Its OK To Ask For Directions. Really.

Seth Godin, in one of his recent blogs was talking about starting projects and getting stuff done.  His main point was: “Not enough people believe they are capable of productive initiative.” 

And that’s kind of a sad conclusion that he comes to and while I deeply respect my hero, Seth, I kind of disagree with him. I think people sometimes believe they are more capable than they actually are; if not why do so many restaurants fail? Why do so many new products fail?

Maybe it’s because so many people get into new products or new services or new businesses without really doing their homework and planning their plan.  In fact, they all too often will answer questions about the business with such hackneyed expressions as: “That’s a no brainer” or “Oh, I can do that, it's a slam dunk.”  Or worse, “Easy, it's a done deal.”

Yikes. What is happening here?

Are our egos so frail that we cannot admit that we can’t say what we don’t know nor can we even ask for assistance? No, in some instances we would rather go down with the ship then ask for help… or directions.

If you are capable of productive initiative and have covered as many bases as you can and feel confident, then go do it.

But if you’re not, at least ask for directions. 

Or you can always call me. That’s what I do. Help provide input, direction and planning expertise. 

"What If We Did...."

Going on vacation is not what it used to be. Even if it is for a few days.  Before cellphones, computers, text messages and other 21st century communication technology, we simply called our clients or faxed them a brief note that went something like this:

"We'll be on vacation the week of ____ and if you have any questions, please call   ________.  We'll be checking in almost every day so if you need us, please leave a message with (name of assistant) and we'll get back to you as soon as possible"

And off we went.

Not so simple anymore. The expectations to always be connected and always available are paramount. And when you are not, there is an element of "what-the-heck, where-is-he-frustration" that sets in.  This does not make for good communications, happy customers, clients or business partners.

Now when we go on vacation, we are never really disconnected, no more than if we we were in our office. Only now we sit under an umbrella,  drinking some silly drink with a parasol in it,  working.

It's the "New American Vacation."

I wonder what would happen if everyone in the country put their cellphones down for one minute every day.  No talking. No texting. No emailing. There would be absolutely no communication and total silence. It would be a one minute vacation every day.

What would you do during that one minute?  Here are some random ideas?

1. forget to turn off your phone
2. wait for it to end
3. think of something new
4. think of something old
5. remember something to do
6. pray
7. laugh
8. smile
9. cry
10. scowl
11. smile
12. blow your nose
13. cough
14. write
15. eat
16. drink
17. go to the bathroom
18. cut your finger nails
19. read
20. drive
21. work on computer
22. listen to radio, i pod, i pad
23. watch TV, computer
24. run
25. jump
26. walk
27. skip
28. do math problems
29. spell something
30. meditate
31. do yoga
32. take your pulse

Would you think about the business for that one minute with no distractions?  Would you find another 14 minutes to have no interruptions;  no communications and just clear out your head to think about "what if we did...."

And then after the first month, you find 30 minutes a day.  I'll bet you would get some breakthroughs.  For those of you non believers who say, "Who has the time for a half hour a day?" I humbly say, "My friend, if you don't have the time, then you have no priorities!"

But back to the question, what WOULD you do with that one minute, or fifteen minutes or thirty minutes?