Earlier today I posted on Facebook a little ditty about getting into your “strange zone”. By strange zone I do not mean weird, freaky or far out zone, I meant different, almost a “discomfort zone” if you will.
It seems to me
that, as I visit centers around the country, one overriding characteristic of successful
centers and their owners or managers stands out
That is the characteristic
of getting out of their comfort zone (CZ).
Now supposedly we all work and work and work just so we can live in a little
more comfort, have a few more niceties and feel comfortable. That’s built into
our DNA. We all want that.
But we all don’t want
is to have our zone change, to get out of that comfort zone. And that’s the point;
our comfort zones HOLD US Back. In this zone, things are predictable; we’re
happy to stay there. Unfortunately in
this zone, learning, progress and innovation tend to stop. Change in this zone doesn't happen. We just say “NO” or look for reasons why something new won’t work.
We NEED the “strange
zone”. We need the place where the forest
is dark; where the path sort of ends; and where the waters get murky. We need
to understand that by putting ourselves in a strange zone, we will take our
business and our lives to a higher level
So how do you get
comfortable being “DIS-comfortable”?
Here are four ways that might help
1. It isn't about success vs. failure. It’s about not viewing it as an either or situation because if you do, you’ll never move out of the CZ. Some failure can be expected, but out of that “trying, eventually will come success. Understand that ALL results are good and learning comes from experience
2. In the land of the “strange, everything is new and maybe a little frightening. Whether you like it or not, vagueness, fuzziness is omnipresent. Get used to it and don’t panic; it will get clear soon.
3. Have you been smoking your own tabaccy? If you stay inside your bubble, you’ll lose perspective; your vision will get dimmed and you will eventually “settle for the easiest result.” DON’T DO IT. This is a prescription for failure. Keep challenging your own perspective; reach out and ask other people business people what they see. Read different kinds of books or go to different kinds of movies or go someplace you’ve never been before right in your home town area.
4. Fall on your face and smile. The fear of failure (or sometimes of success) stops us from doing anything. Sometimes looking stupid or making a mistake is the best thing that can happen to us, because it gives us a new perspective; a perspective that we couldn't get just by sitting in our office in our bowling center in our town.
1. It isn't about success vs. failure. It’s about not viewing it as an either or situation because if you do, you’ll never move out of the CZ. Some failure can be expected, but out of that “trying, eventually will come success. Understand that ALL results are good and learning comes from experience
2. In the land of the “strange, everything is new and maybe a little frightening. Whether you like it or not, vagueness, fuzziness is omnipresent. Get used to it and don’t panic; it will get clear soon.
3. Have you been smoking your own tabaccy? If you stay inside your bubble, you’ll lose perspective; your vision will get dimmed and you will eventually “settle for the easiest result.” DON’T DO IT. This is a prescription for failure. Keep challenging your own perspective; reach out and ask other people business people what they see. Read different kinds of books or go to different kinds of movies or go someplace you’ve never been before right in your home town area.
4. Fall on your face and smile. The fear of failure (or sometimes of success) stops us from doing anything. Sometimes looking stupid or making a mistake is the best thing that can happen to us, because it gives us a new perspective; a perspective that we couldn't get just by sitting in our office in our bowling center in our town.
So for 2013,
challenge yourself to gain a new perspective, to take some chances and not be
married to “there’s only one way to do this task" mantra”
OR the real killer
mantra, “WE’VE ALWAYS DONE IT THAT WAY!
For 2013, be a
little strange…and enjoy!
