We frequently use the phrase “outside the box.” Perhaps we should clarify what’s inside the box, so we know how to step outside it. My list:
- Everything that has made us successful in the past
- Our self-determined borders about what is possible, and what’s not
- Our right to point fingers and blame “them”
- Our right to justifiable complaints without having to take responsibility for anything less than perfect
- Our preferred levels of stress
- Our views of what’s important
- Our views of what’s interesting
- Our status quo expertise (or at least what we think we’re expert at doing)
- Our favorite narratives about ourselves, and others. This includes our revisionist histories.
- Our fears about change, loss, displacement, insignificance
This is subtly different than our comfort zone. Our comfort zone is a sub-space inside “the box”; the box contains things we’re not comfortable with, but are willing to accept.
The problem with living in the box is the illusion that it’s safe.
There’s a growing industry of de-cluttering and neatness. The primary strategy is take everything out of a closet or room, and then only put back the items which are most useful or bring you joy.
I suggest we take a modified form of that strategy:
- Take the inventory of the box.
- Identify everything which is meaningful and useful – even some of the painfully gained stuff.
- Imagine that all the rest goes into the trashcan, fit only for burning.
- Don’t put it back in the same box. Instead, use them to build a foundation and a walking path to the future.
