Run the Bases! by Stewart Mednick

Anything worth doing is worth doing well.  I have heard this saying many times all my life.  First, I have to say, I hate using the word “do” as a replacement for an active verb like work, create, construct, analyze or develop.  Seems like a lazy way to just fill in the need for an action word without having to think about what the specific action is performed.  Ironic, a saying that is conveying a message of rigor is, in itself, inherently lazy.  Is this iconically how we are in today’s society?    I work out regularly at a neighborhood gym.  I once requested to have the gym consider a Versa-Climber as an addition to the cardio section, among rows of treadmills and stair-steppers and elliptical machines.  The Versa-Climber is a machine to emulate climbing; arms pulling up and feet stepping.  This is a whole body workout that Navy Seals use regularly in the fitness center on the Navy base.  The gym manager was familiar with the device I requested and responded, “… that is too hard of a machine for people to use.  Most people do not want to work that hard and I do not think it will be used frequently, so it is not likely we will order it….”   What?  Too hard of a work out?  This is a gym … and people want to work out to be in top physical condition.  Silly me, to think this way.  After all, that is whyAmericais obsessed with the “miracle diet” and the “miracle pill.”  We want it all now with no effort.  We want everything for nothing.  We are not willing to ‘put any skin’ into the game; or very minimal amount.    I was watching a PBS show some years ago, about a family that reenacted the way of life in the early 1800s as they would travel West by covered wagon and settle in the Upper Midwest or Northwest Territory.  Life was brutal.  You work hard everyday just to eat.  If the crops failed, you would nearly die in the winter.  If the stock was not fed, you would not have milk or meat to eat.  You had to build a house by cutting down the timbers.  No room for laziness in this lifestyle.    When did we become so lazy?  To me, it seems that all the initial energy is in the provocation of an idea and the desire to have the results with instant gratification.  Not only are we lazy physically, we have become lazy mentally as well if we are not able to cope with the delayed gratification process.     Look at our society; we can control the TV, PS3, Xbox, DVD player, Tivo and every other device from a remote control.  We order the delivery of our dinner, we do not amble upstairs, we stand on an escalator, we microwave food in minutes instead of actually prepare by cooking on a stove or in an oven, and on and on. No wonder people have obesity and cardiac issues; no one works.    Even the pronunciation of words have become lazy, thus the words “aint,” “gonna,” “OMG” and other texting short-cuts that have become literal words. WTF?  It is all AFU!   In my opinion, this level of performance; short-cuts and laziness, equates to poor performance and bad technique in some professions.  In customer service, being lazy or not fully serving a client can mean a loss of future or current business and a poor reputation. How can you afford to be lazy or cut corners?   What good is putting a pizza in the oven if you do not turn it on?  What good is teeing off in golf if you do not walk down the fairway?  What good is calling prospects if you do not follow-up?  And, what good is hitting the home run if you don’t run the bases?   Buy food and prepare a nice meal using knives, pots, pans and a stove.  Walk up stairs and do not use the escalator.  Walk the dogs and do not just let them out in the yard.  Ride your bike to work instead of driving, and run the bases in every aspect of your life.   Stewart Mednick is a seasoned mortgage banker and published author.  His writing focuses on relationship development, personal empowerment, customer satisfaction, marketing and sales techniques. Stewart is available for consulting, personal coaching and training sessions.  If you have a comment or a question for Stewart, contact him at 651-895-5122 or [email protected]