Spoiler alert  –> It’s Courage.

Imagine a goal you are setting for yourself in the New Year or in the near future. It could be a personal goal to run an 8-minute mile. Or a professional goal to get promoted to a Director level role in 2023. Or an organizational goal to feed a thousand people in your city by March.

Whatever the goal, there are three paths to consider:

  1. The path that feels comfortable.
  2. The path that feels direct – but difficult.
  3. The path that leads back to bed (i.e., quitting).

Consider what actions you might take to achieve the goals. Which strategies feel the most comfortable? Which feel the most demanding, challenging or daunting?

Now – when you imagine your ultimate outcome – which strategies are going to pave the most direct path to success? Did it happen to be the more demanding strategies?

The Direct Path to our goals is courage.

It’s engaging in tasks or activities that seem effortful, scary, painful, untested and challenging. It’s engaging in these tasks even though the outcome is not assured.

It’s being vulnerable. Taking a stand. Engaging a conflict head on. Asking for honest feedback. Asking for an invitation to spaces where we don’t feel wanted, understood or appreciated. Or making it up as we go.

Taking the indirect but comfortable path is easy to start but hard to finish. Because the most important steps necessary to achieving our final result are often the most intimidating.

So what do you need to take the most direct path?

A lot of my clients think that – through coaching – they can smooth the courageous path into a comfortable one. They believe that the key to coaching is getting  “more information” and “more assurance of success.” But that’s not how coaching really works.

Instead, coaching is where you find the encouragement, mindsets, skills, sense of purpose and clarity to take the direct and courageous path to your goals.

This January, I’m leading a FREE workshop for 15 people who want a fresh start in 2023.

Our themes: Courage, Clarity & Commitment.

If you would like to join, click here to apply.

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About the Author: Kate Cockrill

A little about me... I am a social scientist, facilitator, and professional coach. Through my business: Kate Cockrill Coaching, I support mission driven managers and directors with 1:1 coaching, training & retreats on the topics of career design, leadership development and burnout resilience. My clients include leaders in healthcare, education, research and social innovation.

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