A few months ago I wrote about the importance of determining whether something is a Force or a Fit. A 'force' requires massive effort and has a high potential for failure. A 'fit' may require massive effort too—the difference being that the cards you hold are in your favor. If you can follow through with focus, single-minded purpose and a very healthy investment of energy, a 'fit' is likely to lead to success.

This month, I want to explore why so many 'fits' fail! What happens between a good idea and its execution that either determines a successful lift-off or a disappointing crash and burn?

I read a wonderful eyewitness account of the lift-off of the space shuttle. The writer is a talented national speaker and coach Patrick Combs, and I am borrowing his space shuttle metaphor in this newsletter. Thanks, Patrick!

Just to get us oriented, the Space Shuttle is about the height of a 15-story building and weighs in at a whopping 4.5 million pounds. The task NASA has set for itself? Raise this gargantuan off the earth, blast it through our gravitational field and send it into orbit about 200 miles away from Earth.

Naturally, there is an extremely complex, finely-tuned sequence of events that must all happen exactly as planned for the Shuttle to leave its launch pad. The three on-board engines must start, the computers must function at a level of precision far beyond the realm of words. The dance must be seamless—no detail left to chance, no loss of focus for even a nano-second.

At T-minus 4 seconds, a mere three seconds after the three engines have been started, they have already achieved 90-percent thrust. By the time the clock reads T-minus Zero, 6.2 million pounds of thrust have been delivered to the shuttle via the side booster rockets in combination with 1.1 million pounds of thrust from the three on-board engines themselves.

We've all seen this next image on TV. Huge billowing white steam clouds engulf the Shuttle. At the base of this towering testimony to man's ability to accomplish the impossible, is an inferno with no rival. Flames roil around the Shuttle's base. But it's not moving. We hold our breath—did something go wrong? Will the astronauts survive the heat and pressure?

And then the miraculous anti-climax. The shuttle doesn't zoom into the sky. It inches off the launch pad. Millions of pounds of thrust and the thing hardly budges. A four-year old on a tricycle could cover more ground! But bit by bit, inch by inch the Shuttle moves inexorably toward the heavens. Its ascent is agonizingly slow. At this speed, we are sure the thing will topple over—"it's not going fast enough" we say to ourselves bracing for imminent disaster. But we are wrong, and as our eyes follow the Shuttle's path toward the stars, it picks up speed until it appears to be moving effortlessly at 17,000 miles per hour!

It is hard to get off the launch pad. The energy required is almost ridiculous and it is very easy to give up, lose faith, lose focus and lose heart. In the case of the Shuttle, 85% of its fuel is used within the first two minutes of its journey! How is this possible? Once it has made its way out of our gravitational pull, it takes relatively little energy for the Shuttle to keep moving.

So why do some 'fits' fail and others attain cruising speed? The answer lies simply in an unwavering commitment to your goal and a willingness to pour in more energy than you ever knew you had. Inertia is a powerful adversary. Your best intentions and excellent ideas must be paired with a consistent and unwavering application of energy if you are ever to leave the launch pad and find yourself cruising among the stars.

So do what it takes to blast off. Or let go of the dream. But make the choice to relinquish the middle ground where efforts are partial and focus dilute. It is a no man's land where 'fits' are doomed to fail.

One of the tools in a coach's kit is what we call the Powerful Question. It's a big one with surprising impact. We use these questions to spark introspection, rethinking, new awareness or new possibilities. A fresh perspective is often the catalyst for change and action. So, look at a project, relationship, work challenge or long-held dream that is not moving forward and ask yourself:

What will it take for me to move off this launch pad?

About My Coaching:
As a personal, professional and executive coach, it is my goal to bring dynamic leadership, a compassionate heart, and powerful insight to the lives of my coaching clients. I work to help clients identify and pursue what is deeply meaningful in their lives, and collaborate with them to transform vague yearnings or explicit goals into realities.

You can count on me to challenge you, inspire you and support you. I will be a relentless advocate of your dreams and ambitions and help you take bold steps with your life.

My Background:
I am an optimist with a penchant for finding solutions to complex problems in unexpected places. The daily opportunity to use my pragmatism, smarts, humor and heart to help people create lives they truly love gives me tremendous joy.

After graduating from Princeton University, I spent almost 20 years as a feature film, video and CD ROM producer guiding projects to success. By the late 1990's, I decided to channel my action-oriented approach to life into coaching, with the express goal of helping people live lives by design and not default. I completed my professional training at The Coaches Training Institute in San Rafael, California.

Call me at (310) 393-8082 for a free 1/2-hour coaching session to explore how coaching may benefit you.

Contact Information:
Dina Silver, CPCC
361 21st Street
Santa Monica, CA 90402
Phone: 310.393.8082
Fax: 310.395.7999
dinasil@earthlink.net