Preparing For Possibility

If your memory of the past is clearer than your vision of the future, then we have work to do

Comedian, actor, artist Jim Carrey put it well, he said, "Be very careful of your eyes. Your eyes are great at observing and seeing things." But he added, "They are also projectors for what the conscious mind wants you to see, and if you want to see the dark side, if you want to see negativity, you will absolutely find it." Remember, no matter how thin you slice it, there are always two sides. Sometimes we have to look a little harder for the other (possibly real) perspective. 
 

It is true that how we view things is how we do things. During Covid-19, it is very easy to focus on the negativity, the potential issues to come, the economy, the threats to our livelihoods and miss all the good things and all the opportunities that are being presented at the same time. If we just look at the facts of unemployment, foreclosures, rise in infections, and economic data we would miss the decreases in deaths from flu, the decrease in smog in our larger cities, families bonding together through home schooling, the rise in family outdoor activities like cycling and the rise in new economic models and ways of working.

The danger of only clinging to truth and facts is you block out any chance of possibility. Blocking facts for the pursuit of possibility is something to consider and has reaped dividends in the past. 

Sir Isaac Newton built on great learning from others in 1686 when he announced his laws of motion. But then along came, in 1879, Albert Einstein. He looked at Newton's work and went, "Oh, that's kind of interesting, but what about relativity?” He took science to the next level. And then in 1942 Stephen Hawking came along and said of Einstein’s work, "Oh, that's kind of interesting, but what about the cosmos? What about quantum mechanics?" And he too took science to another level again. All three built on the past to consider the power of possibility.

In sport, you had Roger Bannister who broke the four-minute mile in 1954. No one thought you could do it. No one could do it for decades.  Roger Bannister said, "Truth, facts. Nah, don't think so. I think I can beat that." He did. What happened 46 days later in Australia? John Landy breaks the record. Whatever the English do, the Australians can do better! We go forward to 1979-1980 with Sebastian Coe and Steve Ovett, you might remember both of them beating each others' records. Then in 1999, Hicham from Morocco takes it right down low, 3 minutes 43 seconds the current world record.

Any of you who want to try to beat this feel free to have a go at it but please put it on Strava because if it’s not on Strava, it didn’t happen!

At one of my son's schools, the principal was addressing the year seven parents and he specifically addressed the first 10 rows of the eager parents of these leaders of the future. He said, "Now listen all of you, when your children come through final year and prepare for university, the jobs they will be doing, we have no idea what they might be. They most likely won’t look like yours, so don't worry about grooming them for today’s iconic jobs – there is a high chance they won't exist in five years. Our job here at this school is to find the passions inside your children and amplify them. That's our job. Your job is to pay the fees."  This was a wonderful address. Confronting for some parents and inspiring for those with an open mind.

What I am not saying is that everything is possible. What I am saying is that with positive thinking, a growth mindset and most important of all, positive doing, anything is possible if you are open to it and persistent in your desire.

I see two key reasons why people don’t pursue possibility. The first is a lack of vision for what they really want and the second is they give up too soon.

The vision is the most important. I like to say that if your memory of the past is clearer than your vision of the future, then we have work to do. When the vision is clear, the why becomes compelling and the how becomes imperative. 

Spend time on your vision and your why. This is where you turn problems into possibilities.

I see why people give up on possibility – because they have unrealistic expectations around timing. My experience has been people overestimate what they can do in 12 months and underestimate what they can do in 3 years. You may also have heard the fallacy that takes 21 days to form a habit. It's actually not true. The 21 days came from Dr. Maxwell Maltz. Maltz a plastic surgeon, observed that it took on average 21 days for a patient to get used to their new look. However, in recent times, the University College in London decided to test it, and what they found is the average time for a change to become a habit is 66 days. So, it's 66 days not 21. They also observed it can vary between 18 and 254 days depending on the change needed, but think of it as 66 days being more realistic and don’t be hard on yourself if you haven’t got the change you want in a month. As more evidence takes Michelle Bridges the Australian TV celebrity, fitness expert and weight loss guru. Michelle’s most successful program is the 12WBT or 12 Week Body Transformation. It runs for 12 weeks. Work the numbers out. That is around 70 days, not 21. 

When we open ourselves up to possibility we need to make a “you turn” and ask what could be. This might be confronting and it will test our commitment to our vision. As we do this we also need to open ourselves up to kindness and respect for the exciting future that awaits us because as I have learned in cycling, all good things are uphill but the ride down the other side is always worth the climb.

Rob Hartnett has worked in senior management roles at global organizations such as Apple Computer, Publicis Mojo, Hewlett-Packard, and Miller Heiman Group. Hartnett is an independent Executive Director in Leadership with the John Maxwell Team as well as a Certified DISC Facilitator & Advisor. Visit www.robhartnett.com Connect Rob Hartnett Follow @robhartnett