For this week I absolutely have to write something about the Olympics, right? In particular, two Olympic athletes from Canada, Tess and Scott, the gold medal winners in the ice skating/dancing competition. If you don’t know them or haven’t seen any of their performances do yourself a favor and go to “the YouTube” (as it’s called in my house) and watch one of their performances. Probably like eating a Lays potato chip, you won’t be able to stop with just one.

Beauty, power, elegance, strength, grace, rhythm – all of the words that apply to masterful athleticism – they have it. Skating together as competitive partners for 20 years they own multiple Olympic and world championship medals.

I heard an interview that they gave talking about their unique partnership and in particular a time when they were separated. Tess had an injury that required surgery on her legs and she was off of the ice for several months. During this time, they didn’t communicate. They both talked about how awkward, confusing and painful that time was.

For a minute I was dumbfounded at the reason they gave for their non-communication. She said, “everything we’d learned about teamwork, trust, and communication – we forgot.”

What did she just say? You forgot?

I couldn’t believe what I had just heard….it sounded really strange, “we forgot.”

And a second later I knew that what she just said is completely believable because that is our human nature.

How quickly we forget the basics – especially when a problem arises.

How easily we toss aside the foundational components of what helps us think and live at our best.

And when we do there is usually a negative consequence.

On a positive note, Tess and Scott did say how much stronger they were as a team when they reconnected and worked through their non-communication issue. Their trust and respect for each other grew and this deeper level was reflected in their skating.

Are there some basics you need to pay attention to? What have you been “forgetting” to take care of? Please don’t hesitate to reach out if something is on your mind and you’d like to talk it through.

This is a simple story but one that I hope you spend a few minutes thinking about and where and how it applies to your life. My coaching experience tells me that there’s something in this story that applies to all of us.

As always, I welcome your ideas and thoughts.

Gigi