December 2024 Newsletter
Carla Harris
Inclusive and Innovative Leader; Public Company and Philanthropic Board Director; Senior Client Advisor at Morgan Stanley; Author; Inspirational and Motivational Speaker
Dear Friends, I would like to express my gratitude for your continued support of my monthly newsletter. ?I look forward to sharing more valuable content with you as we THRIVE in 2025!
As l was working out early one morning with my trainer, after the second set of lifting some pretty heavy weights, he increased the weights for the third set. I then said to him, "thanks for your confidence in me, but l think that this is too heavy”, to which he replied, "Carla, no challenge, no change"! I don't have to tell you that I took on the challenge, struggled to lift the weight, but I got it done! More importantly, those words have been ringing in my ears ever since.?
As I think about the incredible experience that I have had during my tenure on Wall Street and all of the "hard earned and hard learned" lessons that I have acquired, (“the pearls", as I fondly call them), I realize that every time that I have had a step function of growth in experience and professional maturity, it has arrived after a very hard period of consistent challenges. While I might have thought, "there has to be or could have been an easier way", I think now, probably not!?
Sometimes, while we think that we are challenging ourselves to learn, to get out of our comfort zone, to take risks, all of which would enable us to grow professionally, we are really not reaching far enough. There is still a measure of safety in the action, so we are not, as a result, growing as far or as fast as we could be. When the huge challenge comes, however, that we did not choose, while it might be painful, we make it through to the other side, and we are smarter, more mature, more experienced, and downright, much stronger, more resilient, and more VALUABLE, than we would have been if we had not gone through it.?
Over the years, I have learned that either you reach far to REALLY grow, or the universe will send you a whopper of a challenge that will stretch and pull you in ways that you couldn't imagine. You will then have no choice but to sit down and give up (NEVER AN OPTION, BY THE WAY) or work your way through and grow. Every single one of the pearls that I share, I have acquired through a challenge, and on the other side of that challenge, I had changed, SIGNIFICANTLY. As I started out in my career, I didn't even know how to REALLY challenge myself. I was simply focused on learning, not learning AND challenging myself to learn more, to grow faster, to go beyond what I was being taught by whoever I was working with at the time. I wasn't as inquisitive and curious as I should have been, because I didn't even know back then, that I could or should have been. It was a tough lesson to learn but one that was so worthy of the journey, for the lesson, THE PEARL, of challenging myself has served me well ever since.?
As you reflect on your journey throughout 2024, I want you to particularly note the challenging times and the growth that resulted from your making it through to where you are right now. Give gratitude to the challenge or challenges that came, because it/they gave you the gift of growth. Now, as you think about your 2025 aspirations and goals, ask yourself:
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1. What do I want to change about my professional life, my personal life, and my relationships??
2. How can I create a challenge for myself that will result in that change??
3. ?What kind of timeline will I give myself to execute the challenge?
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I am asking you to REALLY push yourself to go beyond what you think you can do and how you execute. Set yourself up for a year of great changes in 2025!?
Remember, as my trainer told me, “No Challenge, No Change!”?
Go get 'em!!?
Carla
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Employee Engagement Leader | Passionate AI Product Evangelist| Certified Professional Coach
1 个月Keep letting God use you. It's blessing the Globe.
Award-winning personal finance journalist
1 个月??
Continuous Improvement Formulator
2 个月Carla, you have articulated the traditional New Year's resolution message both clearly and personally. It will resonate with those that seek self improvement and learn from your pearls. Thanks for sharing and taking the time to make this newsletter.
Founder of Dilaab Digitals ?? ? Helping Coaches and Solopreneurs focus on the big picture | Follow for posts about virtual assistance, delegation, and outsourcing | PH 100 Brightest Minds Under 30 by StellarPH
2 个月Such an empowering message, Carla! Your story about embracing challenges and the growth that comes from them is truly inspiring. Here’s to taking on 2025 with the same strength and resilience!