Doing things differently: The way things are done is not necessarily THE way to do them, and you can find a better way
Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash
You want to make a difference and have a positive impact in the world. But are you willing to do this even if it means doing things differently and creating a new norm? Would it help if I pointed out that many of the existing norms got there quite randomly and not because they are ‘the best way’?
“Creativity is the heartbeat of activism, and dreams are the fuel that drives our determination.”
Last week I co-hosted a Nature Connection and Innovation workshop with Forest Therapy Practitioner, Lucinda, from Mothertree Wellbeing.
It was an absolutely amazing afternoon with an awesome bunch of people, and several of us commented how in just those few hours on a Saturday afternoon in Bristol we felt like we were on a fully rejuvenating retreat. If you missed out and would like to attend future events (in-person or virtual), you can join the mailing list here.
A few things came up that indicate why it can be difficult for us to be innovative and creative, and come up with (let alone act on) new or innovative ways of doing things - and why we end up just trying to keep going as we are, no matter how difficult or uninspiring it is.
Is there a better way?
Something that I often think about, is that among the many assumptions people make when they contemplate, and decide against, doing something new or different, is that there must be a good reason why we are all doing it this way in the first place. If there was a better way, wouldn’t someone have found it? And who are you to think you know a better way?
But it’s often not true. The way things are done, is not necessarily THE way to do things. And this can be true at home, at work or even on a national scale.
There’s the story about the horse’s bottom and the space shuttle (Have a quick google if you don’t know it!). The internet is inconclusive as to how much of this is true but I like the point it makes. There are ways that things are done that have nothing to do with the best outcome or functionality, or fit for purpose, or fit for humans, or anything other than some random things that happened a long time ago, that led to some other things and then some other things. And even if it happens to work ok for other people, that doesn’t mean it works for you. And even if it worked for you before, that doesn’t mean it’s working now.
“Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties.”
Is it time for a re-design?
Most of us are desperately trying to be productive, achieve a lot and do things really well. But sometimes we are trying to do that in certain ways, with certain assumptions, or tools or within systems that just don’t support us.
Perhaps you need a re-design. To go back to:
What am I trying to achieve?
what are the constraints and opportunities in my current circumstances?
and what’s the best way to work with all of that, for me, in a way that I can perform best, feel motivated and aligned?
This may actually end up to be a small but impactful tweak. Like when you finally get the plumber in and you have that delightful but exasperating ‘All that time we were struggling and it only took 3 seconds for them to press that button that I didn’t know existed’ experience. OR you might come up with something that means quite a shift from the norm – your own norm and other people’s – including all the expectations about what is important or essential. It can be hard to go against the norm, but then again, it can be harder to struggle on with the norm, when it’s not working.
“If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.”
What are you rejecting?
The internet is bursting full of examples of new ideas or different ways of doing things that were initially rejected – coffee (the devil’s drink), fridges (unnatural and unhealthy), teddy bears (destroyer of maternal instincts), celebrating birthdays (sows dangerous seeds for the future), underground trains (disturbed the dead), novels (sapping the mind) – and which are now so normal and ubiquitous that we can’t imagine not having them (these examples are from entrepreneur.com).
What idea are you rejecting, just because it’s different? What would you do differently now, if you knew that in years to come, it would feel normal to you, or that everyone else would be doing too?
“Creativity is our most powerful tool to shape the world we want to live in”
What are you assuming?
I’ve lived abroad a few times and discovered so many things that we do in the UK that we think are normal or the only way, or the best way, that are actually neither normal or the best – but you don’t realise until you see that other people are doing it differently.
For example, there are billions of people in the world who would argue that the porcelain-thrones-with-toilet-paper, which are the only option in the UK (and anything else would trigger shock and panic for most UK or US-born visitors) are actually a terrible idea. Some of the other ways that people in other countries go to the toilet is often more hygienic, better environmentally, less vulnerable to empty supermarket shelves and panic-buying toilet paper, and much better suited to the ways that our bodies are actually designed to function.
“I don’t get it: you guys are one of the most advanced countries in the world. But when it comes to the behind, you’re behind”
A tip from people who train project managers
Another part of the difficulty with doing things differently is having the mental capacity to get your head round what and how to do it and having the time and space to make the changes. We’re all rushed and pushed and pressurised all the time. But often doing things in a way that you have chosen because it suits you and works better for you than the statistical norm, actually saves you time or gives you more energy than struggling on with things that aren’t really working but they are ‘normal’.
Back in my project management days, I remember in my training being taught that the most important step in the project management process is pausing to reflect. Otherwise you keep going, because time is money and you are under pressure to deliver and produce and achieve – missing the opportunity to check – is the situation still the same as when we started, or are the goals, resources, stakeholders different now? Has anything emerged as a result of our work or this experience that actually changes things? Are we making mistakes? Should we shift our focus, do things differently or even stop altogether? Of course, you also don’t want to flop about changing direction like a scrap in the wind and sometimes the right answer IS to push through or stay the course – but if you don’t pause to reflect you haven’t actually made that decision intentionally.
I have really taken on board that lesson, and I think pausing to reflect in general is so important. We are often under pressure – at work and at home – to be efficient and stay on top of things and keep going and achieve – but pausing to reflect could actually mean that when you restart, things just flow better and in the end you achieve more – either because you have re-committed to the course and eased any doubts, or because you have made the necessary changes. You don’t need to just carry on with the way things are being done just because that’s the way they are already being done. Consistency can be over-valued.
Sometimes people are waiting to have the time or the energy to make the change, when the change may give them the time or energy. Could this be true for you?
“Creativity fuels our imagination, and our imagination fuels our dreams of a better world”
Change can be hard, but it’s not always as hard as struggling on as you are. If you want help to work out whether to change, what to change, how to change and to make it as smooth and working-for-you as possible, let me know.
