I was 39 years old when I learned to juggle, which sort of proves that you can teach an old dog new tricks. The learning process involved a lot of dropped balls. It took some time. And it was worth it. Juggling has become a source of inspiration and relaxation that can be called upon anytime, anywhere. In addition to being a portable source of entertainment, juggling is also a metaphor for 21st-century life.

You cannot learn to juggle and you cannot improve as a juggler without dropping the ball. It is common for expert jugglers to drop in the middle of a performance. The audience will tolerate a mistake if the trick is truly amazing and if the juggler is persistent enough to get it right. Mistakes happen. In fact, the capacity to adjust and adapt after a mistake is essential for survival in our competitive world. A definition of psychotic behavior is a failure to learn from mistakes; that is, stubbornly repeating mistakes. Picking up and moving on is essential to juggling.

Multi-tasking is another critical life skill that clearly resembles juggling. How do we get everything done that needs to get done? Keeping more than one thing going at a time is fundamental. Outstanding results come from a combination of choosing the right things and simultaneously acting upon them. Knowing that every now and then a ball will be dropped, it is advantageous to have as many balls in the air as possible. Once you get in the rhythm, multi-tasking is more satisfying than endless plodding.

After all the practice and experimentation and mistakes, it is actually relaxing to achieve a good juggling routine.

Juggled things are in balance. It is not grueling hard work. All the hard work was in the preparation. The actual juggling requires a state of tranquility to be sustained. Problem solving is also best approached with a relaxed and balanced attitude. It is OK to juggle your problems. It is also a terrific way to solve them.

Gasoline marketing calls upon many of the skills needed by a juggler. First, you need to be able to put on a show for your customers if you want them to be impressed and motivated to return for more. Patience, attentiveness and momentum are also important qualities to possess and manage. You cannot effectively function in the challenging gasoline commodity markets without mastery of these qualities.

SIGMA’s core values — independence, innovation, integrity and leadership — are exponentially more powerful when simultaneously employed. Similarly, a juggling pattern puts a series of items into motion to create a dazzling impact. The values of independence, innovation, integrity and leadership complement and strengthen each other. They go together well. And juggling them so that they are all constantly in play is the act of a thriving gasoline marketer.

I learned to juggle from a book by Michael Gelb. A former professional juggler, Gelb mixes philosophy with instruction in a way that you learn more than just how to throw balls in the air. His latest juggling book is More Balls Than Hands: Juggling Your Way to Success by Learning to Love Your Mistakes. You will enjoy it if you are interested in learning a few new tricks.

You’re never too old or young to juggle. Although some people learn quicker than others do, anyone with two hands and decent eyesight can do it. That’s the beauty of it. Juggling is fun and mastering it can give you a healthy outlook on the challenges that are all around us.

Bill Shipley III
SIGMA President