A Dog's Path
A Dog's Path
Staying on Track and Avoiding Life's Distractions
"The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking spaces."
- Will Rogers
A Dog’s Path
Chasing Influence: Transformational Coaching to Build Champions for Life
People love dogs for good reason. Dogs are loyal, show incredible gratitude, are generally happy, love unconditionally, and have incredible faith and optimism. And, humans can learn a lot from our furry friends.
There’s a story about a dog who once found lasagna in a cemetery (why there was lasagna in the cemetery is a good question!). Years later, whenever this dog went missing, its owner would find the dog in that same cemetery, looking for more delicious Italian food. The food never showed up, but the dog never gave up faith it might find some.
Another trait of dogs is that most of them enjoy exercise, encouraging their owners to do the same.
A rancher once had a dog, Boomer, who became his faithful companion. Boomer always joined the rancher for his daily walks through the pastures.
One day, a long-time friend of the rancher’s came to visit. The rancher’s wife graciously welcomed the guest as they waited for the rancher and his dog to return from doing the morning chores.
The rancher returned and was excited to see his friend. As they caught up on life, Boomer panted heavily with its tongue sticking out.
Seeing the exhausted dog, the rancher’s friend asked, "Which field were you in? Is it far from here?"
The rancher chuckled and said, "No, it's just a short five-minute walk from here."
Confused, the friend wondered, "Then why is Boomer panting so heavily?"
With a knowing smile, the rancher explained, "It's because of his habit."
Curious, the friend pressed, "What kind of habit is that?"
The rancher explained, "You see, both of us walk the same path every day. However, Boomer has this habit of getting distracted. Whenever he spots other animals, he can't help himself. He starts barking and chasing after them before eventually returning. He does this over and over on our way back, which is why he's panting so heavily."
The story of the rancher’s dog has a significant lesson for us. We are all on a journey toward our goals and dreams. We have good ideas of how to stay on the right path and people to help us achieve them, yet we find ourselves constantly distracted by the noise of the world—whether it is social media, negative peer pressure, the influence of negative people, or chasing the wrong priority.
When we allow these distractions to pull us away from our path, we, like the dog, spend our energy in the wrong places. These diversions become obstacles on our journey to our goals. The rancher’s dog reminds us of the importance of focus, discipline, and commitment to our unique path and future successes.
"Discipline is choosing between what you want now and what you want most."
- Abraham Lincoln
Connecting this quote to the story. The quote emphasizes prioritizing long-term goals over immediate distractions. In the story, the rancher’s dog gives in to momentary impulses, leading to exhaustion and detours on its journey, while the rancher’s focus allows him to stay on the right path and reach his objectives more efficiently. Success often requires sacrificing short-term pleasures for long-term goals.
This week’s Chasing Influence tip: Leadership requires a goal-driven purpose. What’s your purpose?
If you enjoyed this story, a series of three Chasing Influence workbooks is available. Stories are accompanied by discussion questions and answers. Each workbook contains 33 lessons to use with any team.
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©Troy Urdahl, 2024