One of the most important skills you can acquire, for these times and in business, is discernment and the ability to think for yourself.
In the year 2020, for your family, your business, your sanity, and your very future, your ability to ‘see clearly’ in all directions and all situations is more critical than ever.
Clearly perceiving the world and what your business needs right now requires more than reading the paper or listening to media or expert sources. It requires discernment, asking questions, going beyond expert opinions, not accepting things on face-value alone, but doing your research to understand where your sources are coming from, questioning agendas — and most importantly, thinking for yourself. And only then, coming up with your own ‘educated’ conclusions for how to make decisions and what to focus on.
Discernment requires the ability to take in new information and a willingness to discard information as you see fit.
Black and white thinking is not helpful in any situation; it’s dangerous.
We need to sit on a grey fence and be willing to be influenced by new information from all sides.
Too much ‘black’ thinking can close us off to new information. Too much ‘white’ thinking can keep us stuck in ignorance and from taking necessary action.
You may not be a scientist or an expert on a specific topic; you don’t need to be.
Like in your business, you don’t need to be an expert in every aspect, you need to have an understanding of the basics and then surround yourself with experts. But even then, you need to supervise the experts to decide what you will adopt into your strategy what will influence your thinking and discernment is what helps you make those judgment calls.
At this time, what are you believing, what are you allowing into your mind, and who or what is influencing you?
One way to get to the truth of any situation is to look for ‘evidence’ of so-called facts. Does the evidence match up with the reality, do the numbers add up to the reports?
Without this kind of questioning, you can easily fall into groupthink, which is fatal for your creativity, your mindset, and your ability to do any original work.
Original thinking is rare; it comes from courageously questioning the norms while standing up for your ideas, even in the face of criticism.
As an entrepreneur, coach and mentor and someone who values original thinking, I will continue to look for the truth and ask the questions that few seem to be asking. Providing a fresh perspective to customers, clients and your followers is what helps you stand out from the crowd and empowers them to move forward.
I encourage you to be thinking for yourself at this time. If nothing else, it will give you a renewed sense of courage (and grit) for your business and life. And during these times, courage may be all we have.
