Give it a Try

You never how something is going to turn out until you give it a try. This weekend my daughter, Molly, gave me a new perspective on this old idea, as my children so often do. On Saturday, she had her first sleep over at a friend's house. She has stayed with her grandparents numerous times; but, this was something totally different for her.

My daughter does not sleep well in “strange” places. She gets nervous, and I totally understand that. It is hard for me to fall asleep sometimes in a bed that is not my own. When I first heard about the sleep over, I thought it would be a lot of fun. But, I did not think she would do it. (I never told her that. That is a cardinal sin in parenting. If you tell your child they are unable to do something, they will believe you.)

Molly would be staying with a friend whose mom we trust and she trusts completely. Prior to the big night, Molly had several talks about the sleep over with my wife and me. She needed reassurance that everything would be fine. Then, the big night arrived. I dropped her off, and that is when we realized that her two stuffed animals were Missing In Action. I know, without a doubt, that I would be getting a call at bed time to come and get her if she did not have those animals. I told her I would bring them back before bedtime. That was good enough for her as her friend whisked her away to go have fun.

Of course, I returned with the stuffed animals and dropped them off without letting Molly know I was there. I pulled up to the house and jumped out. I had my three year old go up to the door, ring the doorbell, and deliver the payload. It was sweet. Jillian actually volunteered to do it.

The only call we received that night was from the friend's mom asking if it was okay for Molly to put on some make-up if she promised to take it off right away. The wonderful thing was that Molly asked the mom to call because she knew she needed permission. You see, she has very sensitive skin and we really monitor what products she uses. She knows this, and Molly did not want to get a rash.

In the end, Molly made it all night (and did not get a rash from the makeup). She got a little nervous before going to sleep; but the mom told Molly that they would be in the next room if she needed anything. She was reassured and did not need a thing. Molly was brave and tried something new. The success of her trying has built up her self-confidence so much so that she was ready to go back next weekend. It is amazing what can happen to you when you try something new. Just ask my Molly.

At Least Try!

Not much drives me crazier than when someone says: “I don't want to do it because it is too hard.” Worse, is the phrase “I can't”. Are you kidding me? Are you that lazy? At the very least, TRY!

Where would we be if the Pilgrims had decided that life in the New World was too hard, gave up, and let themselves die? Or what if during the American Revolution, the Revolutionary Army thought that beating England was too hard? What if the World thought it was too hard to stop Hitler? It seems on the surface that the people involved in these situations had no choice; that it was a matter of life and death; they had to try. Wrong, they still had a choice. The Pilgrims could have given up and died that first winter. The Revolutionaries could have succumbed to British rule, and the World could have let Hitler become its leader. I know that these are extremes, and maybe you don't think they are practical examples; but, it's a matter of scale.

At work, I am currently changing the way that we create and translate our manuals. The changes I am initiating take a lot of set up. This is an extremely difficult process. One that could catastrophically fail. Sometimes when I stop to think about it, I get nervous and wonder, what will happen if this fails. Would I lose my job? Probably not. Would it look really bad for me? Absolutely. But, I can't think this way. That kind of fear can cripple you. It destroys the creative process. So, I don't dwell on what will happen if I fail, but what will happen when this works? When these changes succeed, our documents will be more standardized, we will save money on translations, and most importantly the documents will be more accessible to our customers.

Regardless, the outcome isn't the important thing. It's the journey that makes the person. I can't remember if I first heard that from Zig Ziglar or Jim Rohn. It really doesn't matter. I just know that if you try something and it doesn't turn out as planned, you will still gain from it. You just have to open your eyes to see what that IT is that you are gaining. I've had my share of things go awry and learned a great deal from those experiences. I will be sure to let you know the results of the changes I am implementing at work and what I have learned in the process.