What's In Your Hands? Seriously, Invest 5 Minutes...

I invite you to pause, put down whatever you are holding, and invest 5 minutes in yourself.

To do so, please cup your hands, as if they are a bowl, and look down at them. They may appear empty, but in reality, many items reside in your hands. Unfortunately, just as fish discover water last, we too often fail to realize what we already have. 

Think about the things you are holding in your hands. These are the items you have to offer both at work and in your broader life.

These items include, but are by no means limited to, your:

• Attitude
• Capabilities
• Reputation
• History
• Relationships
• Skills
• Etc.

Now, take a moment to assess what you hold by asking (and answering) a few quick questions:

• How well are the things you currently hold serving you? Maybe they are helping you to achieve desired results, or holding you back…
• Is there something you should put down? Perhaps this item helped you to get where you are, but won’t get you where you need to go next…
• Is there something you should pick up? Conceivably there are some items that you’re lacking that you should invest time to put into your hands…

If there are some items you’d like to put down or pick up, I suggest you do four things:

1. Pause: Before you put down/pick up anything, pause to assess. Ask others to help you with that decision.
2. Plan: For those items that pass step one, create a realistic plan to do it. Many of the items in your hands are habits, learned behaviors, or deeply entrenched beliefs. Putting them down and picking up new ones will be hard. It’s tough work. Don’t underestimate how wired your brain is to sustain inertia.
3. Perform: One item at a time, deliberately put down/pick up an item. Don’t try to move too many things at once – you will likely let go of things you don’t intend to drop.
4. Partner: Find an accountability partner to work with as you perform your plans. Perhaps this person is one of the people you consulted with in step one. Meet frequently, check progress, and stay on track.

Consider taking a moment to to share this article with two other people and challenge them to do the same. It will only take a moment to do it, and it may very well make a difference to someone in your life.

I wish you all the best as you work to evaluate, empty, or enhance the items you hold in your hands.

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Best - Patrick