IYI Newsletter: introducing 'walk and talk reflections'...


Happy Monday!

One of my favorite things to do every day is go for a walk. And during this time outdoors, I noticed that I become more reflective and clear. Last week I decided to pull out my phone and share some of these reflective thoughts with you. I've loved the response I've gotten so far. Someone said, "It's kind of like the Increase Your Impact Podcast in video form." I like that comparison :)

For the next few weeks, I'm going to share with you a few of the most popular reflections of the week. Hope you find some value in them.

If you want to see the new one that comes out each day, you can find them on my Instagram account: @justinsua

Decision-Making Tip: Focus on the ripple, not the rock

video preview

Lately I've been thinking about decision-making and problem-solving, and how we can be so focused on solving the problem right in front of us that we fail to consider that the solution might actually create a completely different set of problems.

There's a principle that helps me in these situations: Focus on the ripple, not the rock.

Imagine throwing a rock into a pond.

The rock represents the decision, and the ripple is everything that decision sets in motion. Most decision-makers will stop at the first ripple.

And we think, “If I do this, then this will happen”, or in other words, we think linearly, “if ‘x’ then ‘y’”.But the best decision-makers I've ever come across stay with it a tad longer and then ask, "…Okay, and then what?"

And that question could help us pause and consider the long-term impacts of a seemingly short-term decision.

Now I know we can't accurately predict the second- and third-order effects of every decision we make, but focusing on the ripple rather than the rock can be a helpful tool for solving whatever problem you’re facing.

Hard work doesn't guarantee success

video preview

A truth that took me a long time to learn is that working hard doesn't guarantee success. I've always believed that if you work hard, success will naturally follow. But I've learned that that's not how life works

The hardest worker doesn't always win.

The team that does everything right sometimes loses.

The person who's giving half the effort sometimes comes out on top.

And that is when people start questioning their process. For many, the belief is that success is something that you're owed, but you and I know it's not.

It's something that's positioned for

With every practice, every drill, every day you do the right thing, you increase the probability of success; you don't guarantee it.

And what that does is it leads to a question you can ask yourself every day: "Does the process that I have right now increase the probability for success?

Have a great week!

Justin Su'a

At the Performance Advisory Group, we’re passionate about supporting high-performing sports parents to develop process-driven children. If that's you and you're interested in your child working with one of our Process Coaches, reply to this email, and I'll give you more details. We have a handful of select families we're taking the same process we're using with professional sports teams to.

If this email was forwarded to you and you want it to come directly to your inbox, click here to subscribe

About Justin Su'a | Instagram | Linkedin

Click to listen to the "Increase Your Impact Podcast"

Justin Su'a

The Increase Your Impact Newsletter is your Monday morning edge, created for growth-minded individuals. Each issue is a 2-3-minute read that delivers actionable strategies and powerful stories straight from my work with the world’s top performers. I 'd love to have you join my weekly email list and join thousands of others who are striving to get better, just like you.

Read more from Justin Su'a

Approximately a 2-minute read Good Morning! There's a moment that happens in almost every serious pursuit, regardless of whether you're in professional sports, a student, an executive, or even at home. It's when the path becomes seemingly too difficult to bear. It's when you realize you underestimated how hard the journey would actually be. I once spoke with a professional athlete who was in the middle of this exact part of his path. He said things had gotten tough, and he wondered how much...

Approximately a 2-minute read Good Morning! Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about ambiguity. Not in some abstract, philosophical sense, but in the way it quietly shows up in everyday life when we are not completely sure what we are doing, why we are doing it, or whether we should fully commit to it. One definition of ambiguity is "a lack of exactness, " and that word, exactness, has been sticking with me because I’ve noticed how much hesitation and indecision can come from simply not making...

Approximately a 3-minute read Hello! When someone you care about is struggling, it’s easy to overwhelm them with corrections. I know it's coming from a good place. You want to help. You want them to get better. So you point out the missed detail, the poor word choice, the gap in preparation, or the pattern that needs to change. Then the conversation ends, but neither of you is sure what happens next. As a leader, one of your principal roles is to direct attention to what's next. Feedback...