Skip to main content

What stops us from trying?

By Bamboo In The Wind

How often do we think we must get it right the first time? What if we don't? We put ourselves down. There is an unsaid rule that we must declare failure if we don't get it right.

All systems around us are built with this industrial mindset. Built around finding faults in what we produce and then declaring it inadequate. Such systems affect how we measure our efforts. We tend to be hard and abandon our actions when we don't get desired outcomes.

What if we rejected such systems that make us think of excellence in a narrow, instantaneous manner? After all, is there anything wrong with not getting it right on the first go?

What if, instead, we allowed ourselves the grace to try again? This time, doing it differently, in a slightly different setting, with a change in the composition, by deploying new viewpoints? 

Allowing us the grace to be iterative in our approach is not such a bad thing. In this world of instant gratification and a mad rush to succeed, it is easy to think that we can get things done immediately. That is rarely the case. Factors affecting the outcome are innumerable, and we must allow permutations of actions to be tested. Experiments require a long list of trials and errors and learning from each interaction. And we must cultivate the mindset to allow for it.

We must continue to know we can offer ourselves the flexibility to do it again. One more time. Until we know for sure if we can get there. Or not!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Choking the communication channel.

By Bamboo In The Wind
There are instances where everything looks in order. Structures are rightly in place. Right roles are defined. Responsibilities are distributed. Bi-directional open communication is expected to take place. And with that, collective work is expected to turn out productive. Yet, when the action begins, everything breaks apart. Productivity dwindles, cooperation is missing, and ad-hoc interactions are common-place That creates chaos. No one appears in charge even though there is someone responsible. It clearly is a sign of broken communication channels. A well-orchestrated workplace focuses on methods to communicate grounds-up and top-down. It encourages patient listening, internalizing and responding rather than reacting. All effective open communication channels are a result of making such communication possible. Often, the structures are set such that you centralize communication of every bit of your activity to someone in the hierarchy. Over time it turns into a permission-based inter...
1 comment
Next »

Top up.

By Bamboo In The Wind
An effort of any kind will stop without a top-up mechanism. The cooking range doesn't work without gas. When petrol runs out, vehicles don't work. In the absence of solar panels, green energy is just a dream. Such issues apply to us humans too. Our ability to work hampers seriously if we don't have an energy replenishment plan. We think we enjoy the most when we do work involving our passions. We think tirelessly doing the same activity will keep our enthusiasm. Like writer's block, there comes a day when our ideas don't work. Monotony dries up the fun. What used to be the reason to be at work feels like the most dreaded place. When we encounter such a situation, it's time to check if our energy tank is emptying out fast enough that we need to land to refuel. Top up is a vital periodic part that recharges us. Different activities, places or people might refuel us with new energy and ideas. But first, be open to knowing you will run out of fuel. Sooner or later, ...
1 comment
Next »

Checks and balances!

By Bamboo In The Wind
Defining a good purpose, setting a target goal and getting people working on them is usually not enough! There are too many aspects involved in getting the results we want. For example, there is an aspect of painting the big picture, working on motivation management, productivity tracking, building experimentation labs, and erecting resilient systems that systematize the workflows. Just putting bodies to work and defining milestones rarely achieves the right results. The other aspects that help march towards the milestones in an orderly manner, they are equally important. At the very least, they make objectives widely understandable and results more attainable. The job of a thought leader is to enable progress and enable recovery. Therefore, it is never enough to have just ideas. Those with ideas also have the responsibility to assemble the work environment in such a way as to create situations containing the energy disperses. Energy dispersal from lack of clarity, loss of motivation, ...
Post a Comment
Next »