How Effortless Happens

“When you’re going through hell, keep going.” - Unknown

I was out for a run just now and everywhere I ran, the ground was constantly changing: ice to snow to asphalt and back to snow and ice.

When it was slippery, I had to pay a lot more attention to where I put my feet and how I ran. It’s harder to keep your footing on ice and takes more effort because your feet slide a bit with each step.

It’s like when things are uncertain in our lives; like when we feel things could fall apart at any moment. We become super vigilant and observant; making sure there are no missteps and trying to stay in control.

Here's what else I noticed: after running on the ice and snow for a while, when I hit the pavement, I took off like a rocket at a faster and more energetic pace. I could also look up at the trees and the sky as I ran. This “normal” running now felt effortless.

How did that happen?

The difficulty I'd had and the attention I'd had to pay to the really challenging parts, like not losing my balance on the ice, made the normal running easier and more fun. And it felt so effortless that I could focus on other aspects of the world around me.

It reminded me of the times I would ski for a few days in cloudy weather or even with fog obscuring the slopes where I literally had to feel my way down the slope. When the sun would finally come out, it felt as though my skiing had advanced to a whole new level - it was completely effortless because I could see where I was going!

Effortless happens when we’ve achieved a level of skill and experience at something that allows us to be effective without the intense attention and focus required when we are still learning.

It’s in the hard stuff, the tough times, the challenging conditions, and circumstances outside what’s comfortable, where this growth occurs. That’s where we get stronger and more skilled even though we can’t see it at the time.

Once you move from the challenging circumstances back to your comfort zone, that thing we were trying to do can feel effortless because of the new level of knowledge and skill we gained.

Therein lies the irony: effortless lives 100% inside your comfort zone but getting there requires you to be 100% outside your comfort zone.

 “When you’re going through hell, keep going.”

Effortless is on the other side.

What is effortless for you? Remember when it wasn’t? How did you get there?