A LETTER FROM CHRIS SUAREZ
THE CYCLES OF GROWTH
We all go through cycles of improvement and growth. In the beginning it feels like it’s taking forever to gain traction and move forward. Then, as if a switch has been flipped, growth begins and snowballs. You experience years of ten percent growth, fifty percent growth, at times over a hundred percent growth. A new cycle eventually emerges and the growth may seem to subside or slow.
Cycles can be frustrating. Business cycles, economic cycles, life cycles, even fitness cycles.
When we first begin to workout or train, the results are unnoticeable. We don’t run faster after a few times on the treadmill. We don’t bench more after a few times in the gym. We don’t lose inches after a couple weeks of workouts. But with some commitment to the workouts and some consistency in the schedule those results come. The pull-ups seem easier, and the losses are noticeable. The progress motivates us to continue, and that motivation leads to greater and more dramatic results.
Until it doesn’t. We hit a cycle where the increases in results seem to level off. If we are not careful, that can lead to discouragement. In that moment we need to recognize that the slow down in improvement does not reflect lack of effort, work, or focus. As your fitness improves, your improvement increases actually decline. That decline can be an indication that you’ve been consistently improving. It is now time to focus on nuance training to continue seeing gains - albeit smaller ones.
Business can be the same. We will have cycles of incredible growth. And we will have cycles where the percentage of growth may not impress us. In the early days of systems development and implementation, model building and execution, and focused energy and activity, the changes were dramatic. Partly those dramatic changes were based on the newfound commitment to consistency as you built your business. Now with years of commitment behind you, and consistency being an everyday occurrence, the changes may be slightly more subtle. But they are not less remarkable. Begin to look for the adjustments, the degrees of change, and the small improvements that can continue to push you forward.
Give yourself and your business the luxury to make the tweaks and nuanced changes necessary in order to work through this phase in growth. Just as in our health journey, there will be years where everyone notices your improvement and growth. Just as in your health journey, there will be years where only you notice your improvement and growth. Both cycles of improvement are necessary. Both are equally important. And both are equally deserving of your pride.
Chris Suarez