The power of UNlearning

Imagine you're an artist and you've been happily painting away for years using the same techniques and a beautifully muted colour palette. One day, a mentor suggests it’s time to liven things up with new tools and techniques and swapping to vibrant, eye-catching colours.

How daunting would that feel!?

Letting go of what we know can be really hard because we’re stepping into the unknown. But it’s on your growth edges where the exciting stuff most often happens, and if you’re willing to take the plunge, you just might experience transformation in ways you never imagined.

The power of UNlearning

Unlearning, for us as business owners and leaders, means letting go of outdated practices, beliefs, and habits that are not helping us to grow.

It's about making space for new ideas and approaches - an essential process that helps us to shed the constraints that are likely limiting our potential. One key aspect of unlearning is a focus on turning judgment into curiosity.

We often make quick judgments about ourselves and others based on past experiences – and this is a prime creativity stifler. But by consciously shifting from judgment to curiosity, we open ourselves to new perspectives and then strengthen these new pathways, thanks to the power of neuroplasticity.

?And if we also add in liberal dashes of courage and self-compassion (for the inevitable hiccups we’ll encounter on a new path) we’re far more likely to develop more innovative, creative, and dynamic approaches to our business challenges.

Shut up brain!

I had the opportunity to experience this process first-hand last weekend.

I went to a T.H.I.S. session - "Thank Goodness It's Saturday", where a small group of women get together and exercise their creativity in whatever way feels good to them.

Sounds like fun, right??

And it was... I love my colouring in books, they're an endless source of relaxation and delight, so I gathered them up and happily trotted off.

BUT when I got there and witnessed the photography, drawing, and art journaling going on around me …the dark side of my brain kicked me down into the comparison trap ???

In a rather sneering tone, it let me know how my “creative work” sucked and that I was WAY below par ???

There was no curiosity in sight – this was ALL about judgment!

?? My brain was mistaking artistry for creativity?

?? My brain was believing productivity trumps play

?? My brain was confusing exploration with ineptitude

?? My brain was thinking only some people are born with “real” creativity?

I needed to “stage an intervention on myself” to move judgment over to the side and allow curiosity to have a turn.

On reflection, I recognised this judgmental part of my brain can show up and rain on my parade in my business as well.

And perhaps, like mine, the dark side of your brain needs reining in occasionally so you can give breathing space to those fabulous new ideas you have on the drawing board.?

If that's the case, here are some helpful ideas.

Four simple practices to explore

To transform judgment into curiosity so you can allow your new business ideas to have their time in the sun try...

Asking yourself open-ended questions: Create the kind of questions that explore possibilities rather than demand definitive answers.

• Instead of asking, "Was this project a success?" try, "What new opportunities or ideas did this uncover?" – as the Design Thinking approach suggests, the right questions inspire us to think more deeply and broadly.

Aim to reframe “failures” as learning: As Edison famously said about his lightbulb invention experience - "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."

• When a product launch doesn't go as you’d planned, take some time and space to consider what aspects worked and what didn’t, and then use these insights as a stepladder to refine the next. C.S. Lewis said: "Experience: that most brutal of teachers. But you learn, my God do you learn."

Diversify your experiences: Give new activities and experiences outside of your usual day-to-day a go ?

• Check out a workshop in a totally unrelated field like art or technology – it might spark innovative ideas you can use in your business. The fancy term for this is “cross-disciplinary inspiration” but Steve Jobs simply said, “Picasso had a saying: good artists copy, great artists steal, and we have always been shameless about stealing great ideas from other industries”.

Be mindful and present: Keep an eye on your thinking to avoid habitual reactions and instead, stay open and receptive to new ideas.

• Consider starting your day with a snippet of mindfulness or meditation to help slow down a busy brain – here’s a 30-second video about my practice I hope is helpful for you.

Being in business demands tenacity, dexterity and creativity and I'm confident we can all cultivate these skills.

I’d love to hear how you’re taming your own brain!

Warmly,

Angela