Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot
On Fridays, I like to share experiences from my week—both with patients and in my personal life—that have left a meaningful impact. My hope is that these reflections offer you something of value, a bit of insight or encouragement that resonates with your own journey and inspires you in some way.
A good reminder. As I was leaving a grocery store this week, I found myself behind someone walking slowly, distracted on her phone, and unknowingly drifting side to side. Each time I tried to move around her, the path seemed blocked again. When I finally passed in a wider area, she made a passive-aggressive comment as I went by. It struck me afterward that this interaction is a pretty accurate analogy for life. When you move with purpose, urgency, and direction, not everyone around you will understand it and some may even become irritated by it.
High performers rarely expect others to match their pace, discipline, or standards. Instead, they focus on controlling their own effort and continuing to move forward. On the other hand, people who are comfortable remaining stagnant can sometimes become uncomfortable when others strive for more. Growth, ambition, and discipline can unintentionally challenge those who prefer excuses, complacency, or comfort. That’s why it’s important not to lower your standards simply to make others more comfortable. Pursuing excellence won’t always be applauded, but that doesn’t make it wrong. Keep moving with intention, continue striving to improve, and understand that not everyone will appreciate your pace, but the right people will respect it.
Something I believe. Coaching football for the past decade has always felt natural to me because I played the sport and understood its flow instinctively. This season, however, I began coaching soccer for the first time, and despite the game being far simpler, everything felt unfamiliar. At first, I relied on basic drills and standard practice routines I found online, but after several weeks I realized our progress was limited. That’s when I changed my approach. Instead of focusing solely on perfect technique or controlled repetition, I began making practices more competitive, aggressive, and unpredictable. I wanted the players to become comfortable reacting quickly and learning to function in the chaos of live action rather than only in controlled environments.
That lesson extends far beyond sports. In life, the more comfortable we become with discomfort, uncertainty, and challenge, the more capable we become overall. Strength and resilience are often built intentionally through difficult experiences. These can include hard workouts, early mornings, unfamiliar situations, discipline, and moments that test our patience or confidence. The goal isn’t to seek suffering for its own sake, but to stop expecting life to always feel comfortable. Growth happens when we learn to operate effectively despite adversity. Just like athletics, preparing only under perfect conditions leaves us unready for real competition. The best approach is to train ourselves mentally and physically to handle challenges calmly, confidently, and consistently when they inevitably arise.
An important concept. Have you ever been around someone who constantly talks about how exhausted they are or repeatedly revisits every unfortunate thing happening in their life? While that reaction is understandable and something we all fall into at times, it’s something I personally try hard to avoid. It’s not because difficult things don’t happen to me, they absolutely do. However, I’ve noticed that the more attention and energy I give to how bad something feels, the heavier it becomes. Repeatedly focusing on the problem often deepens frustration instead of improving the situation.
That doesn’t mean we need to pretend hard circumstances are enjoyable or ignore legitimate struggles. It simply means we should use our mindset in a way that helps us move forward instead of keeping us stuck. The less energy we spend complaining, the more we have available for problem-solving, growth, and resilience. When I was younger, I would talk about my mistakes and difficulties over and over, almost as if punishing myself would somehow improve things. It never did and it usually made everything feel worse. Now, I try to remind myself constantly to stop talking about problems and start doing something about them. Action, perspective, and forward movement are always more powerful than endless frustration.
Something to strive for. On Thursday, one of my friends texted to ask if I’d be doing my usual Memorial Day flag run and whether he could join me. I told him absolutely, we picked a time for early Monday morning, and that was the end of the conversation until I saw him standing there ready to go. There were no reminders, no follow-up texts, and no wondering whether he’d show up. He told me he would be there, and I trusted that completely because he’s someone I know to be solid. Encounters like that may seem simple, but they highlight a quality that has become increasingly valuable and increasingly rare.
One of the greatest abilities a person can develop is reliability. Reliable people are disciplined, consistent, honest, and trustworthy. They do what they say they’re going to do, not because it’s convenient, but because it reflects the standard they hold for themselves. Over time, those repeated actions build trust and confidence in everyone around them. Whether in friendships, family life, business, or leadership, people who are dependable make life better for others because they reduce uncertainty and increase stability. Becoming that kind of person doesn’t happen overnight, but through consistent effort and integrity, anyone can earn the reputation of being someone others describe as “solid.
Some quotes I Love.
“Losers assemble in small groups & complain, winners assemble as a team & find ways to win.” – Bill Parcells
“Gold medals aren’t really made of gold. They’re made of sweat, determination, and a hard-to-find alloy called guts.” – Dan Gable