mount Everest. Very often tourists, Westerners (people who aren’t Nepalese, generally) will reach the foot of Everest and say, “I’m gonna climb that mountain!” Meanwhile, the more local guys – the Sherpas – are these badass climbers who may have reached the summit many times. Even though they have so much experience and are acclimated to the altitude – they will always perform a ceremony before attempting to summit the mountain. You may have seen photos of Everest basecamp with the strings of flags – those are meant to ask the spirit of the Mountain to grant safe passage to the forthcoming expedition. Sherpas respect the mountain. They never underestimate it, even though they’ve climbed tons of times.

So, especially right now in these “challenging times” it may be all the more important to not underestimate the challenge! It’s super important right now to not underestimate the wear and tear one my be going through. Sure: be impatient, get outside your comfort zone, beat the challenge, fight the challenge! Conquer the challenge! But, don’t underestimate it, respect the challenge.

Worst case: you might overestimate the challenge and then just crush it. On the other hand, if you treat the challenge with the right amount of respect, you’ll meet it and still beat it. I believe if you’re careful not to underestimate the challenges life throws at you, then you have an excellent chance to win at work.