Penny Casselman:
Director. If you can get comfortable with adjustments, with flexibility, with reflection that come when you encounter unexpected circumstances or situations, you will find that the obstacles you face are not roadblocks anymore. They're simply signals pointing you towards a big, better path. Welcome to the Pivot With Passion podcast. Hi, I'm Penny Castleman. I believe everyone is deserving of a phenomenal life. Regardless of where you came from, life is what you make of it. And when you learn to pivot with passion, your world explodes with opportunities.
Penny Casselman:
Go grab your favorite beverage and let's shake things up as we explore how to pivot with passion. Director. Welcome back. What are we celebrating? I know I have asked this numerous times at the top of the episode, but truly, it is rare that we pause long enough to appreciate the good things we have done. Things to be proud of, things to celebrate. Too often we give ourselves a check mark and simply move on. Please be sure to find something every day to celebrate.
Penny Casselman:
Earlier today, I was watching my automatic floor vacuum do its routine.
Penny Casselman:
This was the first week I let it back into my office. And after making some furniture adjustments, and guess what? The vacuum started in to its old path, and it immediately started to run into some obstacles. Yet when my little vacuum, who, by the way, I've named Ziggy Floor Dust in honor of David Bowie, when Ziggy ran into pieces of furniture that were not previously there, what did it do? Ziggy paused, recalculated, and adjusted, and it kept navigating around all of the new furniture until the whole office floor was clean. And I thought, what a perfect metaphor for life. And I want to unpack that metaphor today on the episode and and show you how high performers handle unexpected obstacles differently than most people and how you can do it, too. I want you to think of a routine that you have in place right now. Maybe it's your morning routine, your breakfast routine, your exercise routine, any routine at all in your life. When an unexpected obstacle happens to show up in the middle of you going through your routine, suddenly everything you thought you knew and had planned to accomplish suddenly just goes out the window.
Penny Casselman:
Most people will either get very frustrated, they will start blaming the new circumstance.
Penny Casselman:
Or in the worst case, they will just give up and abandon what it.
Penny Casselman:
Was they were doing. Yet what do high performers do?
Penny Casselman:
High performers, we do something different, just like Ziggy. We pause, we assess what's in front of us, and we adjust our path. We're flexible. We do it out of curiosity. We don't do things in denial, just ease and flexibility. And with Intention.
Penny Casselman:
If I stretch this metaphor a little bit further for you, Ziggy, my little automatic vacuum, doesn't have any idea why the furniture moved. It just knows it's there. And in the moment, it encounters resistance. It doesn't overthink it. Ziggy doesn't complain. Ziggy doesn't stress about how it should have cleaned before and why isn't it the same now. Ziggy simply notices the obstacle, finds a new path, and keeps going. And in watching him this week, I.
Penny Casselman:
Was mesmerized that to get around, Ziggy.
Penny Casselman:
Must have course corrected over 30 times.
Penny Casselman:
Trying to find his way around the.
Penny Casselman:
New placement of my desk. And I was blown away.
Penny Casselman:
He was so persistent, consistent in his approach, knowing that at some point he was either going to keep finding another obstacle or find a path forward. And what we can learn from this is the faster you can adjust, the faster you keep moving forward, the quicker you will see results and the quicker you will find success. Because staying stuck is not going to work. It is not productivity.
Penny Casselman:
Ziggy doesn't overthink his path. He doesn't complain. He doesn't stress about, why is this now in my path when it wasn't there before? Ziggy simply notices the obstacle, finds a new path, and keeps going. There's a concept inside my masterclass, and it was awareness.
Penny Casselman:
Awareness will bring clarity. Clarity breeds action, and action provides momentum. And in life, high performers operate just like Ziggy to find that awareness that brings clarity, that breeds action, that turns into momentum.
Penny Casselman:
High performers don't think that obstacles are bad. They're just signals. They're just simply something to be aware of. And it tells us that our path might need to be slightly recalibrated. Every obstacle that a high performer encounters is a chance to test your flexibility, learn something new, and refine your approach. And here's the kicker. The faster you can adjust, the faster you keep moving forward, the faster you will reach success. Because staying stuck isn't working.
Penny Casselman:
It's time for a clarity cocktail. Today's clarity cocktail comes from Leon Megginson, and he writes, it is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change. I know, I know, I know. Megginson was probably not thinking of Ziggy when he wrote this, but the idea that he gives us in this quote is completely spot on for what happens. Life does not reward being stubborn, and it does not reward perfection. Both of those state of beings being stubborn, saying you're a perfectionist keep you feeling stuck, and Just like his quote shares, it's not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change. You see, life rewards adaptability when you are able to notice the obstacle, pivot.
Penny Casselman:
With passion, and continue to move forward. That is what sets high, high performers apart. And I know that in your interactions with others, you have seen this play out. You have seen someone who can easily flow over the rocks, the boulders, just like a river, continues to move when they're faced with adversity. And conversely, I know that you have seen people struggle, get frustrated, and become fearful when one thing gets in their way or throws them off course. They simply can't adapt and therefore stay stuck in the situation they're in. So, director, my challenge to you is this. Take a moment and think.
Penny Casselman:
Are you reacting to obstacles by resisting them? Or are you responding with that fluidity, with that curiosity to think, what adjustments might I be able to make? How can I iterate my process? How can I adapt while still persisting consistently towards what I want? Because the people who can do that in the end are the ones rewarded with success and opportunity and more time in their life. More income, more momentum, more adventure, more excitement. When you become adaptable, life finds lots of ways to reward you for your efforts. I'll read the quote one more time so that you can embrace its brilliance before we move on.
Penny Casselman:
Leon Megginson wrote, it is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change. And now back to the episode. Cheers. Circling back to this idea of being flexible, being able to adjust and adapt so that we can advance our lives. Let's be honest, we can fall into into three of these major traps. The first trap is giving up because it's too hard right now. That, Director, is an absolute defeatist mindset. Yes, there's lots of things that are hard in the moment, but when we think about what we've done in the.
Penny Casselman:
Past, I guarantee you can think of lots of examples where you found yourself in a challenging position, found yourself facing something extremely hard. Yet today, upon reflection, you made it through it. I would challenge you not to give too much credit to that thought in your head that says it's too hard now? The second trap that we can fall into is blaming the new circumstance or other people. And Director, what does that have us doing that has us pointing the finger and not taking any responsibility or ownership of what's happening? If you happen to get an offender, Bender, it may not be your fault, but what you can control is Your reaction and how you show up to deal with it.
Penny Casselman:
Director, as a high performer, you know that blaming other people does not advance your phenomenal life. And the third trap that we can fall into is not being flexible and sticking to old methods that clearly in the moment are not working in our favor. When I think about this trap, I think about when Apple puts out a new iOS. And on more than one occasion, in choosing to update my phone, suddenly the path for me to get to an app and navigate to the information I want has now changed. The buttons are different, the language might have been altered, and it can be frustrating. But if I continue to look for what was, I would never adapt and learn how to get the information I.
Penny Casselman:
Need by just being flexible and maybe.
Penny Casselman:
Experimenting a little bit. Yes, like me, I bet you have found yourself in one of these traps as well. Giving up because it's too hard in the moment, blaming a new circumstance or other people.
Penny Casselman:
And when we stick to rigidly told.
Penny Casselman:
Methods that clearly are not working anymore, every time we find ourselves in one of those traps, you're slowing down your momentum. You're letting life's changes, those obstacles, those curveballs, all the things that life will not if will throw at you. You are letting it slow down your momentum when you fail to show up and be flexible. You see, every time that I have fallen in one of those traps before, I slowed down my momentum.
Penny Casselman:
I kept fighting what I thought should.
Penny Casselman:
Happen, what I expected, instead of accepting what was. I know I, as a high performer, don't want the changes to dictate the progress that I make in my life.
Penny Casselman:
I want to choose my own strategy, my own clarity, my own energy to navigate forward and not point fingers or blame other people or say it's too hard.
Penny Casselman:
If you are still listening to this podcast, I know you are striving to be a high performer. And high performers don't waste time on frustration or blame. They move, they adjust. And yes, we find a new path forward, just like Ziggy did when he tried to vacuum around my office desk. Now, let's consider how you actually do this in your own life. How can you find that flexibility, that adaptability? Here are a few actionable strategies for you director to think about and maybe try on this next week when not if you you get thrown a curveball in one of your tried and true methods of moving through life. The first is pause and assess. Do not panic.
Penny Casselman:
Simply notice the obstacle and understand that.
Penny Casselman:
It has happened without judgment.
Penny Casselman:
When I think about this in my life, this pause and assess don't panic. I think about someone cutting me off in traffic. It is annoying, it is frustrating, but I have a choice in how I react. I don't panic as long as everyone is continuing in a safe manner.
Penny Casselman:
But I simply notice what they do and wish them well.
Penny Casselman:
I don't try to think why they did it.
Penny Casselman:
I don't need to blame them because I I will never know why they did it ever. So I don't even use the energy to entertain.
Penny Casselman:
So if a curveball comes your way, pause and assess. The second is experiment and adjust. So try small adjustments. Test new paths forward. Don't wait for perfection. Perfection, Director, is what where dreams go to die. Perfection does not help you create a phenomenal life. When Ziggy was trying to get around my desk, he would go up a half an inch and turn.
Penny Casselman:
Then he would hit it again, correct, go another half inch, turn, hit it again, turn 30 times. He did this to try to get around the obstacle that last week was not there. He was experimenting and adjusting and you can do the same. And the third tried and true strategy is stay flexible. Keep the outcome in mind that you are going for, but be willing to change your approach. I've said it numerous times inside this episode, but it's not a matter of if life is going to throw you a curveball, it's a matter of when and how it shows up. Staying flexible is your best chance to find a new path, navigate and move forward. The fourth is reflect and learn.
Penny Casselman:
And this is a big one.
Penny Casselman:
Director. Every obstacle that you encounter is simply a little case study for you to tuck away from for future encounters because you will learn from every obstacle you encounter. It will make you more resilient, it will make you more compassionate. It will give you more energy, more confidence. All of these things are waiting on the other side of reflection and applying what you learn to anything new that you come in contact with. You know, think of it as recalculating your life's path forward in real time. Just like a gps. I know for me there are numerous occasions where I will miss a turn and suddenly GPS instantly jumps into action to recalculating my path.
Penny Casselman:
We can do the same thing.
Penny Casselman:
You don't abandon the destination. I don't simply give up where I was headed if I miss the turn. I trust that by being flexible, it might take me a little bit longer, but I will find my way to where I'm going. I just happen to take a different path. Director, if you can get comfortable with adjustments, with flexibility, with reflection that come when you encounter unexpected circumstances or situations, you will find that the obstacles you face are not roadblocks anymore. They're simply signals pointing you towards a better path. My hope for you, Director, is that your takeaway for today is this. Just like my little vacuum, Ziggy, navigating new furniture in my office, as a high performer, you will find a way to keep moving forward through making adjustments.
Penny Casselman:
Adapting, and finding a new path forward.
Penny Casselman:
Just like Ziggy did, you can do the same. My challenge then to you is this. Pick one area of your life where.
Penny Casselman:
An unexpected obstacle popped up.
Penny Casselman:
Instead of resisting blaming, ask yourself, what can I adjust?
Penny Casselman:
What's the new path forward? Take one action, make one adjustment and keep moving forward.
Penny Casselman:
If you found value in this episode.
Penny Casselman:
Share it with a friend.
Penny Casselman:
This is a great conversation over coffee to have to learn about how other people in your orbit handle obstacles and challenges in their own path. Director. Keep pivoting, keep adapting, and I cannot wait to see you here again next week.
Penny Casselman:
Friend.
Penny Casselman:
Thanks for listening to this episode of Pivot With Passion. If you've been feeling stuck, exhausted or frustrated, this is your permission slip to go grab a red marker and claim the life you desire and deserve. If you enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend and then hop over to rate and review the show on Apple podcast. Because my goal is to put a red marker in everyone's hand and I need your help to spread the word and make that happen. Until the next episode, go grab a red marker, get excited for your future, and make your first move to Pivot with Passion.
