PushPress Operating Tenet #3: Rationally Optimistic

Growth requires an intentional balance between faith and reality

Estimated Read Time: 3 minutes

TLDR: Blind optimism is dangerous in business, but constant pessimism kills innovation and team morale. At PushPress, we're "rationally optimistic" – we believe solutions exist but verify with data. This balance helps us stay positive without ignoring reality.

Recap: We Dropped Core Values for Operating Tenets

At PushPress, we recently ditched Core Values because we needed principles that would guide real actions, not just feel-good statements. As we've grown from scrappy startup to serving hundreds of gyms, we needed a framework that would help us execute better.

Today’s Tenant: Rationally Optimistic

What "Rationally Optimistic" Really Means

Here's our definition:

"We believe most problems have solutions, and progress starts with the belief that change is possible. We build optimism through facts and observation, ensuring our confidence is both rational and actionable."

Note: this isn't blind optimism. It's confidence grounded in reality.

Following this Harvard research paper on the topic of optimism, rational optimism can only happen when you have a general confidence that’s rooted in truth, your ability to execute, and the resources available (or potentially available) to you.

For instance, if I wanted to land a ship on Mars, I would have to:

1. Understand if it’s possible by the laws of the world and technologies available to us today (or soon)

2. Assemble the team that could potentially get it done.

3. Acquire the resources to get this accomplished.

Without fulfilling all of these at some point, this is just blind optimism. Nothing can materially happen.

The Two Business Killers: Blind Optimism & Cynicism

Both extremes destroy businesses - and they're surprisingly common.

Cynicism: The "it won't work" disease

This mindset assumes failure from the start. It kills innovation, drains team energy, and becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right.

Henry Ford

The graveyard of business is filled with “winners” who couldn't see past their skepticism:

• Blockbuster laughed at Netflix's streaming concept

• Blackberry dismissed touchscreen phones as a fad

• Yahoo didn’t believe in Google and passed on buying them for $1M in 1998 (and again for $3B in 2002)

That last mistake? Yahoo is dead and Google took the market (today they’re worth $2 TRILLION).

Blind Optimism: We believe in this so much that reality doesn't matter.

This is equally dangerous. We've all worked with someone so convinced of their vision they ignore hard facts.

When blind optimism takes over, leaders start "making results match expectations" regardless of reality. Think Theranos and WeWork - they built houses of cards on blind belief, not data.

The pessimist complains about the wind;
The optimist expects it to change;
The realist adjusts the sails.
— William Arthur Ward

Why This Matters To PushPress (and our clients)

At PushPress, we take a different path:

• Start with belief - We assume solutions exist before we know exactly how

• Ground ourselves in reality - We research market conditions, technology limits, and customer needs

• Let data decide - We test every assumption with real-world evidence, not simply gut feelings

• Face setbacks head-on - We acknowledge problems quickly but never let them kill our momentum

• Adjust without abandoning - We change tactics when needed while keeping our vision intact

• Learn from failure - We treat unsuccessful attempts as valuable education, not reasons to punish or quit

True innovation lives on the other side of imagination. And imagination requires belief.

Being an innovator takes guts. It requires conviction that must be derived partially from a true understanding where the world is today and partially on the vision of where the world is going.

AI is a great example of this.

It’s clear AI will change the world, but it’s unclear how to build towards that world today.

If we wait until that future fully arrives, we'll be too late. We must start exploring how we can leverage AI to give our clients an unfair advantage today - even if the path is not perfectly clear.

What This Means for Your Gym

Let's talk real world. Right now, gym owners are panicking about the pending sale of CrossFit. Some are worried about who might own it. Others reminisce about the old ownership regime.

Everyone's asking: "Stay or go?"

This is where rational optimism changes the game:

Cynical approach: "CrossFit is dead. We're doomed either way."

Blindly optimistic approach: "Everything will be fine! The new owners will fix everything!"

Rational optimism in action:

1. Assess reality honestly Track your actual member acquisition and retention. Is the CrossFit brand currently helping or hurting your business? Don't guess - look at your numbers.

2. Test before committing If considering rebranding, run a small test. Change your social profiles first. Survey prospective members. Measure response. Data beats debate.

3. Make decisions on facts, not feelings Your emotion about CrossFit matters less than your members' experience. What do THEY care about? The name on the door or the results they get?

4. Plan for multiple futures Smart gym owners are preparing for both scenarios - staying affiliated and going independent. They're building systems that work either way.

The most successful gyms in our network aren't paralyzed by this crossroads. They see opportunity in either path because they're focused on what actually matters: delivering member results and running a profitable business.

That's rational optimism at work.

The Bottom Line

Industry disruptions and shifts like the emergence of AI or the CrossFit acquisition separate winners from losers.

Winners don't just hope things work out. They don't panic either. They believe in possibilities, verify with facts, and build with conviction towards the future they define.

At PushPress, this approach guides every decision we make. For your gym, it creates the resilience to thrive through any industry shift - whether it's today's CrossFit situation or tomorrow's unknown challenge.

When you master this balance, you make better decisions while maintaining the positive energy your gym needs to thrive.

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Tomorrow: "Operating Tenet #4: First Principle Problem Solvers"