We are going to jump right in. Move. Locomote. Propel yourself. Act. Vary. Go forward. Go somewhere. But move.
“You can’t steer a parked car.”
I tried to find whether this was a quote so I could acknowledge somebody, but I found it in about 10,000 places. This must be one of those statements that a whole lot of people’s parents told them when they were learning to drive, but I never heard it until recently.
“You can’t steer a parked car.”
I love this statement and the concept that it conveys for us who are in business. When we (or someone around us) is stuck in fear, negativity, malaise, hopelessness, sadness, or any of the other damaging (over the long term) places that we can get to, then we need to move. Please note that this is not about a time of sadness after a death or a segment of a day where you feel despondent or negative. This is about getting stuck in place that is not indicative of any kind of engagement in a promising pursuit.
“You can’t steer a parked car.”
You can’t get out of the “bad” place or the “negative” place or the “scared” place or the “problem” place until you move – even just a little bit. You don’t have to floor board the gas pedal to be able to steer, but you have to at least turn on the ignition and take the car out of park. You can gently, oh-so-gently take your foot off the brake and start to roll. Now the car isn’t parked and you can actually steer it.
This is what you can do metaphorically as well. And please know that this is definitely an idea that you can share with an individual who is struggling. Just get the person to take his or her “car” out of park.
Consider a small business owner who just is not going anywhere. She isn’t failing. She isn’t growing. She isn’t doing anything. She talks about closing up shop and only says it half jokingly. She wishes she had more clients but has a million reasons why she doesn’t. She goes to seminars and trainings and then goes back to her office and can only compare herself with the other people she is meeting and finds herself coming up short. She is stuck. Here is what you might say to her – in whatever way your relationship suggests:
- Take the car out of park and put it in drive.
- Make a list of 10 ideas that you have learned (or whatever number seems like the right number – it could be more or it could be less). Anyway, make a list of 10 ideas you have learned. You might serve as the scribe while your friend says them. You want her to keep talking and so you can just keep writing.
- After you have the list, ask, “On this first idea, could you start _____?” Or, “I’m seeing this idea you listed about what you learned. What if we ______?” The idea is to help the person focus on small actions that could be taken. You can’t steer a parked car. When you’re stuck, your car is in park and you ain’t goin’ nowhere…bleh, I say.
If you’re trying to make some changes in your life, if you are trying to go in a different direction or however you would describe it, be clear that you cannot make change or go a different direction if you’re not moving at all. Hello?! You can’t steer a parked car.
Immobilienmakler Heidelberg Makler HeidelbergSource by Meggin McIntosh