Bounce Back!
Bounce Back!
_לא היו ימים טובים לישראל כחמשה עשר באב וכיום הכיפורים.
- תענית כ”ו:_
_There were no greater holidays in Israel than the fifteenth of Av and Yom Kippur.
- Talmud Ta’anit 26b_
The Jewish calendar is full of ups and downs.
Sunday, Tisha Be’Av, we fasted to commemorate the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and the start of the Jewish diaspora. On the other hand Friday, the 15th of Av, was declared in the Talmud to be on a level with Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year!
As Jews, we’re used to experiencing setbacks, but the Torah teaches us that every setback is an opportunity for growth.
I was reminded of this idea by a conversation I had this week. A friend of mine is taking some time off to focus on learning some new skills that will advance her career. During this time, she will be contributing less and was worried that perhaps this was a selfish act.
This got us into a discussion about how sometimes we need to take one step backward to get us ten steps forward.
Chassidic sources speak of a Yeridah Tzorech Aliyah (a descent for the purpose of a higher ascent).
Ever noticed how an athlete might take a few steps back before the run-up to a long-jump, or the way you bend your knees before jumping high? Similarly, sometimes, we need to take a step back if we want to propel ourselves forward.
The same applies to our work. Recently our team decided to take two weeks in which we did not work on new features; instead, we focused on cleaning up our working environment to bring everything up to date.
At first glance it may have seemed like our work slowed down (or even stopped), but the gains in productivity we saw over the next few weeks more than made up for the lost week or two.
To quote Nelson Mandela: The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.
Shabbat Shalom,
Yechiel && Ben