In his 2013 bestselling book Blink, Malcolm Gladwell demonstrates the fact that we already know the answers to the most challenging questions we have, the instant they arrive on the scene. Doesn’t matter if it’s what agent to sign with, which web expert to hire, which drum set to buy, what videos to upload or when to finally pitch our script. The instant the challenge is presented, the solution is standing at attention right next to it.
However, at that moment, what happens to most of us crazy genius treps is the fog rolls in and doubt and uncertainly cloud things up. Followed shortly thereafter with either procrastination, a white flag, or “this must turn out exactly the way I want.”
Important because I’ve seen it so many times in the smartest CEO’s and the most talented artists who ultimately get stuck in a thinking called “my way or the highway.” Not like holding out for what they believe, more like refusing to budge because they can’t fathom any other way. And I think to the degree that we can let go of “the way it has to be” and patiently and intelligently remain open to the field of unlimited possibilities, to that degree the best choice will bubble up and reveal itself. Not like magic, more like trust. Because in my experience, what’s usually buried behind “this must turn out a certain way,” is the best way it ought to turn out.