Don't Be The Dodo!
Cara Cunniff
?? Workplace emotional culture specialist improving employee engagement, team & stakeholder connection & impact I International Speaker I Former British Army Officer (Psychological Operations) Endurance Athlete I
Don't Be The Dodo.
In the early part of my career, I worked for an organisation where our values moved out of sync. I wanted something different; I wanted more, I had outgrown my role. I felt like my wings had been clipped. I was young, fearless and flightless. I wanted to grow, I knew I had the resilience to change my situation and I wanted to thrive.
The enigmatic dodo springs to mind.
The dodo was actually known as an intrepid survivor. More than 26 million years ago, these pigeon-like birds found paradise while exploring the Indian Ocean: the Mascarene Islands.
They thrived...with abundant food and no predators, the birds had no reason to leave. And so, over the years the dodo evolved; its large size and inability to fly were adaptations for surviving some of the most hostile conditions and climactic events imaginable. The dodo showed both resiliency and growth.
Only in the 1600s did a force more deadly than extreme drought and volcanic eruptions appear: humans. The dodo did NOT evolve fast enough to keep up with the changes brought by mankind. At this point it lacked resilience, it lacked growth and it faced one big problem - EXTINCTION.
So there I was as the flightless employee. I had a choice, accept my lot or learn to fly. To say farewell to my dodo, I used my resiliency and my desire to learn & grow to change my situation. I started my own business... and I grew into my new company role with energy, rigour, self-belief and a whole bunch of excitement. I grew into my new adventure with optimism, an openness to new experiences and gratitude that the experience to date had made me the person I am.
So my message to you. Don't be the dodo.
If you don't like something, change it. Grow. You always have a choice. If you're not happy, don't wait for extinction.
If you want support flying again... DM me. At Thrivewell, we coach clients to find their wings and fly.
Don't be the dodo!
OH YES.. and BTW dodos were actually quite intelligent... they were curiously fearless around humans. Keep being curious but not to extinction. ??
See you next week.
Cara - soaring high, come and join me.
Helping businesses succeed - strategic marketing, traditional and digital marketing planning and execution. PR and Copywriting. SOSTAC? Planner. Certified Digital Marketing Professional. Chartered Marketer.
2 年Love this! ??
Helping you build courage, conquer people-pleasing behaviour and imposter syndrome. Live life on your terms.
2 年Lovely analogy Cara, your enthusiasm is contagious!
Social Media and Leadership Development Facilitator
2 年This is a great article Cara Cunniff, so many people are held back by the fear of flight, that they forget that they have wings
General Virtual Assistant
2 年I hope I can be as strong as you. And can easily change everything when I need to.