My latest attempt at something new
Updated: Sep 15, 2018
You don’t have to be good to start, but you have to start to be good
– Zig Ziglar
Last week I had coffee with a writer friend of mine who encouraged me to start blogging. While I had thought of blogging many times, I did not commit to it. Could it be because I am scared to do something new? Could it be because in the past I committed to do many other things, but could not keep up with my side of the bargain? Could it be because I did not want to get out of my comfort zone?
One thing is for sure, it’s not the first time I opened my big mouth and committed to take a leap. But one of the times I did something like this, it literally helped me find the direction towards my destiny. In other words, I was able to find my purpose.
It happened six years ago as I was sitting with my boss to define my objectives for the year. I said, “Boss, how about I do a full-day team building exercise with you and both teams you manage?” He thought that sounded like a good idea and he asked what I had in mind.
“Well, I am not sure.” I replied.
“Let me get this right,” the boss said. “You want me to lock myself and my teams in a room with you for a full day. And you don’t know what you are going to do.”
“Yeah, that sounds about right,” I replied sheepishly.
He looked at me with a mixture of confusion and confidence and said “Approved!!!”
Did I mention that at the time I was a new hire to this Fortune 50 company and was managing an incredible team? When I got back to my desk, I said to myself, “What was I thinking? What am I going to do now? I surely cannot disappoint my new boss.”
The result was my very first Personal Growth seminar, and I totally enjoyed the experience. It was only later, when my boss -- and his boss -- met with me that I realized how much value I had added to the team members that day.
My mentor, John C. Maxwell, often says, “When opportunity rise, say yes to it even if you have not done it before, and then go and figure out how to do it.” There is a different level of excitement and satisfaction when you start doing things out of your comfort zone.
When was the last time you did something for the first time?
