Tales of a Trailblazer

Trailblazers Searching for Normal: A Bit of a Reframe

In the week I've been writing this blog, I've already noticed a theme I haven't highlighted in my own brainstorming about the Trailblazer juorney.

At one time or another most every Trailblazer questions their own thoughts, behaviors, approaches and work goals.

• Why can't I be like everyone else?
• Why can't I be content with a "normal" job?
• Why am I so different? 

Let me just cut to the chase. If you are a Trailblazer, you won't be "normal."

Your path will not look like everyone else's. You'll make different choices than others. You'll be motivated by different passions, values, and results. You'll take different actions. You'll be drawn to read different things, talk about different topics, and experiment in different ways.

As you first notice you are taking a different path than your friends and colleagues, you are likely to feel a bit uncomfortable. You may wonder if something is wrong with you because you don't fit in like you used to or like others do. You may long to go back to the simplicity of a life that's similar to the life your friends and family are living. However, the more you try to replicate thiss life, the more you'll find it just doesn't work for you.

When you commit to bringing a new innovation to your field, you are starting down a new path. As you claim your new direction, you'll create your own style that will become your new "normal." Over time you'll feel right at home with who you are becoming.

Although you may feel alone in the world as a Trailblazer, as you engage in your field you'll connect with other Trailblazers. Their values, goals, and dreams will align with yours in a way you haven't felt before. Finding your Trailblazer tribe is such a great feeling!

Where are you with this? Are you wondering why you are so different? Or have you come to a place where you are celebrating what makes you unique and powerful in your Trailblazing journey? I'd love to hear how you are experiencing this. Leave a comment below.

Does Your Work Environment Support Your Trailblazing Efforts?

When I was a young girl, 3 or 4 years old, I would rearrange my room every few weeks. I remember the feeling of getting a vision and wanting to make it so as quickly as possible! Then I would direct my Mom to "move the bed over here" and "the dresser over there." Let's just say I knew what I wanted!

(Thankfully my Mom believed in honoring children's visions and desires when possible! Though to her credit, she did set a limit when my vision included repainting the room. The rule was I could choose a new bedspread and color scheme once every four years. I did hold her to that promise too!)

Years later, when I owned my home, I'd get a vision for how I wanted my space and I'd begin! On more than one occasion I was moving furniture around my house in the wee hours of the morning using towels to slide what I couldn't lift by myself. As soon as my design came together I'd experience a surge in energy, feeling more aligned with my surroundings and able to work more effectively.

About fifteen years ago I realized that my cravings for a shift in my living/working environment nearly always coincided with the start a new creative project - a new book, a new program, a new business.

When I got the deal to write The Seasons of Change book, I knew I didn't want to be confined by a desk chair for this project. I wanted to sit on the ground. So...I designed my desk such that it was about 12 inches above the ground. I sat on a blanket, often with my golden retriever, Sunrise, right at my side, to type in my book! (I wrote longhand back in those days!)

In July of this year I got that urge again...just as I was preparing to unveil this blog! This time, my core desire was to be closer to nature. I wanted a place where I could sit, write, think, and meditate. A bit of an oasis away from my computer, the television, and my phone. As I looked around my office I knew where I wanted to sit, in an area that's ideal for a window seat, but there was a desk in that very location! That didn't stop me, I sold the desk (which I'd never felt at home with anyway) and started envisioning my new window seat!

I now have the bare bones set up (see the before photo). I absolutely love sitting in this evolving space. Each time I sit in the space I'm discovering what else I want to enhance this space. This weekend I had a few new flashes of insight...I feel another layer of the vision coming into form!

As a Trailblazer it's important for you to create a work environment that suits you 100 percent.

• What setting makes you most productive?
• What work arrangement or setting allows you to be most creative and expansive?
• Where do you feel most alive?
• Would you like your setting to change for different tasks? Brainstorming? Writing? Thinking? Doing your work? Collaborating? 

Becoming acutely aware of your desired work style gives you the knowledge you need to create the work experience that brings out your very best!

What one thing do you know about your ideal work setting and work style? 

Respecting the Life Cycle of a Trailblazing Idea

Witnessing the seed of an idea evolve and develop is always fascinating to me. Whether the idea is mine or someone else's, my mind engages!

I know how an idea feels when it is half-cooked.

I recognize when an idea is stalled or forcing it's creator headlong into a mental cul-de-sac.

I have a knack for turning an idea inside out or flipping its components, giving it a new life that is more expansive and clearer than ever before.

Each and every time I explore an idea, I experience a mental quickening. Questions pop into my mind as I begin my initial assessment of the idea. I begin making connections, searching for gaps and inconsistencies, organizing what I know to create a visual representation of the concepts involved in the idea.

I've been a student of this process throughout my own journey as a Trailblazer. I've spent hours upon hours over the last twenty years developing my own ideas into models, metaphors, books, coaching programs, training programs, and businesses. (Truth be told, if I totaled up all of the time I have spent nurturing, growing, and harvesting my ideas, I'm sure I'd need to measure the time in years.)

Although the journey hasn't always been comfortable or easy, I have gained a deep respect for the life cycle of an idea.

Sometimes the initial seed of my ideas comes as a flash of insight. Other times the kernel becomes accessible layer by layer over time. The way in which an idea arrives has no relation to the ultimate value of the idea.

Each idea has it's own calendar for unfolding. I've learned to recognize when an idea needs time and space to grow. Pushing and prodding at that stage only delays the ultimate birth. Like any pregnancy, this stage isn't very comfortable. You know something is brewing within you, but there's no way to access it. All you can do is trust and honor the timing of the unfoldment as it happens.

With any idea there are blind spots and angles I can't see myself. During this stage I must put the idea into action. Whether I'm seeing the world through this new lens or I'm consciously trying out the idea with a particular person, I gain access to those nuggets of discovery. The clues to new insights can come through direct conversation, metaphors in nature, or even billboards. One never knows!

One of the most powerful moments is when you realize it's time to let go of the form of an idea so that it can morph into something bigger, different, and perhaps even unexpected. In these moments an alchemical reaction takes place that takes the idea to entirely new level. It's always a bit unsettling to step into the world of an idea that has come to me in this way. Everything feels different as I develop a relationship with the new form of an old idea.

Navigating this process is what I do; the nuances of the journey a part of me; it's what I love to do; it's what I'm known for; it's how I support my clients in creating deeper, clearer relationships with the trailblazing ideas they are most passionate about.

 

 

The Trailblazer Rollercoaster...Are You Ready for the Ride?

Your Trailblazer journey is bound to have a lot of ups and downs. At times you'll feel like you are on an "E" ticket roller coaster.

Moving forward? Yes.

In a planned, organized and predictable fashion? Ah...Not so much!

In any given week, you'll likely experience some combination of these feelings and states, sometimes in quick succession, other times in more of a drawn out tempo.

Hope... Fear... Excitement... Dread...

Passion... Worry... Faith... Despair...

Stretch... Contract... Engage... Withdraw...

And...the...list...goes...on!

Optimistic... Pessimistic... Trust... Question...

Clear... Confused... Hibernate... Be active...

Inspired... Flat... Creative... Clueless

And...on!

The key to success as a Trailblazer is to ride the roller coaster, knowing that the twists and turns are an inherent part of the journey. I'd even go so far as to say an essential part of the experience.

When you can ride the energy of your journey mindfully,

• Some of your best ideas will come to you when you are at your lowest points.
• The creativity borne of angst will catapult you into new dimensions of your idea that you never would have discovered if you relied on your logical brain. 
• If you let them, your high points will fuel your journey, keeping you going through thick and thin.

If you don't recognize the nature of this journey, you will forever fight the natural momentum of any creative soul. You will try to force yourself to be "normal," calm, and even keeled. When your efforts don't work, you'll feel like a failure and invest a lot of energy in being annoyed at yourself for not "doing it right." And the worst tragedy of all, you might even get off the roller coaster thinking you are doing it wrong.

Give yourself a gift of faith. Embrace the roller coaster. Enjoy the ride! Open yourself to the ideas, discoveries, and awareness that are bound to come your way.

Are You Playing Trailblazer Twister?

The other day I was talking with a colleague about an idea she's been thinking about.

As she described her idea to me she began explaining with passion a handful of topics she's tracking in different industries.

Within a very short period of time I could tell something is brewing within her, but her idea is in a slightly awkward phase.

• She has a sense there's an idea there.
  
• But she can't articulate it... yet.
• When she tries to build a framework to explain her idea, nothing is solid. 

As she talked, a picture of someone playing Twister popped into my mind.

Imagine each aspect of her idea is a circle of a different color, and she must put a particular foot or hand on each circle as it is called out. In the process she's stretched into uncomfortable stances that aren't stable or sustainable. Before long she falls to the floor, unable to hold all the aspects of her idea at one time.

I know this feeling, and if you are a trailblazer, it's likely you have too!

Realize you'll replay this Trailblazer Twister scenario time and time again. And then suddenly you'll make a new connection or assumption that enables you to create a cohesive framework that is both streamlined and stable. Then you'll know you are on to something!

Don't stop! Keep playing!

Honoring Ray Anderson, a True Trailblazer in Corporate Sustainability

I just learned that one of the most inspiring trailblazers in corporate sustainability passed away yesterday. 

Although I don't remember the first time I learned about Ray Anderson and his company's sustainability efforts, I know I was taken by his story. I referred to his story in my book, Green Careers For Dummies. I've told the Interface story numerous times during my presentations over the last four years. I've watched his TED talk several times, and I've visited the Interface site more times than I can count.

At a conference I attended last fall, I had the opportunity to talk with an Interface sales person. He spent 15 minutes talking with me about all he had learned about sustainability, how the sustainability-focused culture engaged every employee, and how meaningful his work was as a result. It was inspiring to hear his stories from the frontlines.

Ray Anderson's journey with sustainability began in a flash of insight. As he read Paul Hawken's book, The Ecology of Commerce, he realized that his carpet company, a petroleum-intensive company, was having a detrimental impact on the environment.

In that moment he committed to do what he could to reverse the company's impact on the planet. Thus began a 17 year journey (and counting) that changed the way Interface does business and became a model for other companies committed to becoming sustainable.

Interface refers to their sustainability vision as Mission Zero, eliminating their waste, footprint, and impact by 2020. They are approaching Mount Sustainability, as they call it, on three fronts: reducing their footprint, redesigning their products, and weaving a culture of sustainability throughout the organization and beyond.

To give you a sense of their achievements thus far, here's a quote from his recently released bio:

'In 1997, Ray described his vision for his company, then nearly a quarter-century old, that stands true today:  “If we’re successful, we’ll spend the rest of our days harvesting yester-year’s carpets and other petrochemically derived products, and recycling them into new materials; and converting sunlight into energy; with zero scrap going to the landfill and zero emissions into the ecosystem.  And we’ll be doing well … very well … by doing good.  That’s the vision.”  Seventeen years later, the company has made significant progress towards that vision, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 35 percent, fossil fuel consumption by 60 percent (favoring renewable forms of energy), waste to landfill by 82 percent, and water use by 82 percent.  During that same period, Interface has avoided over $450 million in costs, increased sales by 63 percent and more than doubled earnings.'

If you want to dig into the details, check out the Sustainability section of their Web site. The interactive progress report is particularly informative--click on each point along the three fronts to view a video that offers further exploration of that topic.

If you want to learn more Ray, Interface, or their Mission Zero continue your exploration of their Web site or read one of Ray's books: Mid-Course Correction (1998) and Confessions Of A Radical Industrialist (2009) (in paperback-Business Lessons from a Radical Industrialist).

You are bound to be inspired by how much change can occur with trailblazing thinking, perseverance, and commitment. May the movement started by Ray Anderson continue far and wide.

Recognizing Trailblazers

About a year ago I realized that some of my green career clients were taking a new road. The experiences they were having and the challenges they were facing were different from those I'd encountered in my 20 years of coaching career changers.

Although they each had a clear vision of what they wanted to do, they were having a hard time finding job listings or opportunities that matched their vision. Then I heard they couldn't find relevant associations or networking contacts.

I have to admit I was stumped at first myself. Then I realized, these clients are at the growing edge of their field. They aren't finding job listings, associations and networking opportunities because there is no "there" there...yet.

These individuals are the trailblazers of a new economic era, envisioning brand new fields, causes, approaches, and systems. They are the ones who are meant to bring form to their own visions. It is up to them to find opportunities that allow them to have the impact they are meant to have.

Trailblazers aren't necessarily entrepreneurs, although they all have an innovative spirit and a desire to bring innovation and improvement to their field of passion. They may do this in a number of ways: taking a leadership role in their industry, being an innovator within a corporate organization, being an activist to change policy, collaborating with people in several related industries.

It's really not the form of the work that drives a trailblazer; it's the opportunity to make a difference in a significant way. In future posts I'll share more insights I've gained from being a trailblazer, coaching and mentoring trailblazers, and talking with trailblazers.

 

Planting the Seed of a New Idea

I've had a seed of an idea incubating within me for a year now.

With all of my ideas up to this point I've always nurtured my ideas privately until I knew exactly what I had to offer. I spent an incredible amount of time writing and rewriting my ideas, finding the best way to synthesize my ideas into a metaphor or visual to help me communicate my idea. A desire for perfection (whatever that is) was part of the picture. I needed to be sure I'd crossed my "t's" and dotted my "i's," before I went live.

This strategy served me well over the years. I've written several books, developed several programs, and trained other coaches and counselors to use my programs with the help of this disciplined M.O.

But times have changed! With the incredible pace of our times and the co-creative possibilities of our social networks, more and more people are launching ideas before they are fully formed.

And with this post, I'm joining in--sharing the seed of my idea and nurturing it in public, allowing the idea to evolve with input from those who find my idea intriguing, engaging, helpful, and even off the mark.

As I write this I have no way to know what my seed will grow into. I suspect the focus, form and function will evolve in ways I can't begin to imagine at this moment. I'm both excited and nervous about the journey ahead.

I look forward to engaging in a deeper level of conversation with you than ever before on my new blog - Tales of a Trailblazer!

Stay tuned for more details.