Pushing a Rope

Bynormbowley

I love the image of pushing a rope. I mean, it sounds so silly, doesn’t it?

We all know that trying to push a rope is only going to frustrate you, and probably the rope, too.

I suppose that if you really insisted, you could soak a piece of rope and freeze it. That might work, but if so, it would simply be the exception to prove the rule, and the rope wouldn’t be happy, anyway. Ropes just aren’t built to be pushed!

Yet we all try to push ropes. With our spouses, with our children, with our clients, with our co-workers, with our support staff. We become exasperated when they just won’t listen to our nagging and scolding and whining, so we push the rope some more, annoying everyone in the process, and getting zero results.

Yet it’s actually easy to move a rope. All you need to do is pull on it, rather than pushing. Attraction, motivation, modeling, leadership– call it what you like, these are the simple secrets to moving ropes, and people. You have to be out front and drawing your ropes and your people in the direction you need them to go, not pushing from behind.

Sounds so obvious, doesn’t it? Life’s funny that way.

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