• Entrepreneurial Stories
  • The Content Studio
  • Agency Services
  • About
    • About Dave
    • About Melissa
    • About Rob
    • About Linda
  • Our Skunk Works
    • 2 Guys and a River
    • Megillicutti
  • Big Thoughts
CZ StrategyCZ Strategy
Call Us  |  630.248.9129
  • Entrepreneurial Stories
  • The Content Studio
  • Agency Services
  • About
    • About Dave
    • About Melissa
    • About Rob
    • About Linda
  • Our Skunk Works
    • 2 Guys and a River
    • Megillicutti
  • Big Thoughts
space in between change
Room repair. Interior finish. young builder makes a plasterboard ceiling, standing on a stepladder

First Steps towards Change

July 18, 2019 Posted by David Goetz Blog No Comments

Temporary Walls - First Steps towards Change

do overs

I recently had a friend ask, "You work out?"

She seemed a bit incredulous as she stood in our kitchen and gave me a once over with her eyes from head to toe. Apparently, my body image did not project the ideal of someone who works out. I had off-handedly mentioned that I needed to hit the gym before the end of the day, and she was, ostensibly, stunned at the very thought.

She, of course, looks as she did when she was a college cheerleader - and that was four kids ago. She is a dear friend of my wife and me, but perhaps needs a refresher on tact. I forgave her. Sort of.

Whether working out for weight loss or another goal, or implementing another kind of new discipline in one's life, change resists gravity every step of the way.

Temporary Walls

So, yes, in fact, I do workout, even if my physique screams "couch potato." My wife and I frequent a neighborhood sports club, and right now it's going through several phases of a remodel. There are temporary walls everywhere, which redirect traffic and close off workout areas while the new is being built.

It's a first-world annoyance, for sure, but somehow the club has figured out to complete the remodel with minimal impact on wannabe workout folks like me.

What strikes me, though, are the temporary walls.

The excitement is all about the new construction. The new capacity. The new equipment.

But to get to the new requires some construction that exists only to be torn down. The workers put up 2 x 4's and then cover the studded walls with sheet rock, as if the walls will be permanent. They aren't. They exist for a purpose. And for a few short weeks. Then they are deconstructed. Temporary walls are the transition from the old to the new.

Space in Between

I'm thinking again of my friend, whom I mentioned in a previous post (Do Overs and the Courage for Hard Change). He's been on my mind a lot. His old career is gone. He keeps looking for jobs that don't exist. He gets the interview but not the call back. He's middle-aged. Way over-educated. He simply can't pick up where he left off. The market has no category for him any longer.

My friend needs to build some temporary walls.

After the Great Recession, I read stories about those who had lost everything and how they clawed back onto the economic ladder. One construction worker in Las Vegas lost everything at 50, moved in with his parents, and then went back to massage therapy school. And, according to the report, was doing better than before the crash. It's easy to overlook the three or four year transition and focus on the now "doing better than before."

Temporary walls are the transition work, the space from this pain-filled moment to the first paycheck at that next job, when the remodel is complete. It's the interregnum wall construction when confronted with a daunting rebuild. The temporary work is the bridge to the lasting change, the first build before the new.

Tags: career change
No Comments
Share
16

About David Goetz

David Goetz is president of CZ Strategy, a messaging and marketing agency. He is one of the "2 Guys" of the "2 Guys and River" podcast and blog. He is also the author of "The Fly Fisher's Book of Lists," "Native Tongue: Translating Your Message into the Language of Prospects" and "Death by Suburb: How to Keep the Suburbs from Killing Your Soul."

Leave a Reply

Your email is safe with us.
Cancel Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Recent Posts

Celebrating 20 Years in 7 Sayings

Celebrating 20 Years in 7 Sayings

April 23, 2020

"It takes a Thousand Days" - is a Davidiom, a common saying of CZ Founder Dave.

Alla’s Lessons on Hardship and Hope

Alla’s Lessons on Hardship and Hope

March 19, 2020

While trapped in a particular moment in time, Alla reminds us about the future.

Breaking My Brand Promise

Breaking My Brand Promise

March 4, 2020

Al Ries, the great marketing mind, said that marketing is a battle of perceptions, not products. He's so right.

Your Comments

  • Jennifer Cullers on I Don’t Want to Be Joanna Gaines I would be depressed living in one of the houses…
  • Torsten Pieper on Celebrating 20 Years in 7 Sayings Happy anniversary, CZ, Melissa and Dave! And many thanks for…
  • Lucinda Armas on Celebrating 20 Years in 7 Sayings Happy 20th Team CZ! Melissa--thank you for curating the Davidioms.…

Contact Us

We're currently offline. Send us an email and we'll get back to you, asap.

Send Message
CZ Strategy is a messaging and content marketing agency located in the Chicago area.
Make Your Move ... Today
Our Homestead

CZ Strategy
209 East Liberty Drive
Wheaton, IL 60187

630.248.9129

dave@czstrategy.com

czstrategy.com

From Our Twisted Mind
  • Celebrating 20 Years in 7 Sayings
  • Alla’s Lessons on Hardship and Hope
  • Breaking My Brand Promise
  • The Marvelous Obligation of a Leader
Work that makes us happy

Slide
Prev Next