Time to stop making excuses

Ten professionals and 10 teams are competing in the 2015 Get Fit Challenge. Who will earn the healthiest marks? Follow along on Facebook and then find out at the In Business Expo & Conference on Oct. 21. This week, IB checks in with Steve Huck, divisional business development manager for Coverall Health-Based Cleaning System, who is competing in the individual challenge.

“Hello, my name is Steve Huck, and I’ve worked for a sales and marketing company, Coverall Health-Based Cleaning System, for the past 17 years. We sell franchises to people who are interested in becoming franchise business owners in the commercial cleaning industry. In my tenure, the office has 10 first place awards in account retention, two of which are for keeping 99.1% of the customer base. At our Madison support center the average life of a customer is 104 months, whereas the industry standard is less than 36 months. Recently, I was promoted to divisional business development manager for the West Coast division …”

I could talk about business accolades all day. But what can I say about Steve Huck, the person, outside of work that is just as positive? I am sure my family, friends, and peers could tell me a lot of great things. Why can’t I see what they see? Why can’t I take my work ethic and apply it toward my personal life to achieve my goals? I find I make excuses for not losing weight, not working out, etc. I would never make an excuse or not do something at work.

If you believe in astrology — and I’m not saying I do — it’s interesting to read about your birth sign, and a little scary about how close to the mark it can be, at least for myself. When I read, “Virgos are nothing if not perfectionists. If given a job, they will drown themselves in it and emerge only when it is done. What sets a Virgo worker apart is he/she will ensure it is done according to the highest standards in their personal rulebook. This is because they believe that if a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing well. Virgos dislike shoddy work or that which is done half-heartedly, which is why they make a great choice when a job needs to be done with the utmost care and precision.”

This is me to a tee at work. So, why can’t I apply that same work ethic outside of work? It’s said that, “Virgos believe that work and service come first and leisure is possible only when other matters are taken care of — which for Virgos is rarely possible.”

I have been traveling off and on for work this spring/summer and have been pretty good — but not perfect — at working out and eating right on the road. As I take on my new position at work, I will be traveling a bit as well. I need to challenge myself so as not to fall into any traps. I am a strong person and I am not going to allow my road schedule to be another excuse for why I don’t achieve something personally. In fact, I plan to use this as a way to meld my personal and professional selves into one!

Meet all of the competitors here and see who wins at the In Business Expo & Conference.

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