Do it again

Often, I’ll do some goofy bit of acrobatics (sometimes at the expense of my aging body) in order to make toddlers laugh. To make their world seem a little more magical.

Feat complete, or slapstick accomplished, the phrase is inevitably — subject to language skills — “More!” or “Can you do that again?”

<sigh> Yes. Yes I can.

The anxiety doesn’t come when a child wants a repeat. The anxiety comes when our peers, our clients, our fans — our stakeholders above and below us on the food chain — when they say, “What you did was great. We’re thrilled. Do it again.”

That we can reach new levels which then become the standard. It can cause panic. Can I do it again? Is there more fuel in the tank?

And yet, we find a way.

We might not be able to do it every time, but sure enough, we’re making progress, and we’re not moving backwards.

Do it again?

You bet. Even better this next time.