“…make it.”
You all know that phrase. I usually hear it as people are talking about their work lives and how they somehow got hired for a job they weren’t qualified for. I mean, that’s what I did in my first job as a sports/news videographer.
What I have learned as I have gotten older is how much easier it is to actually admit that I actually don’t know what I am doing. And then ask for help.
Sam is heading off to The Pit Fitness Ranch to compete in an elite teen CrossFit competition. He asked if I would continue writing his programming after he received the invitation. We had spent the previous 3 months working through programming as you prepared for an Online Qualifier. In that time frame I had learned his capabilities and limitations. I have also been programming with a variety of athletes and classes for over 6 years.
So why did I immediately start sweating when he asked me to continue what I had already been doing with him? Now he was preparing for a whole weekend competition. I know Sam’s strengths and weaknesses but I only have 3 months. Is it best to drill the strengths? The weaknesses? Some sort of hybrid? Should he be doing doubles? Triples? How much accessory work do I program? How much strength? What can he gain in the next 3 months? Should I sign him up for more competitions that mimics this one?
Fake it until you make it. That was the initial thought.
And then I thought about my marriage. Not because the balance of my marriage was resting on how I programmed for Sam. But I remembered the times that I realized I had no idea how to handle a situation and would find myself in conversations talking to people that were smarter, older and had many more experiences than I did. And so I listened. And learned. (Still made/make plenty of mistakes). And saved a lot of extra headaches.
So I reached out to Adam. He’d been working with athletes longer than I had. He had sent athletes to some pretty big competitions on some pretty big stages. And so began the bombardment of questions.
- Relax and trust the work you have done with him…and yourself
- Here are my experiences, some mistakes and some successes with my athletes (note these are not the same as yours and this is not a one size fits all approach).
- Take this if it’s helpful and throw it out if it doesn’t.
The sweat started to lessen. I listened. Gathered information. And used what was helpful and threw out what wasn’t. Sam’s programming started to shape up in my head. Have I done it all “right?” Absolutely not. Just ask Sam. But I was more informed to make better decisions that’s for sure.
How often do you try to fake it until you make it with nutrition or exercise or managing stress or sleep? If you are like me, chances are you are either too scared/proud/nervous to ask for help. I’ve been living long enough to know that the slower I am to ask for help, the slower I am to make progress. Maybe you are clear with what you want but unsure how to get there. Maybe all it takes is to ask for a little help to get you over that hump and give you the confidence to move in the direction you want.
But you will need to ask.