Use the Difficulty.

As much as you can! 💗

This week inside the Show Up Productivity Hub, we’re exploring a simple idea that stayed with me: Use the difficulty. As much as you can!

I first came back to this through a post by Sahil Bloom, built around Michael Caine’s now well-known story from an interview: as a young actor, he was blocked by a chair stuck in a doorway during a scene, and was told, “Use the difficulty.” If it’s a comedy, fall over it. If it’s a drama, pick it up and smash it. The obstacle was still there, but the question changed: how could it become part of the response instead of only a reason to stop?

What resonates with me most is that this does not apply only to the big difficulties/failures. Big disappointments usually get our attention. We revisit them. We analyze them. We try to learn from them.

But the smaller frictions of daily life are different.

A delay. A misunderstanding. An interruption. A discouraging message. A plan that slips. A moment that changes our energy, focus, or mood more than we would like.

Those moments can quietly steal the rest of the day if we do not notice them.

This week is about practicing a better question in those moments:
How can I use this well?

Continue below for this week’s experiment in detail. SUPH members can also access for FREE the Difficulty Log handout in the Member Corner — a simple printable to help you reflect on small friction points in real time and recognize responses you’re proud of.

Weekly experiment:

How can I use this well?

Not to glorify the obstacle.
Not to pretend it was good.
Not to deny frustration.

But to ask:

• What part of my response is still mine?

• What would make me proud of how I handled this?

• What would 1% better look like here?

• What can this teach me about my needs, my patterns, my boundaries, or my next step?

For me, that is the real reminder.

I already tend to learn from the bigger failures because they feel important enough to study. But this idea pushed me to look more carefully at the smaller things that happen during the day. I’m referring to the kinds of moments that can still affect momentum, energy, and perspective if left unchecked.

Sometimes the most useful growth does not come from a dramatic turning point.

Sometimes it comes from catching one small reaction earlier.
Reframing one frustrating moment faster.
Recovering one hour instead of losing the whole day.

That counts too.

So this week, we’ll work with that.

Grab pen and paper, your fav app, or check the Members Corner for a simple printable reflection page to go with the theme. Build a small Difficulty Log you can use during the week to notice what happened, how you responded, what you want to remember, and where you may already be doing better than you give yourself credit for.

Because part of this practice is not only improving your response. It is also learning to recognize the responses you are already proud of.

Gentle challenge for the week

Notice one moment of difficulty, friction, or disappointment each day. (Nothing dramatic required.) Just one moment where something did not go as planned.

Then ask: How can I use this in a good way?

At the end of the week, reflect on one “big” difficulty — recent or past — that ended up helping you grow, clarify something important, strengthen a boundary, build a system, or respond in a way that made you proud.

We’d love to continue the conversation on this important shift: what is one difficulty — big or small — that taught you something useful, or showed you a response you’re proud of?

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WEEKLY PREVIEW

Here’s a gentle preview of this week’s daily Notes inside the Hub, so you can see how we’ll explore this theme one small step at a time.

Use the Difficulty

Here is the rhythm I’m planning for this week inside the Hub:

1. Monday: Start noticing the small frictions that can affect focus, mood, and momentum

2. Tuesday: Ask yourself what part of your response is still yours

3. Wednesday: Practice looking for a 1% better reaction in real time

4. Thursday: Explore how to reframe setbacks, especially the ones you did not cause

5. Friday: Notice the moments when your response made you feel stronger, calmer, or more in control

6. Saturday: Reflect on one difficulty that, in hindsight, helped you grow

7. Sunday: Review what this week taught you about resilience, patterns, and self-trust

My invitation for this week is simple: Use the difficulty in a good way. Not perfectly. Just a little more consciously.

And if you’d like, tell me in the Notes during the week:

• what friction showed up for you

• what helped you reframe it

• which response felt most aligned with the person you want to be

• what you want to remember next time

• and what this week revealed about how you handle difficult moments

Thank you for being here. 💗 Feel free to comment or reach out by DM, and don’t forget to check the Member Corner for extra resources and live events.