In last week’s post, we talked about why waiting—putting off our goals and dreams until some arbitrary future date—is often a waste of precious time. Sometimes, all we need is to look at things in a completely new way.
A few years ago I had a great coach named Jeremy Stover. I told him to hold me accountable in the strictest possible way and not spare my feelings—if I started to weenie out about anything, he should hit me in the head with a two by four. I didn’t want to play small anymore.
One day, I made the mistake of bringing up a book idea. It would explain my philosophy and be a sort of brochure for my own coaching business. Jeremy said, “Can you have an outline to me by the weekend?”
I thought, “Oh shit, I shouldn’t have said that.” Who did I think I was? I had no idea how to write a book.
Jeremy said, “Think of people who are generally in your field but who you think are doing better than you are.” I thought immediately of Tony Robbins, who is not necessarily my cup of tea but is definitely doing great. He said, “How do you think Tony Robbins writes a book? Do you think he sweats and frets over every word and punctuation mark?”
Yeah, probably not. No doubt somebody transcribes and edits his talks. He doesn’t necessarily write his books; he might have a whole team of people turning his ideas into manuscripts. Jeremy said, “Why can’t that work for you?” That cracked open an illusory wall of rationalization I was using to keep myself from starting a book. I’ve written several now and am working on another.
With perspective busters, the more ridiculous and disruptive the idea, the better it works. Remember, the objective is not necessarily to do these things, but rather to open your eyes to new possibilities. Here are some perspective busters you can try:
Faster
A friend of mine was recently asked, “What if you had to accomplish your ten-year-goals in the next six months?” This unleashed all kinds of creativity, passion, and fun for him. He came up with a great list of things and is now executing them. He’s realized this whole “10-Year-Goal” thing is complete bull.
Bigger
What would happen if you started selling to a much bigger market? Or had a larger product set or larger organization?
Smaller
What if you decided to go smaller? DIY. No staff. Virtual staff. Smaller niche. Smaller market. What would that be like?
Format
Deliver your product or service in a different way, i.e. go from online to face-to-face. Or vice versa. What would happen?
Industry
Apply some principals of your current business to a completely different industry. Or franchise your business.
Technology
Apply a range of technology to your current business model. Think mobile, 3D printing, etc. Try asking a millennial what they might do.
Channeling
Try somebody else’s approach. “What would Tony Robbins/Oprah/Warren Buffett/Jimmy Buffett do?” If you’re not familiar with how they work, think of someone you know who is highly successful in your field—what would they do in your place?
My Challenge to You
If you feel stuck or stymied in any part of your life, apply one (or more) of these perspective busters—or any others you can think of—to your own situation. And I’d love to hear how it goes. Send me an email at Scott@doubledareyou.us or leave a comment below.
photo credit: PeterThoeny Sandstorm aheaaaad! via photopin (license)
