Don’t Be That Guy

I had a colleague that I used to work with who had “Don’t Be That Guy” written on the whiteboard in his office. The phrase carried a story with it about someone he had seen doing something that he didn’t want to see repeated in his own life. I can’t remember the specifics, but it doesn’t matter because we all have “That Guy”s in our lives.

The beauty of inspiration and motivation is that they can come from opposite sides. We see those who, through hard work, discipline, and perseverance enjoy the spoils of their labor and it stirs up those same attributes in our own life. We also watch as those around us take missteps, choose poorly, and reap the consequences of the lack of their counterpart’s virtues, and it throws up the warning flags in our own lives.

Such is the case of Jérémy Jurkiewicz of France. He has the pleasure of being such a “That Guy." After competing for nearly four hours in a grueling Ironman competition in Brazil, he inexplicably decided to ‘pull up’ when he was within reach of the finish line. Watch what happened next…

The lesson? You can draw your own, for they are many. All of them end with “Don’t Be That Guy.” In Jérémy’s case, he had the benefit of realizing his mistake in the nick of time, and can now learn from it while at the same time not having to live with the error that could have cost him the race.

The truth is that, despite our best efforts, we all are “That Guy” from time to time. When the moniker becomes yours, here are some words of advice…

1. Be honest with yourself and others … Recognize what you’ve done, own it, and then seek to make it right with anyone affected. Explaining your actions away confirms with others that you’re out of touch with reality and only briefly delays the inevitable.
2. Embrace the consequences and learn from them … Remind yourself that failing means you’re living. Failing is only fatal if you don’t learn from it. Set out to never make the same mistake twice.
3. Be willing to be “That Guy” for others when you’ve crossed that line … Our struggles (brought on by our own choices or otherwise) are building blocks of encouragement for others … if we let them be. Choose to be humble and allow others to learn from your mistakes.