Here’s a live performance by Billie Eilish of a song called “my future”,https://youtube.com/watch?v=1FvEDuWeB4A (3:24) [Billie Eilish, 20-Aug-2020]
In the song she notes that “I’m in love with my future”. This is a break point for her as she breaks up with her current love to be with her self and her future. This break point is a departure from an infinite loop of wash, rinse and repeat or the shampoo algorithm. As Eilish notes in her song, it would be easy to fall back into the comfort of old routines though making a conscious choice to focus on her future this break point reinforces her resolve and brings joy. For us, this is part of self management, management controls, stakeholder management and organisational change management.
Some things to consider:
Checking in on continuous loops. Comfort in the familiar limiting potential.
Opening up to break points. Awareness of recurring signals for change.
Seeking difference. A view of the outside as well as the inside.
What break points are you ignoring? Where are the loops that support / limit you? What opportunity / challenge is difference showing you?
How does this thinking apply to you as a Project Manager? What routines / cadences are adding value? What change in routine could reduce your risk profile? Where are the team / stakeholders going through the motions? When are you scheduling time to look at existing / new break points?
Why is this important? Good question. Accepting routine for what it is can be healthy. Hair washing is a great example of this. When the routine becomes more complex it involves people, systems and places. A complex routine may seem healthy though it may also just be comfort with what we know. Looking to the future may be enough of a break point to validate or shift this routine. A break may require more energy than comfort though it could also pay bigger dividends over time.
For further viewing / reading:
The future of humankind is dependent on Technovation girls (great talk!), Ben Horowitz,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQnDDKDiSy8 (12:39) [Iridescent, now Technovation, 28-Apr-2012]
Wash, rinse and repeat idiom, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lather,_rinse,_repeat (115 words) [Wikipedia, retrieved 21-Aug-2020]
Chalking Points | The History of Shampoo, https://youtu.be/NEjeTYzZjzg (3:28) [LSRS Games, 6-Sep-2013]
BB Time Travels: The Hair Story of Shampoo, Mousree Paul,https://www.nykaa.com/beauty-blog/bb-time-travels-the-hair-story-of-shampoo (116 words) [NYKAA, 5-Feb-2019]
Business pioneers in technology, Lei Jun, Richard Waters,https://www.ft.com/content/b308a304-cc8f-11e4-b5a5-00144feab7de, (19 Min read)[Financial Times, 31-Mar-2015]
Inviting you to have a view / read and to have a chat with me about your thoughts.
[Originally posted internally in my role as Project Management Practice Lead at The Warehouse Group.]