Your Average Jo: On the Right Track

For me, the end of summer signifies a number of things. Back-to-school shopping (I love me some school supplies! The fact that I’m not in school is irrelevant.), sweaters and booties (just not warm sweaters or winter boots, thank you very much), getting back into routines and celebrating the days my brothers came into my life.

I’ve been blessed to have two incredible men in my life, both of whom I have the honour of calling brother. And both of them celebrate their birthdays at the end of the summer. So in honour of them, I’ve rounded up some things they’ve taught me. (Shhh, don’t tell them that I learned anything from them. It will boost their egos and they certainly don’t need that.)

Track Truth #1: If you want something badly enough, you will make it happen. 

This is one that my brother (and superhuman) Larry, founder of Track Fitness, coined a long time ago, but that all three of us have adopted as a life mantra. Like most mere mortals, we want the benefits of hard work (whether that’s a buff bod, a second home, winters in the sunny south) but most of us don’t want to put in the work to achieve our goals. I know that Larry has had many clients tell him they want six-pack abs, but not too many of them are willing to give up their Friday night six-pack to make it a reality.

To support that same argument, Larry always tells people that if you can carry on a conversation while you’re working out, you’re not working hard enough. Are you talking on the treadmill? Texting in a meeting? Avoiding tough conversations with your work and/or life partner? Nothing good comes without hard work, so if you ain’t sweating (literally or figuratively) you ain’t trying hard enough.

Track Truth #2: You’re only as good as your team.

My brother Howie is a builder/contractor by trade, and the go-to person for our family and friends when it comes to fixing things. (Don’t call him if you’re toilet is clogged though, he’ll yell at you for being stupid. I speak from experience.). But the secret to his success is not just how he’s managed to teach himself everything about everything to do with building and fixing houses, it’s how he treats the people who work for and with him.

Contractors get a bad rap for missing budgets, deadlines and details (your house is slightly slanted? Oops.) but most of the time, it’s one of their suppliers or vendors who messed up. Do you think the client cares that Pete the Plumber had one too many beers and showed up late for work? Likely not. It’s the leader who takes the hit. While these things will always happen (see my post on that here), my brother mitigates these by treating every single person with respect. And by doing so, he’s amassed a team of partners that will bend over backwards to help him get the job done and clients who constantly praise him.

Track Truth #3: Get the F**k Up

Like most people, my brothers and I have experienced a lifetime of ups (good health, great friends, amazing kids) and downs (divorce, death, dysfunctional families). But the one thing we’ve always done for each other is pick each other up and help the other move forward. If you know one of us, you’ll know that we don’t stay down for long. We may be beaten up, broken or just plain broke, but we always get up and keep going. If any of us had given up when our marriages or businesses were challenged we wouldn’t be where or who we are today. Instead we live, we learn, and we move on. We build up our physical, mental and emotional muscle and get back on track (sorry, I had to) stronger and better than ever.

If you’ve seen the devastating, shocking and thought-provoking movie, Three Identical Strangers (if you haven’t, you must), you would have had a chance to ponder the nature vs. nurture debate. There are arguments to support all sides, so I only speak from personal experience when I say that for me, nature gave me two of the strongest men in my life, and we have nurtured amazing, perfectly non-perfect, relationships that have made us who were are. 

And you don’t need to have blood brothers (or sisters) to learn life lessons (trust me, sharing a bathroom with siblings is NOT fun). Just look around you and I’m sure you will find inspiration. But remember, if they’re on the next treadmill, don’t talk until the class is over.

Joanna Track (aka Your Average Jo) is the founder and executive publisher of The Bullet, Canada’s digital destination for your quick shot of daily news. She is known for her prior entrepreneurial pursuits, Sweetspot.ca and eLUXE, two of Canada’s most well known online destinations for women. 

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