The Plateau

Is there really such a thing? Maybe it’s merely an illusion and the truth is we are always either making progress or falling back. How you view the seeming plateau and what action you take will determine which of these you experience.

One of my favorite books is Mastery: The Keys to Success and Long-Term Fulfillment by George Leonard. In it he helps you realize the power of turning the apparent plateau into the foundation for success.

Embracing, maximizing, and utilizing the ‘plateau’ has become an important aspect of my coaching because it’s the downfall for many people. It’s common to become addicted to the growth phases - the times when there is obvious growth, learning, and success. It’s easy to mistake these times for success and see everything else as being stalled or failure. Nothing could be farther from the truth. In fact, anyone who becomes a master at anything will spend more time on the ‘plateau’ than anywhere else. These periods of time, if used well, become the solid foundations (even the catalysts) for the next growth phases and for long-term success.

If you become frustrated and upset about what appears to be a plateau you’ll likely do one of three things:

1. Jump ship and move on to the next thing thereby becoming a jack-of-all-trades and master of none.
2. Become frustrated, obsessive, and try to force growth. This will likely cause you to burn out yourself and those around you. Even if you are able to force the next growth phase it’s often rushed and built on shaky ground.
3. Little-by-little lose ground, feel depressed, and maybe even give up.

However, if you decide to embrace, maximize, and utilize the ‘plateau’, if you decide to make it all about steady progress it can become the missing element in creating the long-term success you desire.

There are four simple steps to turning a 'plateau' into a Steady Progress Phase:

1. Use this time to consciously practice and apply everything you learned in the previous growth phases.
2. Build consistency and positive habits that will serve as the foundation for your next growth phase and long-term success.
3. Focus on consistently making small, incremental improvements.
4. Stay conscious, aware, and ready to take advantage of the next growth phase.

To love the plateau is to love the eternal now, to enjoy the inevitable spurts of progress and the fruits of accomplishment, then serenely to accept the new plateau that waits just beyond them. To love the plateau is to love what is most essential and enduring in your life. ~George Leonard

Here's to Mastery! Your coach, Debra

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