Recently I sat with a friend as we watched his nine-year-old daughter compete in a gymnastics competition. Standing only four-feet-eight inches tall, she walked straight out onto the floor after her name was called and nailed her routine. Then she returned calmly to her place on the bench with all the other gymnasts, back ramrod straight, head held high. I turned to look at my friend, amazed by his daughter's poise and confidence. "Don't look at me," he said with a shrug. "I don't know where she gets it!"

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Last month, I lined up for the Boston Marathon, running on behalf of the Run For Research Team (thank you to all those who kindly donated). What amazes me is that even though I’ve run this race before and have completed dozens of other marathons in the past, still, there is always that tiny seed of doubt right before the gun goes off. Some little part of me that does not fully believe I can finish the distance ahead of me. Sure, it says, maybe you crossed the finish line before, but what have you got today?

I believe all worthwhile endeavors are like this. 

And the more important that challenge is to you, the greater the doubt and risk of failure will be. The Wright Brothers did not know for certain that manned flight was possible before they actually did it. A series of near fatal disasters and financial setbacks preceded their eventual success. But on the morning of December 17th 1903, with a few jerky movements, Orville Wright finally coaxed the ungainly Wright Flying Machine into the air. It was a courageous leap of faith that lasted all of twelve seconds, covering a distance of only 120 feet. But it changed forever the course of history.

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One of the most common refrains I hear as a corporate coach is: I’m just too busy.  What used to be called overworked is now crazybusy, slammed, swamped, jammed, maxed-out – or God help us – no more "bandwidth".

Anyone who owns a car understands that it takes regular maintenance to keep it on the road. You don’t ignore warning lights or drive it with the needle in the red all the time – or if you do, you won’t stay on the road very long. Chances are you change the oil every 3000 miles, rotate the tires, maybe even take it for a tune-up now that Spring is here. Yet, we think nothing of driving ourselves this way without any fuel whatsoever – and then somehow act surprised when we end up in the ditch with our wheels spinning.

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Gina slumped into the chair in my office and unloaded all the things that were bothering her – things she wanted us to work on. It was not a short list either. Her boss had overlooked her for promotion several times. At 45, she felt there was an age bias toward younger employees in the company that she that been with for 15 years. She was, she told me, “too old” to go back for an MBA. New neighbors had recently moved into the apartment above hers and every night sounded like they were rehearsing for Riverdance. On top of all this, the dating pool for a single over 40 year-old woman in Manhattan was slim. All the good men were either married, gay, or only interested in 20 year-old hotties.

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This past month, I traveled to Florida to deliver a presentation to a group of health and wellness experts, and I thought I did a bang-up job. My preparation went beyond the norm for this type of event, including a full week spent slaving over the PowerPoint, even going so far as to hire a presentation coach for two sessions to help me iron out some of the kinks (yes, even coaches need a coach!). So when the feedback arrived that my presentation fell somewhat below expectations, I was upset. My message had failed to land. Or as one reviewer delicately put it, "You didn't quite connect with everyone in the audience."

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