A friend recently said something I loved:
“That’s like pushing on a pull door.”
I laughed because I’ve done that in real life.
I’ve also done it in my day.
Pushed harder when a conversation needed a different approach. Put more effort into it when the real need was better awareness. Repeated myself when I should have asked a question.
When something isn’t working, we often respond in one of two ways.
We push harder, but nothing changes.
Or we give up too quickly and walk away.
But there is a third choice.
Adjust.
That might mean slowing down, listening differently, changing the timing, asking for help, opening your mind, or trying an approach you hadn’t considered.
The point isn’t to become less persistent. It’s to become more effective.
Too often, we confuse persistence with continuing to apply the same effort in the same way. But persistence isn’t always about pushing harder. Sometimes it means staying committed enough to adjust.
That matters at work, at home, and in leadership.
A difficult situation may not be resisting you. It may be showing you that your current approach doesn’t fit.
The next time something won’t move, don’t automatically push harder or walk away.
Ask what needs to change in your approach.
You may discover the door was never locked.
You were simply pushing when you needed to pull.
So let me ask, where might adjusting matter more than adding effort today?
