Not Buying the Solution, Not Participating in the Game

Mar 3

We’ve become a society of consumers, people who participate little, if at all, in the creation of what we use.  There is a someone else who does almost everything for us, and that’s become a habit for us.  Think that impacts engagement at work?  I do.

Think about it.  Who changes their oil anymore?  If I could even locate the oil pan at this point, I don’t have the wrench that would get the oil filter off the car.  And, it would get my nails all funky, and who wants a coach with funky nails?  (I know, an excuse for everything.)

I have clients who want me to “fix them” without their involvement.

Even though we know that exercise and CBT work just as well if not better than anti-depressants for many clinically depressed people, most people would rather just take the drugs than actively participate in their recovery.

We buy the solutions, and when there’s no solution to buy, we complain about it.

It’s very subtle, how our consumerism has created a consumer mindset over the last twenty years.   What I mean by a consumer mindset is that we expect others to do the dirty work.  We’re a nation of sideline sitters, people who participate by either bitching about the people playing on the field or Monday morning quarterbacking the failures.

It’s turned us into victims of circumstance.  And, don’t we feel that powerlessness?  Victims of a bad economy.  Victims of insurance companies.  Victims of poor government.  Victims of the companies we work for.  And on and on.

Today, I request that you do something different.  Be the creator of your experience.  That means, actually doing something different.

Today, be the objective observer.  Just watch and reflect on these questions:

• What if listening created communication?
• How does your interaction with your direct supervisor create the supervisor’s behavior?
• What small change can I make that could impact the outcome of this experience?

Let me know what you notice by leaving a comment below.

Be Your Best You Today,

Carolann Jacobs

p.s. – this was adapted from an interview on You Tube with Peter Block.

Tags: Action Coach, Brain-based Coaching, business coach, Carolann Jacobs, Corporate Coach, DFW, Executive Coach, Extraordinary Results, facilitation, Inimitable Leadership, Inspired Workplace, Leadership, Legacy Leadership, managewhich, Middle Management, Neuroleadership, vivid epiphany