What are you “in the making”?

“Greatest of all time” (G.O.A.T) – we hear that phrase a lot nowadays. Or there are news articles about some great business leader who started with humble roots, or an actor with not a penny in the pocket when they started, or visionaries who sacrificed everything to turn their ideas into reality!

I used to get intrigued and fascinated when I came across such people in news articles, books, documentaries or listening to their interviews.

Their achievements, their talent, their poise, the ambition, the clarity – made me wonder when I would be like that. Their feats in fields as diverse as science, mountaineering, sports, entertainment, business, social work and education, made me question what I was doing!!

When the intrigue faded away, and familiarity set in, the inspiration would make way for disappointment. Disappointment, about noticing the distance between what they had achieved, and what was ordinarily possible. It made me think what they did was superhuman, and questions whether humans could do that!

And one night, when I was in my batchmates hostel room, we were in the midst of some conversation about ambition, and he asked me in jest, “so you think you are great?” And without thinking, I replied, “No, I am a great man in the making!” In that moment, it seemed cheesy.

But it came back to me several years later, the “in the making” part! And that spurred some enthusiasm back into the mix.

We often place achievements and visible milestones on a pedestal but doing so only creates a distance from our idols, role models or other people we follow. I started looking away from what these idols had achieved, and started looking for the process they went through to get there.

This made the journey human and relatable. “In the making” indicates that we are not yet done, rather that there is still some work to do, some room to grow!

I was fortunate enough to work with this coach who used to say that there is nothing extraordinary about the individuals that inspire us. It is just that they embrace how ordinary they are and are willing to put in the “extra” effort. That’s what really makes them extraordinary! That they are ordinary in an extra special way!

Approaching every endeavour as if it is “in the making” and embracing the “extra” ordinariness, eases the pressure that can show up when we set ourselves big goals. But the fresh perspective allows grounding and ambition to co-exist.

This allows for learning, failing and experimenting to happen. It makes enjoying the process and the journey possible. And in that mindset, performance is always bound to get better and better with every step.

I will formally complete two years of my journey as a coach and facilitator next month, but when I look back at what shaped me, what interested me, what influenced me, and what kept me interested, it seems like this journey was “in the making” for the last two decades of my professional life!

What gets me thrilled about my workshops or when I am in coaching conversations, is how lucky I am to be a witness to my clients discovering their journey, and their “in the making” moments!

If you’d like to discover what you are “in the making” and what is that “extra” that we can bring to your beautiful ordinariness, let’s have a conversation.