Glass of Water
by Brian Diaz
I recently saw a story on the internet about a teacher who was holding a glass of water. The teacher asked the class, “How much does this glass of water weigh?” Numerous answers flew in. Some probably right, some probably wrong.
The teacher looked at the class and declared that the weight of the glass of water was irrelevant. What really mattered was how long you hold it. You see, if you hold the glass a few minutes, you won’t notice it. Now hold the glass of water for an hour and your arm might start to get tired. Hold that same glass of water for an entire day and your arm might start cramping and will certainly become very uncomfortable.
(a simple Google search will yield many similar versions of this story)
This glass of water represents the things we hold on to. The weight of the glass of water never changes, but the longer we hold it, the ‘heavier’ it becomes. We do the same thing when we hold on to failures or mistakes. It is not the failure or mistakes that hinders us. Rather, it is our inability to let go or put down those failures. The longer we hold it, the longer we go without moving forward.
When a ‘big play’ or ‘big game’ does not go your way, how long do you dwell on it? As long as you are focused on that loss, you can’t move forward. The remedy comes from taking the lessons…and then LETTING GO of the loss. Put the glass of water down!!!
The same can happen from success as well. College coaches often refer to the ‘Sophomore Slump’. This occurs when a Freshman has a great first season and follows it up with an awful sophomore season. It is very possible to hold on to Successes too long as well. Just as with failure, you have to learn the lessons and let it go. Holding on to success too long can be as detrimental as holding on to failures.
In either case, instead of holding on to the glass of water too long, you must put it down and focus on the process to move forward. If you have experienced failure, what needs to change as you move forward? Focus on getting better. If you have experienced success, what do you need to continue to do and what do you need to change? Focus on getting better.
What ‘glass of water’ are you still holding on to? What burdens can you put down in order to move forward? Everyone experiences failure; everyone experiences success. It is our ability to put it down and move forward that determines whether we will experience more success in the future.