Over Christmas, I went snowboarding in the Alps….
It’s good for the mind and the soul.
A week of bluebird days and mountain air always sets me up right…
Gets me ready to eat 2024 for breakfast.
But on this trip, something funny happened…
See Barney (my son) had lessons.
I forced them on him.
His instructor was 21-year-old Pierre
You name it, he could ride it – backwards…
… With French flamboyance oozing from his pores.
Needless to say, a single session in, Barney had developed a big ‘cool kid’ crush on Pierre.
Anyway, one afternoon Barney and I were in the trick park together.
Out of nowhere, and thanks to Pierre, he nailed a 50/50 on a fun box.
Think sliding down a rail on your snowboard.
B-O-O-M.
Now, not to be outdone I gave it a go…
The result was not so pretty.
I wiped out and bruised two ribs.
Which happened again, and again and again.
Until with my body battered and my bones aching, I threw in the towel.
Which is where it gets instructive.
See, on the snowy walk back to the warmth of a hot tub, Barney asked me this:
“Dad, why don’t you just get a lesson with Pierre?”
Immediately pride got the better of me…
No chance. I don’t need lessons. I got this this.
… Right?!
Clearly not.
… Classic case of arsehole thinking and male pride stopping me from doing what made sense – getting help.
After all the definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result.
So as I nursed the hefty bruise developing on my knee, I paused, sucked up my pride and said:
“Good idea son.”
Long story short, in less than 20 minutes the next day, Pierre fixed my posture, my positioning and my prowess in the park.
A stark reminder for men like you and I in the game, especially as we step into 2024…
See, you can try and work it all out alone.
And maybe, eventually, you’ll get somewhere…
Maybe, probably, you’ll get nowhere close.
And maybe you’ll break your back along the way.
Or the other option?
Cheat.
Find someone that knows exactly how to do whatever it is you want to do.
And get them to give you the answers.
It is a lot faster.
A lot easier.
And a lot less painful.
Until next time.
Make More. Provide More. Be More.
Charlie Hutton
