To get to my daughter’s 5th-floor apartment in New York City, you need to climb 67 steps. I know this because I counted. Every. Step.
I went out to NYC for about a week to help her move in and settle into her tiny but highly functional apartment. It was a blast…but those 67 steps!
The first couple of days were brutal. Yes, we were lugging suitcases and moving boxes up those 67 steps, and I would have to take a breather on the 2nd and 4th floors before climbing the “Sweet 16” - the 16 final steps to the 5th floor.
Once, after climbing down those 67 steps, I realized I forgot my sunglasses and had to run up those 67 steps to grab them. And back down.
And even though you can say, “Oh, I’m getting my steps in!” or “This is like free physical therapy!” It was a tough climb to the top. One my daughter and I both dreaded. Especially when shepherding home a strawberry shortcake sundae from SoftSide that’s rapidly melting.
But, right around Day 4 something cool happened. We surrendered to the 67 steps. And once those 67 steps psychologically broke us (and I’m half-kidding), it broke our physical resistance, too.
And we got better.
Turns out walking up those 67 steps with a Zinus mattress is great strength training. And when that heavy lifting is replaced by a cup of coffee from the neighborhood coffee shop, you can just bounce up those 67 steps like boom boom boom.
And when we really accepted that we had no choice – truly, there’s only one way up – it fired up our determination to get stronger.
And it worked: the 67 steps were no longer our adversary. They became our touchstone for our growth.
On Day 7, we accidentally climbed the extra storey to the roof - 84 steps! - because we were so in the zone that we just flew right on by the 5th floor.
When we’re marketing our business, sometimes it can feel like a 67-step slug to the finish line, one that leaves you sweaty and shaking, out of breath, and dreading the next time you need to make the climb.
The good news is that marketing’s a contact sport. And you can get really really good at it…you just need a little practice.
By taking the proverbial marketing steps one by one, resting and reflecting when you need to, and surrendering to the journey, it will get easier. Because you’ll get stronger.
Just like those 67 steps to my daughter’s apartment got easier.
That’s how marketing works in the real world.
Rooting for you!
xo, Heather
