Welcome back to "The Resilient Leader," your coach and host here, Charlotte Edwards. "When the Wheels Come Off the Wagon" is our topic for this week.
Have you ever heard someone say, "Well, the wheels just came off the wagon?" It is a colorful expression, but if you stop and think about it, it does paint a pretty vivid picture, doesn't it? Imagine you're riding in a wagon down a dirt road. Everything is moving along just fine. You know where you're heading, the ride is smooth, you are making progress. Then suddenly, one of the wheels falls off. The wagon lurches. Everything shifts. The journey comes to a halt.
Many of us have experienced seasons like that. Maybe it's when a key employee resigns, a major client leaves, a health issue arises, a family challenge appears, an unexpected expense hits us, a project falls apart. Suddenly it feels like the wheels came off the wagon. So what do we do when this happens? I'm going to give you three things that you can do today.
The first is to stop and assess the damage. When a wheel comes off a wagon, the first step isn't to panic, it's to assess. What actually happened? How serious is the situation? What is still working? What resources do we still have available? Sometimes we make situations bigger in our minds than they really are. A calm assessment helps us separate facts from fear. So remember, stop and assess the damage.
Next, focus on the wheel, not the whole wagon. When something breaks, our tendency is to look at the entire situation and feel overwhelmed. But if a wheel falls off, you don't rebuild the entire wagon, you focus on fixing the wheel. Ask yourself: What is the real issue? What can we address today? Who can help us? Resilient leaders break large problems into manageable steps, and we don't over-exaggerate things. So remember, focus on the wheel, not the whole wagon.
And finally, remember the journey isn't over. A broken wheel on the wagon doesn't mean the destination has changed. It simply means you need to make repairs before continuing. Too many people allow a setback to become a stopping point. Instead, view challenges as interruptions, not conclusions. The road ahead may require adjustments, but your purpose, your mission, and your goals can still move forward.
In closing, if it feels like the wheel came off the wagon in some area of your life, your business, your leadership, remember, stop and assess, focus on what needs to be repaired, then get back on the road because setbacks happen, unexpected problems happen, broken wheels happen. Resilient leaders understand that a temporary breakdown does not have to become a permanent stopping point to arriving at our destination.
As John Maxwell often says, "Everything worthwhile is uphill." The road may be rough at times, but keep moving forward. Repair what needs repairing, learn what needs learning, adjust what needs adjusting, and then continue the journey. Have an amazing week, my friends.