The process of starting over is a frightening and incredibly disorienting proposition. Most will find it much easier to try to hold onto what was, will willingly pay the price of a slow erosion of passion, and will embrace the familiarity of what is known. Rare is the individual or organization that is voluntarily and deliberately willing to start over in order to keep their ideals in motion.
Starting over is like changing to a different station on the radio. In order to fully embrace and appreciate the music being played I have to let go of the music being played on the other stations. This doesn’t mean the other music is no longer available – it obviously is and I can always go back if I don’t like the new station.
Carrying this metaphor a step further, imagine we have been successfully and happily dancing to a waltz station and someone shifts us to a salsa station. In order to be able to fully “dance” with the music on the new station – to work in new steps, different rhythms, and to coordinate differently with my partner(s) – I have to be able to embrace and let go at the same time. I have to let go of the timing and flow that was familiar and comfortable with the waltz and embrace the excited rhythms of the salsa. This can be wonderfully exhilarating or maddeningly awkward. Which will depend on how quickly I can get to the point of truly starting over. Salsa is different than waltz… and when my station has been changed – when the competitive environment of my company has shifted – I need to be able to start over in order to sustain our success.
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