I carry my rain clouds and my sunshine with me. The weather patterns are often governed by where I go not where I am. This realisation is not new but it came to me again last week in different ways. I could observe some familiar old patterns emerging in my life. I tend to over analyse, want more information than what is often needed to decide and that often slows me down.
I was working with a new set of colleagues on an exciting new assignment and at the end of a meeting, as we were walking out of the room, one of them said to me “Do you think we are over complicating things… maybe we should just….”. This reminded me of Occam’s Razor – a principle attributed to the 14th century logician and Franciscan friar William of Ockham “If you have two equally likely solutions to a problem, choose the simplest”. Keeping it simple is not easy, and complex does not always mean its better.
This comment really got me thinking, “was I over complicating things?” the answer I got was “no Nikhil, we do need to do the analysis before we begin work to ensure that our recommendations have depth”. But Instagram wisdom once again prompted me to have a rethink on this position. I came across this image about what we need to get started on a project, as I was scrolling through my feed.
I am learning that attention to detail and depth of analysis can go hand in hand with speed of decision making and quick, yet quality work. It requires me to re-orient and shift my mindset. I am learning to explore new ways of doing things and not falling back into old patterns just because that is the way I have always done things.
A shift in environment is a good wake up call, but it is easy to fall back into old patters. I need to shift my mindset and stay alert to new opportunities. That one comment and an Instagram post reminded me that I must push and pull and nudge and cajole myself out of some comfort zones and be willing to embrace and try new things. I can do all of this while holding on to the underlying principles and values and frameworks that have served me well.
Shifting places is not enough, in this case, I need a shift in pace as well.
Time to shift gears and move forward.
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A trusted coaching and communications professional, Nikhil Dey is a certified life and leadership coach (International Coach Federation - ICF). Nurturing talent and helping clients achieve their goals is what makes him happy. He loves learning from students of communication, teaching courses and guest lecturing at various educational institutions. When he is not working you will find him on the tennis court or out for long walks with his family and four legged friends.
Previously he has held senior leadership positions at Weber Shandwick and Genesis BCW.
He can be reached on twitter @deydreaming
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