Ep 262 | Muddy Puddles and Leaky Ceilings

Thank you for joining me today. It's Brian Gubernick and welcome to the No Days Off podcast, where we believe that every single day brings a new opportunity to get better. Let's get into today's topic. Today I want to discuss a quote shared by James Clear, author of Atomic Habits. Uh, he shared this quote in his newsletter that he sends out. I think it's called the 321 newsletter. And I've been thinking about it ever since I read it. And I thought it would be worthwhile sharing it here with the No Days Off Nation today. And then discussing maybe some thoughts around that. I think this will be brief. This will be quick, but it's something you're probably going to think about all day long. So I'll share the quote with you. It's a little long. James Clear says, I split problems into two groups: muddy puddles and leaky ceilings. Some problems are like muddy puddles. The way to clear a muddy puddle is to leave it alone. The more you mess with it, the muddier it becomes. Many of the problems I dream up when I'm overthinking or worrying or ruminating fall into this category. Is life really falling apart? Or am I just in a sour mood? Is this as hard as I'm making it? Or do I just need to go work out, drink some water, go for a walk, get some sleep, go do something else and give the puddle time to turn clear? Other problems are like a leaky ceiling. Ignore a small leak and it will always widen. Relationship tension that goes unaddressed. Overspending that becomes a habit, one missed workout drifting into months of inactivity. Some problems multiply when left unattended. You need to intervene now. Are you dealing with a leak or a puddle? End quote. So this one's got me thinking. Since I've read it, it's been on my mind. Am I dealing with muddy puddles? Or am I dealing with leaky ceilings? In my world, you know, as I think through the various problems that, that, that I come across on a daily basis, problems in business, problems in relationships, problems in life, health, whatever it may be, I do agree with James Clear here in that it really kind of fall into one of two buckets. That first bucket, there's problems that I have that I don't know because I'm taught you know, be quick to action, get in motion, be aggressive, you know, don't let things fester. There are things that I've certainly gone after in an effort to solve or correct for, only to find that because I was not patient, because I didn't let things sort of subside, because I was quick to action, I actually made that muddy puddle even muddier. In other words, I should have just left it alone because the more I messed with it, the messier it became. Then of course I have problems that they absolutely do require me to run at them because in ignoring the small leak, it will widen. And so if I leave it unattended, that problem could multiply. So what I've been thinking about today, again, in the various problems that I've, that I've encountered, or maybe problems I've heard of that I'm playing a role in looking to solve, the question I'm asking myself first is, would this be solved if I just let 24 or 48 hours go by? Maybe 72 hours go by. In other words, is the best solution Maybe just taking a break, being patient, letting things kind of sort themselves out, let the facts become a bit more clear, allowing me to analyze the facts, analyze the data, and then make a decision if in fact one is even necessary as to how to take action and potentially correct the problem. Problem. In other words, will the puddle, will the puddle become less muddy As things start to settle, in which case it's a bit clearer, and then I could sweep it up. Or do I have a problem in front of me where if I don't address it, it's only going to get worse. It's only going to multiply. I need to interview— intervene right now. Again, problems can fall into these two buckets. As I've looked at things that came across today, I, as a direct result of thinking through this, said, you know what, I'm going to give this another 24 or 48 hours. An example of this, today I had a conversation with, with a business owner who lost a couple key people in the, in this, in this week, this week alone, the past handful of days, he lost not one, but two key people in his business. And right now, you know, his, as a business leader, his, his, his natural instinct is to run at that fire and try to put it out, try to solve for this problem. You know, I just lost key people. It's going to create a cultural challenge. We're going to lose business. And he had all these reasons to run at this problem. However, You know, after looking at his problem and having this conversation with him, I had recommended that, you know what, you could be right, but what if we gave this a couple days? What if we just held tight? Is the world going to change? Is your business going to change in 48 hours, in 72 hours? What if you just make it through the weekend and then we revisit this early next week? Would you have the same perspective? And the reality is he may, But I also believe there's a really good chance that he's dealing with a muddy puddle and he should leave it alone because messing with it right now has the risk of making that puddle even muddier. In 72 hours, will the problem be solved? Probably not. But will his emotion have subsided? Will certain things have played out and he can read and react a bit differently? Absolutely. That would be a muddy puddle example. Now, on the flip side, I also had a conversation with someone today who, uh, has a conflict or a challenge with their partner, with their business partner. They are not seeing eye to eye on a specific decision that needs to be made to the point where Uh, not only are they disagreeing and there's discourse, that, that, that discourse is no longer a healthy discourse. It is now, um, more emotional. And, and I think that there is, there are some things being shared or said to one another that neither of them actually mean. And I'll tell you what, I don't know if these two should just sit idle and let their feelings and emotions kind of continue to fester. I think that what likely needs to happen is we have to address this now. Now, granted, I'd like to see the emotions subside a bit, but if time goes on, they're both going to get in their own heads and start to concoct a narrative that is likely untrue or inaccurate in some regard. My recommendation to this individual was that you're dealing with a leaky ceiling. And this small leak, this medium-sized leak is going to widen if we don't address this head-on right now and have what I'd like to talk, what I'd call a fierce conversation, which happens to be a past No Days Off topic that we've covered in a previous episode. If we don't go address this right now, that relationship tension is only going to, only going to grow. It's going to become something that multiplies. So ultimately, where did we land? Uh, tomorrow we will have a conversation, the three of us, the two partners plus me, where I will play a role of mediator. And I'm certain we're gonna, we're gonna work it out and we're gonna put, put it all out on the table and we're going to be transparent and open and direct. And I will do my best to keep emotions at bay between those two individuals. And I'm certain that because we attacked this and didn't allow either of them to begin to truly concoct a story in their mind, their respective minds, we're going to solve for it. But had we waited, it probably would be a different scenario if we attempted to do the same thing next week. So the focusing question for you today: are you dealing with muddy puddles or are you dealing with leaky ceilings? Once you've done that analysis, what are your action steps based on how you categorize the problem that you're faced with? If it's a muddy puddle, maybe leave it alone, at least for a period of time. And if it's a leaky ceiling, maybe go to work on that small leak right now before it turns into something much bigger. Where is this showing up in your life? Where can this analysis help you strategize as to how to best handle your problem? And ultimately, how can we show some appreciation to James Clear for providing such great insight? I love what that guy has to share. And if he's not someone you're following, you should probably look him up. Of course, in addition to following us here at No Days Off. That's all I have for you today. The No Days Off podcast. Thank you so much for listening. And remember, every single day brings a new opportunity to get better. So let's get after it. [MUSIC] [MUSIC]