Don't Risk Playing Safe

The idea of safety is a myth. Nothing great was ever accomplished by playing it safe. We've all hear the adage, "the bigger the risk, the bigger the reward." But how many of us actually take risk rather than settling for the safe bet?

I grew up with some wise advice from an elementary teacher who caught me doing the wrong thing in class. I was confused, because I wasn't paying attention. I was doing my own thing. She told me, "If in doubt, look about." And for the most part, I listened to that advice. If I ever didn't know what to do, I looked around for social cues about what it was that I should be doing.

Unfortunately, I was acting on advice that epitomized keeping the status quo.

The definition of leading is to be different. You can't lead if you're following what everyone else is already doing. And being different is risky! I'm not sure if it's true, because it came from a movie... but I heard that the Japanese have a saying that "The nail that sticks out gets hammered."

Whether it's true or not, most of us walk around trying not to get hit!

The only way to stand out is to create change, and change is the polar opposite of the status quo. Everyone wishes something could be better. Most people complain about someone else's process or the lack of results they're getting.

Leaders see the change that needs to be made and they do it. They don't ask for permission to challenge the status quo. They do it, get results, and share how everyone else can get those results too. Then people follow.

Change something that doesn't work. Fix something that's broken. Introduce something that should have been there but never was.

The only companies that will force you to stop or let you go are going to die soon anyway, so don't sweat it.

What about the status quo are you going to change today?

---

Don't forget to subscribe to get future posts right to your inbox! And there's a link on the main page to subscribe to our podcast as well. We don't want you to miss any of the great content coming your way to help you Start Fast!