The Shots We Don’t Take

One of the saying people love to throw around is “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take”.

It can be a nice little motivator for people who need a little nudge to take action.

But it also gets us into a mindset that we need to seize every opportunity that comes our way.

And it’s one of the reasons so many of us get burnt out, agree to things that our gut screams at us to say no to, and ultimately get frustrated because it feels like nothing is working.

If we take the analogy of missing shots you don’t take…what about the shots that you know will fail anyway?

I don’t mean the ones that could be possible but aren’t probable.

I mean the ones that literally can’t happen.

Like putting a ball through a hoop when the ball is too big to fit through the hoop.

I’ve seized a lot of opportunities in my career and my personal life.

Not all of them panned out.

We talk a lot about missed opportunities that could have been.

But what about the missed opportunities we’re glad we didn’t take?

One for me that comes to mind is after one of my colleagues and former bosses left for another company.

He was so re-energized and tried to get me to join the company.

He knew I wasn’t being challenged where I was, and that he could benefit from my skills and experience.

I wasn’t quite sure it was the right move for me. The industry was new, untested and high risk.

I knew that the vast majority of companies would fail–quickly and spectacularly.

The risks with being associated with the industry were also untested.

I considered the option because I did want a change, knew he would support me and knew the upside if the company was one of the ones that survived the initial boom.

After I met with the CEO, I knew that joining wasn’t the right decision for me.

My former colleague flourished there.

The CEO ended up resigning a few years later.

I ended up taking a different opportunity that took me down a different path.

Who knows what might have happened if I had taken the job, but I still look back and am glad I didn’t do it.

I made a researched and calculation decision to not seize that opportunity.

It wasn’t my first and certainly wasn’t my last.

I’m still faced with opportunities every day.

Some are obvious “no”s, like hustlers sending me unsolicited emails with fear-mongering tactics like “I found errors with your website–get in touch with me right away!”.

Others are harder to say no to, because the opportunity is exciting but the logistics aren’t worth concessions I would need to make.

But I’m okay with missing shots.

I’m okay with missing a lot of shots.

Because I’d much rather live a life I created intentionally and in a way that works for me.