Choosing Your Hard Is Essential in the Midst of Our Comfort Crisis

Let’s face it—we are living in the middle of a comfort crisis. Michael Easter talks about it in his book The Comfort Crisis, and I was reminded of this recently while in Atlanta leading a veteran leadership training for Cisco.

I arrived a day early and decided to walk around the city. That’s when I noticed something strange: small robots rolling down the sidewalks. Their purpose? To deliver items from stores right to people’s doors—or hotel rooms—so we don’t have to walk.

It made me pause. Because here’s the dilemma I see over and over again, both in my own life and with the leaders I work with:

• We’d rather order something than walk to the store.
• We’d rather look down at our phones than pay attention to what’s right in front of us.
• We’d rather keep working than take a vacation (or even a staycation) with people we love. Or worse, take our work ON vacation. 
• We’d rather circle for a close parking spot than walk a little further.
• We’d rather avoid the rain than just enjoy it, knowing it won’t hurt us.
• We’d rather eat what’s quick and easy than prepare something nourishing.
• We’d rather sink into a soft chair than stand and stay sharp.

The list goes on.

The truth is, our world has made everything comfortable, accessible, and easy—and that comfort is slowly making us weaker, sicker, and more prone to burnout.

But here’s what I’ve learned, sometimes the hard way: we always have a choice.

Some of us simply don’t know what we don’t know—we assume the life shown to us by media or others is the standard. But many of us do know better. And when we know better, we can choose better.

• We can choose to stand rather than sit all day.
• We can choose to cook wholesome food instead of reaching for convenience.
• We can choose to park farther away and take a few extra steps.
• We can choose to put the phone down and be present with the people who matter most.
• We can choose to do everything in our control to stay healthy and avoid systemic disease.

At the end of the day, it comes down to choosing your hard.

Do the comfortable thing now, and you’ll face the hard consequences later.
Do the uncomfortable thing now, and you’ll reap the benefits later—vitality, joy, resilience, and a longer, healthier life.

I saw it in Atlanta, watching those robots roll by. We don’t have to let comfort roll over us. We can choose differently.

And the choice is always ours. 

By choosing the hard that builds resilience, you gain two of life’s greatest commodities: energy and time.