Stretched Like Gumby

It seems that while Gumby is a classic show and toy character once popular in years past, it started to become popular again after the death of its creator on January 11, 2010.  Although I am making a reference to something from my childhood, it seems that those of you that are much younger than me will know what I'm talking about.  Although Gumby stretched and stretched 100's of times, there was a breaking point.

Most people these days have stretched themselves further than they thought they could go.  The increased productivity has certainly been beneficial but, like running a boat at its highest RPMs, at some point you have to back off.   Now I'm not talking about being a total slacker, but you can't possibly put goals and challenges back-to-back over and over and over again.  You can't constantly be trying to improve your systems and get better organized.  Sometimes you just have to take a look at what you've been doing and take advantage of the crops that you've been able to harvest.  Possibly do a little weeding of some of the intense standards and let yourself and those you work with have some fun.  Some of the stretching, because it was too much for too long, has made people weary.

The pattern or system you rely on works best if you stretch, disrupt, regroup and stabilize.  Remember, systems tend to reflect whatever we were focused on, so they have to be revisited to handle what we are going to be focused on.  Over the past few years it seemed like it went disrupt, regroup, stretch.  The recent economic downturn caused most of us to become comfortable with a certain level of control of the stuff we have and the pace of getting it done.   But let's not blow an engine or cause Gumby to snap when we can least afford him to.  Now it's time to stabilize.

However, it's certainly not a good idea to drop back to complacency, which of course could lead to stagnation and stiffness - like the impossible to position and bend Barbie and Ken dolls that lay in the toy box next to Gumby.  That would be a great way to find yourself worse off in just a very short period of time.  Think how hard it is to work to get back in physical shape after "taking a break for a few months.  Brutal!

So yes, back off a little but remember we know for sure there's no value in static systems.  Or for that matter static anything for very long.  The way we perform within the expectations of productivity is like an organism...it must be alive to function and ever evolving.  I have discovered a process that I apply.  Every so often I commit processes to major new things that I've never done before.  I "toss the buoy out" way ahead of the boat and things go into a spin!  Then over the next few months, weeks or days, depending on how crazy I got, I run hard and bring in the support troops. We work to get closure on all the incompletion and ambiguity that the new "things" have created. Then at a certain point after the stretching seemed to reach a near breaking point, Gumby isn't screaming so loud.  This seems to happen with me somewhat automatically - I get the urge to identify with a new horizon or major project, and blow it all up again.  All I hope for this go around is that I'm blowing small things up and it's not another major meltdown like we just went through.  Like Gumby, relax but stand ready to be stretched!

Stretch, disrupt, regroup, stabilize. Stretch, disrupt, regroup, stabilize. Which of these, right now, is your biggest opportunity?

"Just as the tumultuous chaos of a thunderstorm brings a nurturing rain that allows life to flourish, so too in human affairs times of advancement are preceded by times of disorder. Success comes to those who can weather the storm."

-I Ching, or some would call it a full out stop.

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