When I first thought about writing this article, I really did mean don't over think it. But as I saw it in print, I realized I also really meant - don't over think IT. My inspiration for talking about not over thinking things came from a business presentation I was at last week where three CEOs presented. In the audience were approximately 1,000 business professionals and maybe 50 students from a local university in the business or entrepreneurial classes.
The CEOs all talked a little bit about their businesses, what made them work and a little bit about what didn't. One that really stood out did so because he seemed to have a relaxed presentation style and even though there were podiums set up for them to speak from, he moved from behind the podium and really seemed comfortable talking to the audience. Although the presentation was in a question-and-answer format, it was clear that, as it must be, the speaker's knew what general questions they would be asked. A small amount of time was reserved at the end for questions from the audience. It's those questions or more specifically the answers, that I want to talk about.
One of the university students asked, "I'm getting ready to graduate and so are others here. Can you give us some advice on what to do next to find a job?" The most comfortable and animated speaker went first. He told the soon-to-be graduate to find a company where he thought his skills could best be put to use doing something that he thought he would like. Further he said find a sizable company where you can get the training that you need and have an opportunity to grow within the ranks. Not bad advice.
It was clear to see that one of the other speakers had a definite opinion on this. No sooner had our animated speaker finished his last sentence, in the speaker said, "I have to tell you, the key is just get a job!". He said "While my counterpart gave you great advice the most important part is do not over think this. It seems to me today, that everyone is over-thinking everything and it's particularly easy for young people entering the workforce to do so. The first step of doing anything is to just do something. So while you enter the workforce you may not have your ideal perfect position so what. You have plenty of years ahead of you, don't get stalled." The audience erupted in applause.
It made me start thinking about the Nike ad just do it, to which I would add just do it now. And it's not just young people today that are having a hard time making decisions, I see it everywhere. I see it in people trying to make decisions about their IT. And let's face it, for most of us IT is not our expertise. Oh it's fun to dabble sometimes and of course IT has become much more personal since we all have so many computers, tablets, smart phones, printers, etc., but particularly in the workplace, we really should leave most of those decisions up to someone who specializes.
Sometimes we choose to do nothing because we're afraid that if we just do it now, we will regret the decision later. I'm not saying that you should make decisions about your IT without thought, I'm saying just don't get stuck in the thinking about it part. Don't get stuck on perfection. We're a really smart society and I know that you as my readers are really smart individuals, which means we should be a lot better at finding the right guidance and "just do IT now" as opposed to over-thinking it. Time is one of the few things that we will never have enough of and we can never get back.
I'm reminded of a quote I saw on Facebook the other day. "Some people know that taking a step backwards after making a mistake just means you can take the next step forward and turn it into a cha-cha." I like that. I'm going to try to make more decisions without over-thinking.
