May 13, 2020 – JOLT – Inventiveness… The Mother of Progress

The quote above was from…

a friend and career guide to many, the late Richard Nelson Bolles, author of the long-running and best-selling career book of all time, What Color is Your Parachute?

I admired Richard and spent as much time with him as I could. He was first and foremost a minister (how he began his career) and brought that ministerial warmth to his work. Many were inspired by him, and some still aspire to channel him. Mea culpa!

I have the feeling that Richard would offer that this is a unique time for great “inventiveness” and, given the unemployement numbers and economic recovery prognoses we are hearing, this period of inventiveness will have no quick end.

And that’s good, yes? Who could ever have too much inventiveness?

What do I mean by inventiveness? Going beyond what you’ve known to do or done with your time, energy, attention, and curiosity.

Look, many of us hate change to some degree, and most would simply like things to “go back to normal.” Sadly, I hate to break it to you, but that just isn’t going to happen.

Any “new normal” will be replaced within weeks by another “new normal”…and they will continue for the foreseeable future.

So, rather than have your attention, hopes, dreams and energy focused on a “getting back to” state, how about cultivating a “moving on to” state instead?

Just a few random ways one might be inventive in these times:

–Start dressing up on a weekend night, prepare or order out a fine meal, and sit down in front of BroadwayHD.com and spend the evening “at the theatre”
–Sign up for an online course in an area you’ve always wanted to learn more about (but have been too busy in your regular gig), get trained, and maybe even get certified
–Research the thought leaders in the fields that fascinate you, do a bit of sleuth, behind-the-scenes digging, and find ways to reach out to them with a question or research (BTW, I have a great online program that teaches you how to do this!)

Either way, but in some ways, it’s time to turn your efforts toward moving into this brave new world bravely…and the sooner you start, the sooner you begin reaping the benefits of being a forward (vs reverse) thinker.

In a recent drive-time interview with the CBS affiliate here in LA, KNX NewsRadio, I offered a sobering thought on the next generation of behavioral interview questions that will arise out of this pandemic: “What did you do during the pandemic, [Careerist]?”

Click here to Listen

Need help in planning for your post-pandemic career, business or personal life? Schedule a session here. Crazy as it sounds, what if there’s actually forward movement possible for you out of all this? You likely won’t discern that on your own. I’m here to help you see what you don’t.