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I had some extra time on my hands the other week, due to a cancelled appointment. The weather being good and seeing as I already was in the neighborhood of my next appointment, I decided to grab a cup of coffee to go and sit in the park and pretend to work.

I sat down on a bench, laid my laptop out next to me and cuddled my coffee in my hands. Oh, the bliss of stolen moments. While I was contemplating the joys of coffee and sun, I saw a young father and his son walking towards the park with a small bike. Seems the little boy was learning to ride and his father was helping.

They turned into the park and found a suitable, relatively even path. Even though I couldn’t hear them, through the enthusiastic pedaling movements of his arms, I surmised that the man was explaining to the little boy what he should do once on the bike. The boy listened and watched intently then climbed aboard while his father held the bike upright.

The man continued to hold tight to the back of the bike and the boy slowly started pedaling. The bike moved off unsteadily, wobbling first to the left, then to the right; the father walking behind, still holding fast and still giving instructions, pedaling furiously with his free arm. They got a tad quicker, swerved dangerously to the left and then to the right and despite the help from his exuberant father, the little boy and the bike tipped sidelong into the grass.

The father picked them up, dusted the boy off and smiled broadly, patting him on his back.  He was obviously pleased with their progress.

They began the procedure again. The man did a bit of explaining and the boy climbed aboard and off they went. This time they gathered a bit of speed and the father had to jog to keep up. Unfortunately, the path turned to the left and the little boy did not. Head over heels, the bike unloaded the boy into the grass.

The father sorted the pile of limbs and spokes again and smiled encouragingly. Wasn’t this fun? He plucked a few twigs from his son’s hair and helped him back on. The procedure began again. The father explained, the boy climbed on, they rode a few meters and either the lack of balance or the force of gravity won and the boy and the bike were once again in a heap on ground.

This went on for some time; explain, ride, fall, sort, explain, ride, fall, sort…

The young father was becoming visibly tired and discouraged. And so he decided they needed a rest and he, his son and the bike went over to a bench to sit for a while. The boy, however, wasn’t nearly as tired (nor as discouraged) as his father, and didn’t seem to need to rest at all. He ran around the bench, looked for bugs and dug in the dirt with sticks, as his father slowly nodded off.

Accompanied by the snores in the background, the little boy returned to the bike left leaning on the bench. He looked at it thoughtfully from all sides, took hold of the handlebars, climbed aboard, and without much ado he pushed off. Squinting in concentration, tongue firmly between his teeth, the kid pedaled down the path.

‘Right’, you’re thinking, ‘I know where you’re going with this one. This is going to be all about persistence. But, all kids learn to ride a bike at one point because everybody learns to ride a bike – it’s easy. It’s only hard in the beginning until you get the knack of it’.

How true, how true. Everybody can learn to ride a bike at one point, but that doesn’t make riding a bike less complex or easier to learn.

Believe me, riding the bike was really hard in the beginning for that little kid. I watched him, I should know. Riding a bike is a very involved process, just like driving a car, but we all seem to learn it, not because it’s easy, but because we expect to be able to learn it. The fact that we expect to learn something doesn’t make a process any less complex – it only makes it easier to buy into because of our anticipation of a positive outcome. Getting dumped in the grass a few (or more) times doesn’t get to us as nearly much if we’re sure that our period of learning will indeed progress into mastery.

When we have positive expectations, our chances of learning to master something become substantially higher. This is true of everything; riding a bike, driving a car, or being successful in business. Your chances of ultimate achievement in any and all areas are greatly dependent on your expectations, and naturally also your persistence.

Think about your learning processes right now – all of  them, whether in business, sport or your private life. Do you always get back on your bike, even after you’ve landed in the grass? Even after you’ve been unsuccessful umpteen times? If not, then think of the little kid and his bike. Squint in concentration, plant your tongue firmly between your teeth, climb back on and start pedaling. You can do it, it’s easy ;-).

Success is always waiting around one of the next bends, and generally comes when your father is snoring on the bench behind you.

Happy pedaling,
Lisa

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