Fun + Effort > Outcomes
A couple of years ago, I decided that I needed a new hobby. Something to get me out, active, and meet new people. I settled on dog agility. If this is new for you, it’s essentially training your dog to complete an obstacle course.
I had a pair of wonderful, yet completely unsuitable older dogs at home. So this meant I needed to get a new dog. Talk about commitment to a hobby! I did some soul searching, and found an Irish Setter most closely suited my lifestyle, and of course, they match my hair. ;)
Ruby Rhod entered our lives and immediately took over. Over the next two years, we started in obedience training, then moved on to agility. What most people don’t realize, is that this is not a quick hobby. It’s also not a hobby that you can control. Your dog will take the time that they need, to adjust, and of course - teach you what to do.
Because that two years worth of training, was really about training me, the human. Ruby, ever demanding, was hilariously fun. I was the one that needed to put in all the effort.
Two weeks ago, we entered our first ever agility trial. It was designed for new dogs, and was half the number of obstacles and a much more confined area that full agility.
I am a high performing, over-achiever in my daily life. I am always giving the effort, and always pushing towards the goal. With this hobby, I decided to take a completely different stance. I made our slogan, “Mediocre and Magnificent!”
What I found, was that while I was still putting in all the effort - going into dog school, even in the pitch dark during winter. Going to the gym more so I could improve my sprints. Struggling to memorize how I should place my shoulders and point my toes even while running as fast as possible. For me, by setting the bar at ‘mediocre',’ I didn’t put in less effort. Instead, I got to bring fun into the mix.
A huge revelation - this wasn’t life or death, this was just fun with my dog. Typing that out, it seems silly. But for a hyper-achiever, this was a huge undertaking. We could actually be really bad at it. And that’s perfectly okay.
Fast forward to the trial. This was my first real test of the effort that we had put in over the last two years. Ruby completed her first run flawlessly. Then, nature struck, and she pooped in front of everyone. She was mortified. But listen, we all get performance anxiety in front of an audience. I chose to laugh and celebrate her anyway as if she won.
The second run, she absolutely stared me down and WOULD NOT do an obstacle. She had already done it, thank you very much. All of my efforts, training, and tricks that I had learned did not work. What could I do? Once again, we did not pass the trial. I decided to laugh, have fun with it, and celebrate her as if we won.
Now it’s time for our third run. We struggled a bit and went in the tunnel backwards. Whoops! We lost five points. But overall, we passed! I celebrated her the exact same as the first two runs.
For Ruby and me, the effort equaled fun. Not the outcome.
Our fourth run came. She was a lightning rod of speed. She beat her time by 50% and took 2nd place overall in that run. And you know where this is going, I celebrated her the exact same as the first three runs.
We didn’t always get the outcome we wanted. We failed publicly twice. But for me and Ruby, we celebrated the entire day. She did not earn her ACT 1 Title. But she did earn her Jumper 1 Title.
Her mom learned a lesson. Fun + effort is greater than whatever the outcome. And it looks like Ruby and I have some more effort (and fun!) to put in, before spring.
