There is a lot we can learn from Evolution

I’ve been a bit quiet for a couple of weeks and this is for good reason.

On the 9th June, my son Bertie joined us in the world and since then I spent some valuable time with my family and then, found my life had become even more hectic that before.

The truth is I have wanted to write something that captured the experience that is welcoming a new person into the world, but I have been really struggling to get anything down on paper.

It is so hard to draw a comparison with what is arguably life’s greatest miracle. 

The birth of my two children is emblazoned on my brain as highlights of my life, along the moment I saw my wife walk down the aisle and the time I got my first Scalextric set.

Witnessing it is a mind-blowing experience and, it provides some much needed clarity and perspective on everything else that is going on in your life.

For example, no matter how tough you think your day, week or month has been, it is absolutely nothing, compared to what the fairer sex go through during childbirth.

Women of the world you are amazing. I am in awe.

Watching my wife, Jenny, give birth for the second time re-opened my eyes to just what an incredible organism the human body is and how well it has adapted to deal with all sorts of circumstances.

I’ll give you an example - little Bertie was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck and wrist, so he emerged into the world looking like he was trying to punch himself (for some unknown reason, I was the only person at the birth who found that amusing…?!).

You would think this is cause for alarm, but you would (in the great majority of cases) be wrong - it is something midwives the world over see on a regular basis and has even earned its own name: a ‘Nuchal' cord. 

The body has developed several ways to prevent a nuchal cord causing damage to the baby whilst in the womb, or during childbirth and probably my favourite of those is 'Wharton’s Jelly’.

Wharton’s jelly is a substance within the cord that prevents it from collapse under pressure. So even if it is knotted or wrapped around the baby, it will hold its structure and continue to allow life giving nutrients, oxygen etc. to flow freely. 

Therefore even if the cord becomes knotted or (such as in Bertie’s case) wrapped around the neck during pregnancy or childbirth, baby is still safe.

To me, that is just amazing! Evolution has, over time, developed a way to deal with something that could otherwise be life threatening.

Bear in mind, this isn’t a spotty teen genius sitting in his underpants writing an “algorithm”. No board of directors scoffing mini-quiches plotting world domination. No focus groups, no think-tanks or team “retreats”...

Just humble old evolution, quietly figuring it out. 

Evolution is not flawless - it takes (a long) time and it makes mistakes (...several world leaders spring to mind).

But do I think there is a lesson to be learned, in that getting things right and perfecting the model often takes time - it doesn’t necessarily happen instantly. 

This flies in the face of what many of us have come to expect in the modern world. It seems to me we are constantly searching for a quick fix, the latest guru, fad, or gizmo that will improve our lives easily and in an instant.

The health and fitness industry makes a fortune out of this notion - how often do you see the latest diet fad, which we buy in to, lose a few pounds and then immediately put the weight back on plus some, only to then go looking for the next fad…?

The world of technology thrives on this too - the computer, was meant to fix our lives, by revolutionising the way we work, reducing hours in the office and freeing up leisure time. Certainly hasn’t worked for me, how about you?

Since starting Pink Junk, I have been as guilty as anyone at looking for quick fixes and almost invariably, it has back-fired in the long-run. 

I’ll give you an example - when we set about developing our logo and website, we spoke to a company who do that sort of thing for small business, relatively cost effectively. It sounded so easy! We handed over all responsibility and waited to be blown away by the results.

However, the output was terrible and we soon parted ways.

Looking back, the breakdown in our relationship and the poor results were as much our fault as anyones, for several reasons:

1. We didn’t give them a clear enough brief, because;
2. we didn’t take the time to really think about what we wanted; and,
3. we didn’t take the time to speak to multiple providers to find the best fit; and,
4. we didn’t match their capabilities with our expectations

In short, we wanted the quickest and easiest route to success and that was to simply hand it over. Or so we thought.

But without us providing the right level of information and giving a comprehensive enough brief they were always on a hiding to nothing.

What we have learnt over time, therefore, is that for sustainable, meaningful improvement, you (usually) really have to think before you take action - figure out the issue and what you need, assess the options against the criteria you set and then take decisive action - it may take longer in the short term, but nine times out of ten it will save time, money and hassle in the long term.

(BTW - I’d love to say this was the only time we made the same mistake, but it wasn’t and I am sure it won't be the last time either).

So I think sometimes, we look too hard for the quick fix, the one thing that will revolutionise our daily lives or our business and in actual fact, we may be looking for something that isn’t there.

Instead, we can take a lesson from evolution’s book - assess the problem and chip away at it gradually.

Anyway, here end-eth the thought for the day from one very, very proud and happy Rubbish Entrepreneur.