The 10% New Challenge
Senia Maymin, PhD
Chief People Officer | Stanford PhD | Data-driven, ROI-focused, people-first leader | Board Presentations, HR Strategy, M&A, Employee Life Cycle
What can we do when days start seeming routine? Remember when the pandemic started, and people joked about not knowing whether it was Tuesday or the weekend? Maybe we don’t have the routines of our dreams. Maybe there are things we want to do, but we haven’t gotten around to them.
I suggest that one answer is the 10% new challenge, which could give us more clarity around goal and purpose. The idea is little bit quirky, which makes it fun.
To watch the entire episode, click here or play the embedded video below.
Examples of 10% New
I have a friend who gives super presentations. People are always asking him to come back. He told me years and years ago that 10% of every particular presentation he gives is new. For the 90%, he has content that he knows works. There's a story. There's a concept. There's an interactive section. There are actions at the end. The 10% new is him trying out new material. He's interested in seeing if what he adds makes the presentation even better.
Since this video is part of the Cello series, of course I need a cello example. A friend has also been really enthralled with cello lessons. For her, the time she spends practicing the cello is her 10% new. It’s something completely different in her day, and it energizes her. She thinks about the cello even when she's not practicing.
More Than a Minimal Goal
Remember that I always ask you to think of minimal goals. One pushup a day. Remember B.J. Fogg explaining in Tiny Habits that people who start by flossing one tooth and do that for a week are much more likely to floss all their teeth in the future than people who start by flossing all of their teeth.
10% new might be 9 whole percentage points higher than what I usually suggest. That’s because it’s a lifestyle change. With this challenge, we're changing something directionally about our lives. Maybe it’s to keep our workshops fresh by constantly adding 10% new content. Perhaps it’s to lose weight by replacing one item we usually eat with a salad. Maybe it’s to freshen up our exercise routine by doing one thing new.
This is about trying something new, tweaking the way we go through our routines.
Take Action
Think about what a 10% new challenge could be, either professionally or personally, or both. Perhaps the challenge makes work seem a little bit newer. Perhaps it is a way out of the feeling that every day is the same. Perhaps it involves reaching for experiences of hope or awe. Think of my friend learning cello. When she watches Yo-Yo Ma videos on YouTube, she experiences awe. With the 10% new challenge, we can open up new avenues, new hopes, and new goals for the future.
This is an invitation to figure out something to do that is 10% new during the next day or week. For those that need a mini challenge, what would be something that is 1% new? Sometimes that means doing something a little bit challenging at the same time every day, perhaps right after breakfast or after the last call of the day. What would make life feel a little less routine and add some pizazz, hope, and excitement?
Photo by Fritz Benning on Unsplash
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