GROWTH...It Doesn't Just Happen
- Cynthiana Chamber
- Feb 23
- 3 min read
I’m a Maxwell Leadership Certified Coach… and I still struggle with this. So what I'm about to say is absolutely true...for me and almost everyone else I meet.
John Maxwell teaches what he calls The Law of Intentionality: growth doesn’t just happen. You don’t improve by accident. You don’t wake up one day wiser, stronger, or more capable simply because time has passed.
And yet, if I’m honest, I can waste an evening scrolling Facebook. I can sit down to “just watch one show” and suddenly an hour is gone. Or I can spend an entire day being incredibly busy—answering emails, solving problems, attending meetings—only to realize I didn’t grow at all. I just did the job.
There’s nothing wrong with rest. There’s nothing wrong with entertainment. There’s nothing wrong with hard work. But growth requires more than motion. It requires intention.
Maxwell is right: experience alone doesn’t produce growth. Reflection does. Learning does. Stretching does. Application does. If we don’t grow in skills, abilities, attitudes, and knowledge, we will never be better than we are today. And in a world that keeps moving forward, staying the same is not neutral—it’s falling behind.
The Drift Trap
Here's where I struggle...The Drift Trap. Drift is subtle.
It looks like productivity. It feels responsible. It hides behind a full calendar. Drift is doing the job but not improving at the job. It’s solving the same problems at the same level. It’s telling yourself, “I just don’t have time.”
But here’s what I teach in my time management training: every one of us has 168 hours each week. No more. No less. How we use those 168 hours is entirely our choice.
If growth is important, we’ll make time for it. If it’s not, we’ll fill that space with something else. That’s not condemnation—it’s clarity. We all have time. The question is whether we are willing to allocate some of it toward becoming better.
Twenty minutes of reading a day. A podcast on your commute. Asking a mentor for feedback. Attending a workshop instead of defaulting to another night of television. None of that happens accidentally. It happens because you decide it matters.
Your Business Won’t Outgrow You
This is where it gets real for leaders and business owners. Your business will not consistently outgrow you. Your team won’t rise above your leadership ceiling. Your opportunities won’t exceed your preparation.
Customer expectations are changing. Technology is changing. Leadership demands are changing. If we stay the same, we don’t hold steady—we slide backward.
Intentional growth is not selfish. It’s responsible. When you grow, your business grows. When you grow, your team benefits. When you grow, your community benefits.
Growth Happens in Community
This is one of the reasons I believe so strongly in the role of the Chamber. A Chamber is more than events and newsletters. At its best, it’s a community of like-minded individuals devoted to growth—not just of our businesses, but of ourselves.
It’s a connector. A connector to encouragement when you’re discouraged. A connector to resources when you need tools. A connector to people who think bigger and challenge you to level up. A connector to opportunities that stretch you.
I have found that I don’t grow in isolation. I grow best in environments that support it.
That’s why gatherings like the Breakout Leadership Conference matter. It’s not just another event on the calendar. It’s an intentional decision to put yourself in a room where ideas are sharpened, skills are developed, and leaders are stretched.
Growth requires proximity to growth-minded people.
The Choice Is Ours
I don’t want to be the same leader a year from now. I don’t want to lead from yesterday’s knowledge or yesterday’s mindset. That means I have to protect time. I have to say no to some distractions. I have to invest in learning even when I feel busy. I have to be intentional.
We all have 168 hours this week. Some of those hours will be spent working. Some resting. Some with family. Some on responsibilities we can’t avoid.
But somewhere in those 168 hours is room for growth. The question isn’t whether growth is possible. The question is whether we will choose it.
Because growth doesn’t just happen.
It happens when we decide it matters—and then we make the time.
Download a free one-page Growth Planning Worksheet.