Hope is Relentless
Last month my family and I traveled to Orlando to celebrate our son’s 10th birthday. Part of our trip included a visit to the John F. Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. The highlight of our time there included a bus tour that brought us out to The Gantry at LC 39 and the Apollo/Saturn V Center. Narrated by one of the original members of the Apollo team, it gives an introduction to the Apollo mission, which originated in President Kennedy’s charge to go to the moon. As part of the presentation, the narrator shared the story of the fatal mission of Apollo 1. It was heartwrenching to learn about the optimism heading into the mission and how a fire tore through the command module killing Virgil Grissom, Edward White, and Roger Chaffee. As the narrator continued on, he explained how this tragedy galvanized NASA, as they doubled down to ensure that their colleagues’ deaths were not in vain. As he described the feeling at NASA, he said a line that immediately stuck with me: “Hope is relentless.” That proved to be true when the crew of Apollo 11 walked on the moon and Neil Armstrong famously said, “That’s one small step for man, and one giant leap for mankind.”
It caused me to reflect on a conversation with one of our newest clients. As we were sitting in a Starbucks, he was sharing some of his pain points with me. After he paused, I said to him, “This sounds familiar. I’d imagine there are days where you would rather sell and go and work for another company.” His eyes got big, in the way when someone is saying something that perfectly describes how you are feeling. “Exactly!” he responded. What I’ve learned in my time working with business owners is there is always a reason they don’t do that. I was curious what this particular business owner’s “why” was, so I asked him.
“My family,” he said. He went on to tell me about his kids and how he hoped that one day he may be able to transition the business to his son. His face changed. Joy came back. Here was his why. That’s why he took enormous financial risk, wakes up at 2am and can’t go back to sleep, and wonders how much energy he has for the hamster wheel—to provide a better life for his family.
As I reflected on our new client, St. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians also came to mind. You know that famous part that is often read at weddings that describes what love is. Well in it, he talks about hope. He writes, “It [love] always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” And doesn’t this make sense of why our new client—and really all the entrepreneurs I know—continue in the face of what seems like silliness to others? It’s our love for our why—whether it be the service or product we provide or the future we are trying to create—that keeps us relentless in our hope, always persevering. It’s why the first thing that we do with our clients is to establish what their vision or purpose for the organization and their life is. Until we are grounded in that, we aren’t going to remain committed to what success will require of us.
As a client was recalling a particularly difficult situation that I supported him through, he told me that he “borrowed my hope.” Hope that his vision was achievable, that there was a way forward out of current circumstances, and a thought partner to stand with him to lead with the necessary courage and clarity that leadership requires.
On the last night of our vacation, we ate at Le Cellier Steakhouse at Epcot’s Canada. Get the filet mignon with mushroom risotto. You’ll thank me later. As we were leaving the park afterwards, we were walking through a newly renovated area. In it, we found a bench with a bronze statue of Walt Disney sitting on it. As a huge fan of Walt’s vision and commitment, I wandered over to take a closer look. There was a plaque just to the left of the bench with an inscription: “Walt the Dreamer. Dedicated to all who dream of a better tomorrow.” Disney grew up in the midwest with little fanfare. He almost ran out of money multiple times. His brother Roy always provided reasonableness and logic to Walt’s big vision, but we have the benefit of knowing that it was Walt’s hopes that endured. Disney is one of the most revered businesses in American history, and as they famously say, “It all started with a mouse.” And here’s the thing, the Apollo team, our clients, and Walt Disney are all ordinary human beings doing extraordinary things. Their hope in what can be possible is relentless, and so is their pursuit of those hopes.
Quote:
“Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask, why climb the highest mountain? Why 35 years ago fly the Atlantic? We choose to go to the moon. We chose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard. Because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we're willing to accept. One we are unwilling to postpone. And therefore, as we set sail, we ask God's blessing on the most hazardous and dangerous and greatest adventure that man has ever gone.” - John F. Kennedy during a speech at Rice University
Question:
Where is your lack of humanity preventing you from seeing what you really want and pursuing it?
Call to Action/Next Event:
We are enrolling for the Bethesda Sales Mastermind and Bethesda Business Mastermind. Stay tuned for further details.