Often we seek clarity in everything we do. How can we move forward if we don’t know what is ahead of us?
Well, how can we find new paths, new adventures, reach new achievements if we don’t find out how far we can go 🙂
To do that we have to explore the unknown, we have to get lost and go to unknown places that will appear foggy and you will almost certainly feel uncomfortable and unsure of yourself and what you should be doing when you are there. Yet there is where you should remain if you are wanting to take your business to further heights.
So what does that mean practically? Well, you find yourself uncertain, unclear, full of doubt and if you don’t consciously watch your actions – you will find that you drift away so that you can find certainty. But that is a missed opportunity! Stop yourself and go and explore the fog and sit it in for awhile, in fact, take as many of your team with you that you can.
If you feel uncomfortable, spend the first few minutes naming exactly what you and your team are doing. Set out the expectations, explore and see what you come up with. It could look something like this:
1. Okay, we are heading into new territory here, I myself am not sure what we will come up with but that is why we are here – to spend sometime exploring and seeing what opportunities we can come up with as a team.
2. How are you [your team] feeling about this process? What are you concerned about? What do you want to see as outcomes?
3. [After feedback]. Okay, lets set up some do’s and don’ts [think of the old idea of brainstorming but don’t follow that exactly!] – what are the things we will and won’t bring to this.
4. Go ahead and explore / discuss / sound board.
The key insight here is to go in with an open exploring mind because if you are certain / clear on what you are looking for – you will miss the opportunity to see something new or different.