Reinvent Thyself
Reinvent yourself or die.
These were the stark words of my first mentor in an early session in the late 90's and it seems the catch cry of the new millennia in business as well.
I almost had to catch my breath that he was actually saying this to me. I, like a typical young mentee, dismissed his words of "wisdom" like old gum... hmm tastes kind of interesting, but I don't want to chew on it for too long. Let's get on to the part where we kick butt and make money! After all, time waits for no man right?
What is reinvention anyway, I thought. To reinvent oneself. Isn't that something losers do when they have no other choice? I'm here to win. Remind me again when I am 50 and dislike change please, when that knowledge may be of some use to me. Right now I am focused. At least that is what I thought.
"To invent and to reinvent is to be human, it is to be part of the human spirit".
When you are in your early 20's reinvention is no way to think, leave that for the oldies, I'm here to make an impact. Then, and most certainly without warning, life's beautiful twists and turns quickly lead you to place you least expect, no one is exempt. Like an oh so glorious yet timely slap in the face, the truth is revealed. Also, and what seemed on queue, your mentor stands before you with such a warm smile that can so easily be mistaken for a smirk. "Don't worry this too shall pass and you will look back on it as your greatest times of growth". No, his words did not comfort me at the time. Yes, they do now.
I was heartbroken because I knew deep inside that I could have easily avoided this. First lesson of leadership; everything rises and falls on leadership, and I had let those who believed in me down. Everything is not your fault but as a leader, you are ultimately responsible, no excuses. Nevertheless, my mentor quickly averted my attention to the moral to the story I was living, and I am so grateful he did.
When does reinvention come? Does it come when you get a divorce, when everything you have worked so hard for suddenly crumbles into a heap. Does it come after landing in hospital from a stroke? It seems that way for most people doesn't it. Can reinvention be birthed from within?
It seems the only time for radical change is after a life altering moment. Most do not see reinvention as a way of life. Most do not really recognise the kilos posing a threat until it is too difficult to tie your own shoe laces or run around with your children without having to catch your breath every minute. In the same way, few see eminent business or career failure until it is too late. Until you hear those fateful words "you're broke" or "you're fired" or worse still "you're dying". In this, the age of disruption, you can count on plenty more of that happening in every sphere of life.
These experiences may cause us to question our very existence, morals and everything we believe to be true about life and ourselves. Leading us to ask life's deeper questions about direction, purpose and meaning. Yes, the foundations upon which we thought we were building our lives on, questioning and doubting even ourselves. I know it was that way for me. But only because I didn't lead a life that constantly challenged its own psychology, sociology and moral stance.
It was honestly painful, like starting from scratch, learning to breathe again, after thinking that I had advanced so far in life. To go back to a baby like status and learning how to breath was humbling, but then you can graduate to a crawl, then walk, then run, then fall flat on your face, cry over spilled milk... Wait am I breathing right? Start again. I went through this several times in life before I realised that I was subconsciously having my own wax on wax off learning experience. I was reinventing myself without having to wait to fall. My Mr. Miyagi had taught me how to defend myself from life's attacks without even thinking about it. When the falls came they no longer seemed like failures but mere steps in the process. I think that everyone who does not embed reinvention as a way of life into their DAILY routine like breathing, is ripe for a disruptive slap. Health, business or otherwise, it must be a DNA change for it to be real.
Perhaps we can't use the same thinking that we took into the point where we were disrupted, and expect a positive outcome. Maybe just maybe characteristics like humility help protect us from imminent change, success can be a primer for failure and a poor teacher of what sustainable success really is.
"Pride always comes before a fall"
Perhaps in order to solve the problems we face, personally or corporately, we need to change the thinking that created them. Perhaps the problem is never the problem, perhaps the problem is always the way we look at the problem, or the thinking we bring to the problem-solving table. Or the pride to think we can solve them with something other than modelling the change we desire to see.
Perhaps we need a new perspective on reinvention or when we need to enact reinvention methodology. Perhaps we could reinvent ourselves every minute of every day? Perhaps our mind is more than capable of fighting sub-conscious human condition inertia. Perhaps we need to think of reinvention like we do breathing. Do you have to think to breathe? No. Do you have to think to reinvent yourself? No, you shouldnt, it should be like breathing.
In 2017 I am keenly focused to make a meaningful contribution to the philosophy of reinvention by engaging purpose driven clients that are looking to embed strong moral DNA into everything they do. If you would like to discuss or have any questions, please feel free to contact me.