Scientists probing the mysteries of DNA in 1953 were stunned to discover that the building blocks of our humanity are actually much less complicated than originally theorized. Crick and Watson (the scientists behind the double-helix discovery of the building blocks of life found that human DNA was relatively unsophisticated because our blueprint was built for experiences, not hard-wired instinct.
Nature is where it all starts, but nurture—the world around us and our experiences within it—shapes us and makes us human. Our DNA is not a fixed blueprint; that’s why we have to create it.
Human beings dynamically and constantly rewire our circuitry. We are built to change the game and optimize our capabilities inside of it.
We aren’t fixed (even perfectionists!). Nor are we broken (even perfectionists!). We are more capable than we realize. Adversity makes us stronger, forcing us to find new ways of progress.
Rewiring is happening as you read these very words.
You know that you are not the same person today as you were yesterday. The ideas in this blog are rewiring your brain for new possibilities. You don’t have to “do” anything. You’re already building within the blueprint we call humanity.
Progress—not perfection—is built into the system. It’s a fundamental and unchanging rule of the game of life.
Inside the perfectly imperfect and miraculously incomplete blueprint that we all share, we find the ability to adapt. No matter what the pandemic has taken from you, or your organization, new pathways and new wiring are always available.
Consider these long-held beliefs that no longer fit and may be holding you and your organization back from realizing your full potential:
Myth: This is just how I’m wired.
Truth: You are always rewiring. You can always realign your circuitry. The human nervous system is built on this premise.
Myth: Adaptability must be trained.
Truth: Adaptability is hard-wired into the DNA of every human being on planet earth.
Myth: Some people are more resilient than others.
Truth: We all have the ability to access resilience. Bouncing back is built into the blueprint.
What myths are missing from the list? What do you know to be true that disproves those myths?
The ability to design and play your own game: it’s always available, even when it doesn’t look like it is.
Accessing adaptability and resilience begin with letting go of the need to be perfect. Releasing a task to a teammate—even if he or she might not complete the task your “perfect” (or preferred) way—is the beginning of accessing our adaptability and resilience. And to building deeper trust in ourselves, our colleagues, and our organizations.
What would change inside of your organization if you prioritized progress over perfection? Let’s get started.
Game Changer: Progress is Perfection
How are you allowing your team to take ownership and make choices, right now?
Do you trust people to make their own decisions around how to move forward, towards the future of work? Identify specific examples to support what you know is true.
Are you providing yourself the permission to try new things—to walk through that doorway of the unfamiliar, and find out what’s on the other side? Or are familiar choices keeping you stuck in a tiny room, where old patterns are preventing you from a playing a new game?
What are the changes that you already know what you need to make, and all that’s missing is permission to pursue it?
How can you place greater responsibility on your team, and push permission into the organization? Where are the places where you can provide greater understanding, in order to help people play the game at their very best level?
Who’s there to offer a helping hand, and a word of understanding when you stuck or fall into past patterns? Or are you the one that needs to reach out to someone on your team right now?
How will you recognize and celebrate progress over perfection?
An organization that is transparent, vulnerable, and aligned is able to accelerate. Moving from intention to impact is possible when we see that new choices are available. Making commitments isn’t enough. We have to align to our values, accessing autonomy to consciously choose new patterns (not tolerate old ones). Moving towards discovery, not away from it, aligns us with the blueprint of our humanity. The perfectly imperfect blueprint we all share. A design that’s constantly in progress.
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