A Different Road

"Being different means you are noticed more, and sometimes that has been helpful." - Kemi Badenoch

In a vast sea of white eggs, the Golden Egg is the one that gets noticed.

One of the Purposeful Creative Thinking Methods we train on (and that I use in developing strategies for clients) is

Go Opposite.

Defying convention is often, at first, rejected as ridiculous. But, as Gandhi once famously said,

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."

I am reminded of the first time I saw the shopping carts that are 1/3 the size of a 'normal' shopping cart.

Running through my head was the thought, 'that is the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen'.

Now, 3 out of 4 times when I find myself in a grocery store, guess which size cart I use?

Today, I want to inspire you to begin to think differently.

At the beginning of our Purposeful Creative Thinking FUNshops sessions we share one of two stories.

Those stories set the tone for what is to follow and help those in attendance begin to loosen their mental grip on the ways they think and begin to consider new possibilities.

The following is one of them. It is the preface to a book I highly recommend called You Squared by Price Pritchett.

Try Harder

A True Story

I’m sitting in a quiet room at the Millcroft Inn, a peaceful little place hidden back among the pine trees about an hour out of Toronto. It’s just past noon, late July, and I’m listening to the desperate sounds of a life or death struggle going on a few feet away.

There’s a small fly burning out the last of its’ short life’s energies in a futile attempt to fly through the glass of the window pane. The whining wings tell the poignant story of the fly’s strategy-try harder.

But it’s not working.

The frenzied effort offers no hope for survival. Ironically, the struggle is part of the trap. It’s impossible for the fly to try hard enough to succeed at breaking through the glass. Nevertheless, this little insect has staked its life on reaching its goal through raw effort and determination.

This fly is doomed. It will die there on the windowsill.

Across the room, ten steps away, the door is open. Ten seconds of flying time and this small creature could reach the outside world it seeks. With only a fraction of the effort now being wasted, it could be free of this self-imposed trap. The breakthrough possibility is there. It would be so easy.

Why doesn’t the fly try another approach, something dramatically different? How did it get so locked in on the idea that this particular route, and determined effort, offer the most promise for success? What logic is there in continuing, until death, to seek a breakthrough with “more of the same”?

No doubt this approach makes sense to the fly. Regrettably, it’s an idea that will kill.

“Trying harder” isn’t necessarily the solution to achieving more. It may not offer any real promise for getting what you want out of life. Sometimes, in fact, it’s a big part of the problem.

If you stake your hopes for a breakthrough on trying harder than ever, you may kill your chances for success.

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About?Bob Sager

The founder of SpearPoint Solutions, Bob’s professional background includes over three decades of experience in sales, leadership and training. Combined with creative thinking, he uses that experience to develop business strategies that help organizations increase sales and reduce customer acquisition cost. Additionally, his team of Certified Facilitators train organizations on methods of purposeful creative thinking that are crucial to thriving in the modern?economy.?

Among other accomplishments, Bob is the?inventor?of the creative thinking game, What's the BIG Idea??, author of the books, Discovering Your Greatness and 101 Freaking Brilliant Business Ideas.