I’ve now been a dad for over a year. It’s been a crazy, at times tiring, but incredibly fulfilling year. I still can’t believe Heidi and I get to love and care for this little guy every day. It’s such a joy, but at the same time can be such an exhausting endeavor. Over this past year, as we have had to get up in the middle of the night (mostly Heidi!), or have had to clean up the messes our son can sometimes make, it’s easy to forget the big picture. The fact that we’re not just cleaning a messy diaper or rocking a crying baby, we’re raising a son. And whether you have kids or not, there’s an important leadership principle here that I think is key to remember: The best things in life are also often the hardest things to do.
In whatever you’re doing, there’s always the easy way and the hard way. The easy way usually involves taking a few short cuts or cutting a few corners. While the hard way will often take more time, energy and effort than you really care to give. And in those moments when you have to make the difficult decision between taking the easy path, or the more difficult one, it can almost seem like a really hard decision. But here’s the reality: the path of least resistance usually produces the product of least endurance. In other words, if you’re truly committed to this task, to this ministry, to this project…if you really want the best results in the long run…if you really want the best, think twice about simply taking the easy way out. Think twice about not having that difficult conversation with someone that offended you…think twice about not preparing for that lesson, but just trying to wing it…think twice about keeping your mouth shut when you see injustice right in front of you.
In life and in leadership, it’s so easy to believe the lie that we should just take the path of least resistance. Can I challenge that idea? Don’t simply take the path of least resistance, but take the path that brings the best results. Because often the best things in life are the hardest things to do.
Nick Poole 
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