Some workouts are harder than others.
Some pieces of advice are harder to swallow than others.
Some advice can feel like a difficult workout. You're glad you stretched your muscles, because you know that is where you grow, but the pain of the process can be difficult.
Sometimes we're rather shocked by the advice we're getting. We go into a call thinking we're going to hear one thing, or perhaps we want to hear one thing, but we're guided in another direction.
It can be met with fear, frustration, anger, or even disappointment.
It's kind of like thinking all along you are going to eat Italian food for dinner, but when the server hands you the menu you realize you're going to eat Mexican food. Obviously Mexican food is amazing, but you had pasta on the brain.
That quick change of pace can be rather daunting.
This exact situation happened on a coaching call recently. At some point in the call, I completely shifted on someone whom I've worked with for over a year now. Someone I've grown quite close with. I hit them with a bit of a curveball of advice. Rather than going straight down the line and the normal path, I pushed on a path they weren't ready for, or comfortable with, and it was tough.
Advice is interesting, because we want it, we think, but when we hear something we don't anticipate or want, we almost want to un-ask for it. "Thanks, but no thanks, let's pretend you didn't say that."
But we all know that is where the real growth happens.
Maybe we're comfortable with pasta, but damn — we may learn to love those tacos.
Maybe we're comfortable with being comfortable, but getting really uncomfortable may be the right thing for us in the end. Growth often starts where comfort ends. That uncomfortable advice — the kind that makes you pause, bristle, or even question the messenger — is usually the advice you need the most.
It's the mirror that reflects the parts of yourself or your choices you've been avoiding. And just like a tough workout, it's not pleasant in the moment, but the results can be transformative.
In that coaching call, I could feel the tension after I gave my advice. It wasn't what they wanted to hear, and it was clear they were wrestling with it. But here's the thing: as a coach, my job isn't to affirm someone's comfort zone. My job is to help them see the path to growth, even if that path is steep and rocky. Sometimes that means saying the hard thing, the unexpected thing, or the thing that feels completely out of left field.
That doesn't mean it's easy for me or for them. Delivering tough advice takes just as much care and intention as receiving it does courage and openness. It's a delicate balance, and it works best when both sides trust the process and, more importantly, each other.
The real magic happens when we stop resisting the shift and start exploring it.
Maybe those tacos you weren't expecting turn out to be the best meal you've had in months. Maybe that curveball advice leads you to an opportunity you never would've pursued otherwise. The pain of stretching your muscles — whether literal or metaphorical — is what ultimately helps you grow stronger. Because at the end of the day, growth is never about sticking with the familiar.
It's about embracing the challenge and trusting that it will be worth it.