The leap of faith represents that moving from a state of comfortable known area to an unknown area where risk exists. We are afraid of it but the fact is, the best opportunities to grow, learn and develop exist where you are not comfortable.
I came about this topic due to some talks recently on it and how we can be too safe in staying where we are comfortable. We go into an area or topic, we learn how to do it and we start to get good at it. The more we do it, the better we get until we are very adept. Think of it as some graph, over time, we increase in skill where three things can happen
- We may plateau and stay at that level indefinitely
- We may keep developing in that area to the point where you are THE expert
- We may choose to focus on something else and loose experience / skill in that area
Another Choice
Assuming this is part of your role and you are now very good at it, in fact you are in that top 75%, what is the next step you can take. As above, you could invest more to be in the top 1%, maintain to be in that bracket or choose not to invest and look at something else.
My alternative choice lies somewhere in the middle of it. As you reach that point of diminishing returns. Look to take a leap of faith into another area while increasing yourself in that current area or at the very least maintaining.
As you start to learn again in the new area you have gone into, you will find that, the new skill you are learning will actually support your other skills. This is something I have noticed with skills I have looked at.
An Example
If you are say a manager of a team and you invest and develop yourself to a point where you are good. Let’s say you now take the leap into another area uncomfortable, let’s say presenting.
As you gain experience and get better at presenting, you will start to present better to your team and deliver messages, thus you are increasing your skill level in two area. So let’s add a third and see how it works.
You want to learn about creative writing, as you progress you can now start crafting better presentations with more vivid words and emotive language. When you crafting e-mails or telling a team about a change, you can better articulate it.
No wait, they are all linked, what about doing weights in the gym. Well you getter fitter and stronger, have more energy to dedicate. You also learn about the mechanics of the body, how far to push and ways to motivate others.
Everything can be linked to support each other.
How to make that Leap
There are countless ways to make that leap of faith, take the plunge or get out of that comfort zone. Honestly the way you do this, has to be concurrent with who you are and where you are at this moment of time. All I can do is try and give a nudge and think about how to approach it.
- Say Yes, if there is an opportunity to try something, say yes and figure out the rest later
- What is the worst that can happen, really the worst is usually not that bad, just give it a go
- Even if you fail, you are further along then when you started. Someone who spent 6 months learning project management is far more experienced then someone who has done none
Keep learning and growing.
Blog - Wayne Hooper 