how “take what’s given” works in business.
by bill reeb
in the practice of martial arts, the concept of “take what’s given” is drilled in to teach us to respond to what our opponent is offering rather than either following some mental plan we have conjured up or over-relying on our strengths.
more: are you your biggest obstacle? | why we risk change | learn to embrace failure | what would make you happy? | do you have a goal or just a speed? | learn more by letting go
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.
when you have an unfamiliar opponent, both a mental plan and leveraging strengths require information you don’t have to dependably work. in other words, those two options presume superiority – that i know my strengths are greater, or that my plan has all the necessary contingencies to appropriately react to the actions and reactions of my opponent. how could you have this level of knowledge or insight about an unknown opponent?
so, to give yourself the best chance of securing the outcome you are looking to achieve, it is important to continually respond to whatever opportunities or weaknesses your opponent is offering to you. john refers to this interactive response to openings as they become available as “taking what’s given.”
this technique is powerful and can be easily applied to any aspect of your life. for example, when i was restarting my consulting practice about a decade ago, my wife and i went for a walk. our walk included one of those all-too-common enlightening sessions in which she held a philosophical mirror to my face and said, “why aren’t you listening to your own advice?” here was the situation.
just before this period, i had taken a couple of years away from my practice to work for one of my clients to help them with their startup dotcom. as i restarted my practice, i was receiving a number of phone calls from cpa firms asking me to provide them with practice management assistance. though i had worked with a number of cpa firms in the past, other professional service organizations and family businesses were equally part of my client mix. the call volume continued to accelerate on the cpa firm side, but i did very little to look for that type of work or even less to attract it. my plan was to rebuild the family business side first even though that marketplace was slower to respond to my return.
then came the walk with michaelle. she asked me, “why aren’t you more aggressively pursuing providing services to cpa firms since that profession seems to be constantly knocking at your door right now?” i replied boldly, “because i don’t see myself specializing as a cpa firm practice management consultant!” she replied, “apparently that is not the case because that work represents the last four or five projects you have done.” and then she said, “why are you fighting this? you always talk about ‘take what is given,’ yet you are clearly not following your own advice.”
by the end of our walk and from the clarity of our conversation, i had decided that it was time to proclaim that one of my specialty areas of work was cpa firm practice management consulting and i started putting market efforts behind that message immediately. within two years, my consulting business was more successful and profitable than it ever had been before.
as you know from my bio, i have received honors such as being named one of the most influential cpas in the profession, have been listed as one of the top 10 cpa firm consultants to the profession, selected as an ambassador for the profession, and much more. the point is … i had the opportunity all around me, but i was looking for something specific rather than opening my eyes to what was right in front of me. fortunately, michaelle was there to guide me to the opportunity that i was refusing to see.
“take what is given” is a technique that can quickly help you work better and find greater success and happiness because it is all about leveraging the support, momentum, and opportunities being presented to you. all you have to do to take advantage is to stop fighting it.
where might i be ignoring the opportunities being presented all around me because i am looking for something specific rather than taking what is given? what can i do to more frequently and easily see what is being given?