One step at a time

Like most sports fans from Northeast Ohio, I have a borderline unhealthy fascination with LeBron James. As I type this column, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer has his back against the wall. His current team, the Los Angeles Lakers, has lost three straight games to begin the Western Conference Finals, a seven-game series against the heavily-favored Denver Nuggets.

When you’re in a bit of a rough patch and things have been going wrong, it’s tempting to fall into negative thinking. When reporters asked LeBron about his mindset after losing Game 3 and going into the must-win Game 4 of the series, he said “we just have to win one at a time, focus on game 4, that’s all you can really think about... obviously this game is over and done with.”

Have you ever dug yourself a deep hole and thought “How am I ever going to fix this?” Maybe you tried to fix a particular problem at your nursery, and after trying every trick in the book, you gave it up as hopeless and moved on. It’s easy to dwell on what went wrong that got you to this point. But that’s not a productive use of your mind or your time. It won’t fix your problem. If you feel like you’re stuck because you’ve been working a certain way forever, think about how one step can begin the change. Don’t try to fix everything all at once. Fix one thing.

Just like LeBron and the Lakers can’t win three games at once, you’ll have to take it one step at a time.

By the time I finish this column, LeBron’s Lakers may be eliminated. Or perhaps he’s on his way to make history yet again. Whether the results went his way or not, his choices will be dissected, as they always are. But as you make decisions every day for your business, try not to worry about what others will think or say. Just focus on that one task in front of you that can move you closer to your goal.

Putting together our guide to Cultivate this month has me thinking about previous trade shows. There are always so many educational sessions offered. It’s impossible to attend all of them and still walk the floor. So we compiled a list of the ones we thought were most interesting for nursery growers. That starts on page 30.

Remember to pick up your official Cultivate show guide when you grab your badge and double-check the locations and times of any sessions you want to attend, as they may have changed. If you’re an exhibitor, good luck! If you’re at the show, come see the NM team in person at booth 1637.