Show Up and Win

I like to exercise and work out. If people ask me about a workout, I usually respond, “There’s no such thing as a bad workout.” Of course, there are times when I enjoy it more than others. Of course, there are times when I get greater benefits from it. Of course, there are times when it feels like I pushed myself more, sweated out more toxins, and burned more calories. I remind myself there is no bad workout because it keeps me showing up. If I show up for the workout then I win. And usually, the times I don’t feel like doing it and do it anyway, something kicks in once I get going. Just showing up gets me fully engaged. Even when I really don’t put out the effort, I remind myself that I am still better off physically and emotionally for having done the workout. 

Recently, I was in a middle of a workout that I had squeezed into my day. I would have liked to have more time, but reminded myself of my own saying so I would feel good about it. Then this got me thinking about other activities I should put in the same category. What are the activities that if I just show up, I win? 

Some thoughts that immediately came to mind

• Praying 
• Sitting down to write
• Spending time with my family
• Giving one-on-one time to my kids
• Reading a book 

I’ll admit that I don’t always feel good when doing these activities. Sometimes I’m squeezing them in, like my recent workout. Sometimes I do them, and I am not totally present. Sometimes they are more enjoyable than others, but overall, if I show up, I win. 

It’s been said that “90 percent of success is showing up.” Then there is the other 10 percent. You can mess up a workout by getting hurt or injured. That’s not a good workout. Or if you never challenge yourself in a workout, you will not reap rewards. There is prayer that doesn’t work when we refuse to act in obedience to God or don’t come humbly to him. (See the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector in Luke 18.) If I’m a jerk to my kids or overly distracted with other things, then that’s not building the relationship. The 10 percent does matter. In general, though, if we just show up, we will begin to figure it out.

Resistance often represents our biggest obstacle to progress and momentum. We all face resistance in the good things we want to do. As Paul says in Romans 7:21, “I find this principle to be at work, that whenever I want to do good evil is right there with me.” There are layers of meaning to that statement. But one meaning is that we will always meet resistance in doing good or just getting started. The resistance whispers that we aren’t doing it perfectly and therefore shouldn’t do it at all; we could possibly be doing it better so why bother. And that whisper stops us in our tracks. Of course, we could be doing it better but something is better than nothing. We can’t get better if we are not doing it at all. So don’t let that resistance stop you. 

Instead of letting the resistance stop you, add your own list to the axiom of “Life is always better…” When do you win just by showing up, because it adds so much value to your life or the lives of others? When do you win just by showing up, because it is one of the key ways you add the most value to your work or parish? 

What would you put on that list in your responsibilities to God, to yourself, to others?

Here are a few to consider:

Life is always better after I work on my homily. 

Life is always better when I invest time in my kids. 

Life is always better when I spend time with my spouse. 

Life is always better when I sit down to write. 

Life is always better when I read a book rather than mindlessly scroll. 

Don’t let the resistance stop you. Know that you are winning when you go after it, even if you don’t feel it. 

Rooting for you,
Tom