Tag: focus

The Alamo City Rollergirls Taught Me A Lesson

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Sunday night, Ashley and I attended our first roller derby bout with the Alamo City Rollergirls – Las Tejanas (@acrollergirls) against the Beaumont Spindletops with a number of our good friends from BMPR.  The Rollercade looks as if it has been the same for the past forty or so years, with a new coat of paint here and there and some neon lights added for additional effect.  The design was classic roller skating facility and the feel of the building was stale.

Magically, though, the air was electric.  There was a line of people waiting to get in the door while the teams greeted fans outside.  As the track was prepped with tape to denote the boundaries on the rink, fans poured in to take their places.  The announcers took their places, with one of them dressed as a skeleton and making her voice sound like a cross between Dave Chappelle as Rick James and one of the barbers from Coming to America.

The teams are wildly passionate about winning – they train numerous times per week for two to three hours per day all while holding down a day job as well.  Each has their roller derby name and persona.  These women are dedicated to their sport and their fans are dedicated to them.  The gasps, “oooohs” and “aaaahhhhs” when they make a great hit, take a tough tumble or the cheers when they score are incredible.

For these tough ladies it’s not about the money, the great office, the fancy titles (the cool names help), the logos and anything else that seems to be what matters in the rest of the world.  Here, these women are duking it out for the love of the game.  They can only win if they play together, because if they don’t, there won’t be a person to block nor a person to score.  The passion to move forward as a group allows them to take on the toughest challenges with direction from there coach.  Can you look at your office and say they work as well as these women?  Are you doing enough to coach them all to a victory?  Try focusing on your people this week to move them all in the same direction at the same time together and see what you can accomplish.

A big thank you to the Alamo City Rollergirls – Las Tejanas for hosting us and congratulations on their first home bout win of the season!

Focus Your Lens, Help Others Do The Same

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In photography, you’ll find endless types of lenses.  Interestingly, you can be standing in the exact same spot but different lenses will capture different parts of your subject and each can tell a varied story.

In our lives, we find that people are very similar.  Each person is going to approach a situation with their own lens.  Factors including personal experiences, education, abilities, limitations, friends, family will all help shape a persons lens.  At a basic level, it’s important to recognize that people simply have different lenses with which they see the world.  This will help you develop patience when someone’s lens is conflicting with yours.  The faster you can remember this in a situation, the easier it will be to overcome and succeed.  Once you’ve recognized these different lenses, the next step is to recognize how to help people leverage their lens.  Where is the best place to put that person to excel, helping propel them to greater success?  Pay attention to their feedback when you’re doing this to ensure that you’re helping them play to their strengths.

Recognizing your lens of how you view the world, doing the same in others and helping position those people will drive your success as well as those around you.

Photos by Paul Ackerley