Winter will soon be here and just thinking about it gives me the chills; it’s depressing. I’ve never been a fan of winter; it’s dull, gray, cold, the days short, the roads messy and often, there is snow to deal with. What is there to like??! I much prefer sunshine, cool (not cold!) temperatures and longer days: Perfect temperatures and more time for walks with or without my cigar 😊. Spring and fall are my favorite seasons. Recently, I came across this quote, “Now is the winter of our discontent” from the play “Richard III” by William Shakespeare. The winter is truly my discontent, but we have deal with it to get to spring. I try not to think about the entire season; instead, I approach winter one day at a time. And since every day is a new day; each is a new beginning and fresh start.
I once consulted for a client that did not want us there but had no choice because it was a corporate mandate. The “C” level within that organization decided a new companywide application was needed, and I was to manage the implementation for one of their remote sites. It was a politically charged and an unpleasant situation from the start. It was very clear that the executive in charge at that site did not want us there. He told his staff to do the bare minimum and nothing else. His team were no shows to meetings, complained about everything and even gave us a small office with 3 chairs and 2 desks for the four of us on the project. That project was the equivalent of winter for me: cold and unpleasant. The funny thing was, client’s offices were in FLA., by the beach! Every day we enjoyed amazing sunrises and sunsets. The sunrises in particular reminded us that each day was a new opportunity for a fresh start with the client. It gave us the inspiration and hope to move forward.
This situation and client was unique, and each day brought new challenges. We approached these challenges with a refreshed attitude and fresh thinking daily. Like the energizer bunny, we kept going and going…..until we had a break through and were able to convince the client that the project was a good thing. If we had given up and had let the defeat of each day pile up, we would never have had this success.
Back to “Richard III”, one of the soliloquies starts with, “Now is the winter of our discontent” followed by, “Made glorious summer by this sun of York.” In other words, he is not letting hardships get in the way of success; he is taking a fresh approach and celebrating. I have to go through Winter to get to Spring. I believe this is the way to go; consider each day an opportunity to apply a fresh perspective and a chance to improve, and not only will success come, you will feel better for it.
“Today is my new favorite day.” – Winnie the Pooh
Have a good weekend.
-Vijay