Think beyond

Do you think Bill Gates thinks there is a box? Or Warren Buffet? Do you think Muhammad Ali thought there was a box? What about Sir Richard Branson? How do you think Tiger Woods or Roger Federer would feel if they thought they had to operate within ‘the box’?

Very often, I hear business leaders, I mean “normal” business leaders, not people whose names we all know, talk about “thinking outside the box.” This phrase is used frequently in business, whether it relates to problem solving or innovation. A lot of business people talk about it, very few catch up with what is in fact not much of a challenge. What very few have realized is that there is no box!

Only special people, exceptionally successful people, in other words, not normal people, realize this fact. That is why we all know their names – they are way above the rest of us.

There is no box, except the box that we create for ourselves. From a very young age, society and education create a box for us, and since we are all in the box together, it seems to be fine. “Get a good education” (Bill Gates dropped out of college) or “Get a good job” (Richard Branson left school when he was sixteen and started Student magazine).

When you get a good job, they teach you how to be a “team player”, which really means “Don’t do anything that might upset anyone else on the team, follow the rules, and for God’s sake don’t do anything unusual. or innovative “. And of course organizations have a “corporate culture” which means “this is how we do things here: conform.”

So the box, into which he has effortlessly slipped, is all around him, supported by the unconscious behavior of all the other clones. And when I hear people talk about “thinking outside the box,” I know for a fact that most of them never will.

It doesn’t matter “thinking outside the box”, what about living outside of it?

The Buddha knew there was no box, it only took him a while to experience it. And the people I mentioned already had some clue, though, perhaps, only in relation to certain aspects of their lives, where they were most driven towards achieving their goals.

The box you live in, the box you think inside, was created for you during your formative years: at home, at school, at university, at your first job or two. It is based on what other people told you and, like a sheep, you have settled, you have followed it. The blind have been leading the blind.

Time to get out of the box.

But actually, you know how to do it, we all do it from time to time, not realizing that we are free! For example, I mentioned troubleshooting earlier. When are you most likely to think of a solution to something that has been bothering you? When you are not thinking about it, of course! When you are in the bathroom, in the bathroom or brushing your teeth.

Of course, you’re not working as a team in the bathroom – corporate culture never squeezes your toothbrush! Solve problems when it accidentally falls out of the box. What you should be able to do is get out of the box when you decide to; who knows, you might even be left out and in doing so realize that there was never really a box.

Artists, scientists and inventors also come out of the box: Picasso called it inspiration, Thomas Edison cultivated his ability to wander when he felt like it. You have to do the same.

How? Well, does ‘sitting on the toilet’ give you a hint? We need to make room in our lives to do nothing, to daydream (which is completely different from being distracted or letting the mind wander, but other articles are about this). The Buddha became enlightened when he was sitting under a tree. Newton discovered gravity while doing the same.

The best way to get inspired, to come up with innovative ideas, to solve problems in innovative ways, is to take a step back from what you are doing, slow down, give your mind the space it needs to get inspired. And do this as an integral part of your daily life.

I am not talking about power naps, nor am I talking about meditating in the conventional sense, nor am I suggesting that you go for a walk to think things over. I suggest to you, to all my clients, that you spend a little time most days sitting, by the river or canal, in a sidewalk cafe, on your patio or balcony at night, and not doing absolutely nothing.

You may be surprised what comes to mind.

Copyright (c) 2009 Willie Horton