Why Run When You Can Charge? 🦬 The Bison's Guide to Crushing Life’s Storms

I couldn’t sleep. You know those nights where your brain decides it’s the perfect time to replay every awkward thing you’ve ever done and analyze the future in excruciating detail? Yeah, it was one of those. To quiet the noise, I turned to one of my favorite remedies: a nature documentary. As the narrator’s familiar, soothing voice (wasn't Attenborough though -womp-) took me to the vast plains of North America, a story about bison caught my attention. It was about storms and survival.

When a storm rolls across the plains, most animals run. They flee in the same direction as the storm, trying to escape it. It’s instinctual. I mean, wouldn’t we all rather avoid the chaos? But here’s the catch: running from the storm doesn’t work. It just drags the whole ordeal out because, well, the storm moves with you.

And then, there’s the bison. They don’t run. When the storm comes, they turn and face it head-on. They move through it, reducing their time in the chaos and coming out the other side faster. This isn’t about bravery or glory—it’s about doing what works. It’s smart. Efficient. Unapologetic.

I hadn’t thought about this in years, but the memory resurfaced when I read something Maria Iorio, a fellow leader, architect, and urbanist, recently shared: “Successful people don’t shy away from the tasks they dislike, they tackle them head-on.” The connection was immediate. Life throws storms at us, too—projects we dread, conversations we avoid, obstacles we’d rather sidestep. And most of us? We act like cattle, running with the herd, hoping the storm won’t catch up. But it does. It always does.

The bison, though? They show us a better way. The quickest way out of a storm isn’t around it or away from it—it’s straight through. The longer we avoid what’s hard or uncomfortable, the longer it lingers over us.

Here’s the thing: this isn’t about romanticizing hardship. (Let’s be real, I despise that.) This is about strategy. The bison don’t charge into storms because they love misery—they do it because it works. It’s the smartest, most practical way forward.

And isn’t that what resilience really is? It’s not gritting your teeth and pretending everything’s fine. It’s knowing when to face the hard stuff, head-on, so you can come out stronger and clearer on the other side.

Whether it’s a tough business decision, a personal challenge, or even that email you’ve been putting off, the lesson is the same: stop running. Don’t let the storm dictate your path. Face it. Move through it.

The next time you find yourself in the chaos, ask yourself this: am I being cattle, running endlessly and getting nowhere? Or am I the bison, facing the storm, knowing that clearer skies are just on the other side?

Choose to be the bison. Always. 🦬🤎