“I was rehearsing a play, and there was a scene that went on before me, then I had to come in the door. They rehearsed the scene, and one of the actors had thrown a chair at the other one. It landed right in front of the door where I came in. I opened the door and then rather lamely, I said to the producer who was sitting out in the stalls, “Well, look, I can’t get in. There’s a chair in my way.” He said, “Well, use the difficulty.” So I said “What do you mean, use the difficulty?” He said “Well, if it’s a drama, pick it up and smash it. If it’s a comedy, fall over it.” This was a line for me for life: Always use the difficulty.”
Michael Caine, interviewed by NPR’s Terry Gross, from her book All I did was ask
This applies so much to what we do; difficulties abound in every situation. People get sick or injured, weather is bad, equipment gets broken. It's about management to reduce the difficulties but it's also about recognizing the opportunities to challenge ourselves and stretch beyond what we think is possible.
Confronting and managing adveristy on a daily basis is tremendous preparation for race days where it's very rare for everything to go exactly to plan.
