Selling reservations for beach chairs at sunrise and after sunset may be challenging, especially when numerous options are scattered across the beach. We might have what is needed, but we are offering it at a time when few people are interested. The breaking traffic update from the morning commute is a lot less valuable during evening rush hour. Selling new camping fuel canisters to thru-hikers at a trail terminus is an uphill endeavor.
How might we make sure we have what is needed and position ourselves where it is needed? Part of being of service is not remaining hidden.
Is an empty beach idyllic, or does it feel incomplete without other people to share the experience with? We can be in the same place, but external factors might shape whether we feel delighted or disappointed.
How long are you willing to wait before you divert from your goals? When you calculate an alternative scenario, what are the key considerations? Do you wait until external forces require you to act, or do you act based on your prediction of the future from prior experience?
We can be at the right place at the right time, or we can manufacture being at the right place. When we are there in real life, we get the benefit of the experience and the opportunity to share it with those who might appreciate it. When we fabricate a fictional reality, we might impress, but we lose the chance to be immersed in an experience that might shape how we navigate the future.
A gravel bike route I have ridden over the years paralleled the United States-Mexico border. The border was a barbed-wire fence, and it was hard to distinguish unless one got within a few feet. On a ride this month, the border is now demarcated by a thirty-foot fence.
It would be easy to assume that this rural tract of land would remain relatively unchanged, as it has for decades. The wall’s construction has altered the landscape and several variables, including how the border is monitored and secured, migration of wildlife, view corridors from border-adjacent ranching communities, short-term economic impact of a federal construction project, improvement of dirt roads to support construction vehicles, increase in visitors, more media attention, among other changes.
When we plan, we often defer to the sense that things will stay the same unless we feel the impact of change in the current moment. One argument for asking generative questions is that they let us consider alternate possibilities without the tension of finding the answers: Whatelsemightbetrue?Whocouldbeaffected?Whatwouldchangeifthisconstraintdisappeared?Whatmightwebemissing? Considering alternate realities offers a pathway to avoid adopting a ‘fixed mindset.’ Just because you purchased the Lego set that contains the pieces to construct the Magic Kingdom does not mean you are restricted to just one outcome or version.
How might we remember that the work we do matters, and that it is not easy because the conditions are constantly changing?
When we think about stakeholders, we can get myopic. We get stuck thinking about the first name we associate with the categories associated within the above graphic. What if we think about the tenth or twelfth Community Partner or the seventh Government Agency? Who is the thirty-fifth Volunteer on your roster?
We often return to the same individuals or organizations as proxies for outreach. What if we challenge ourselves to seek out the weak ties? What if we find those who think of themselves as super fans but rarely appear on our VIP list? How might we expand our inquiry to the next concentric circle?
The first draft is just that: a sketch with a modest sense of form. Feel comfortable with the lack of details and functionality. Embrace the ambiguity and leave room for serendipity.
Just because we are prepared to take off does not mean there is a free runway. How might we recognize that a timeline is frequently the reason an initiative or a campaign fails (deadlines can be used to great effect in the right application)? We might have recently adopted our strategic plan, and our highest priority is enhancing collaboration with key stakeholders. But the projected partners have their own prerogatives, and finding the right situations might take more time than our annual goals forecast.
How might we recognize that part of our purpose is to stay in the game (infinite mindset), even when unanticipated delays make us feel irrelevant and stuck?
The boarding gate is open; why not roll up a plane and fly to an uncommon destination? In general aviation, autonomy is a benefit of having access to a plane and countless destinations that can handle our small aircraft. For commercial aviation, an open gate does not mean a plane, crew, landing slot, and supporting infrastructure are readily available to support a moment of serendipity.
As our enterprise matures, we often lose the freedom and uninhibited programming decisions we made in the early years. ‘Why not try this’ was an opportunistic refrain. In advancing stages of an organization’s lifecycle, we can find ourselves more constrained. A philanthropic foundation supporting causes with multi-year grants typically does not shift its focus to a new strategy overnight. Disrupting grantees and their work might have a seismic impact on the durability of the local social sector.
How might we build in room for the ‘why not’ while balancing our role as a critical part of our community’s network? What if we intentionally used an opening in programming to load up a flight and connect uncommon city pairs? And what if it turned out that all we achieved was to create a story worthy of sharing?
There are times when, while riding a bike, we reach the easiest gear, yet the terrain tests our ability to proceed. We can commit to the gearing we have and do our best to ride on, perhaps adopting a very low cadence or swerving across the road to dampen the grade. Or we might accept that we are unable to proceed and walk our bike until the slope softens. We might note that our equipment is not ideally suited to the route and adjust the gear ratios or even upgrade our bike for future attempts.
Sometimes we encounter the unanticipated, and we challenge ourselves to commit our resources and energy to navigate the impediment. Often, these moments lead to our best stories.
