Thinking outside the Box - but what does the inside look like?
My business partner read my last blog entry and when he got to the last paragraph, he called me. He surprised me with something I had not thought about - "Before you think "outside the box", do you have to know what your "box" looks like?"
What a fantastic question! And knowing what our "boxes" are is something we all ought to understand before we spend too much time trying to think outside of it.
I like to think of "inside the box" as another term for "comfort zone". We all have our standard way of doing things - something tried and true, comfortable, fits our personality, and usually doesn't require too much brain-power. When unmotivated, stressed, or exhausted we quickly move into that zone because we don't have to use precious energy. It is easy because that zone is who we are - part of our being.
Sometimes our zone isn't what a project or a company needs in order to move forward or create momentum. We are asked to "pump it up", get creative, and step outside of our typical ideas or ways of doing things. It isn't easy. This process usually creates stress and exhaustion which makes us want to quickly revert back to our "box".
The good news is that if you are aware of who you are, what makes you tick, and what causes you anxiety, there are techniques that help relieve stress and encourages you to spend more time thinking outside of your comfort zone. We'll talk about these in the months to come.
The more you step out of your "box", the better and more comfortable you get and that new feeling eventually becomes you new "box"! Then the whole process starts over again. What? You didn't think you would ever be finished growing and developing, did you? Come on!
1 comments:
Wow, this is indeed a great question. One that invoked stern contemplation.
Thinking "outside the box" to me has meant, to think without limits or without the boundaries of a "box." But to have an awareness of what is in the box… hmmm, interesting counter-thinking.
I guess that by default, to think outside the box assumes that you have an awareness of what is inside or of what has been tried before, ergo what is outside or has never been tried before is the thinking you expect. However, it is probably not safe to make that assumption every time, and potentially useful to give thought to what is inside, as much as what is outside. One may find that you get better and more interesting results. Good post! Thanks.
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