In preparation for an important presentation to a potential client, I found myself looking at a blank PowerPoint slide deck, not knowing where to start. Much like when I begin most of my writing, the blank page stares back at me, taunting me, telling me it has to be perfect, as perfect as the page is blank. I was paralyzed.
Colorscape, an annual art festival in Norwich, NY, is an impressive September event you might consider attending. For roughly 10 years, I coordinated the public painting tent. We served 500 or more people over the 2-day festival with free painting projects. The most popular among many creative options was painting a t-shirt. But the first year we offered the t-shirt project, people weren’t so thrilled. Most people stared at the blank white t-shirt with the same terrified look I gave to the blank PowerPoint, with no idea where to start. What was supposed to be a simple painting project was turning into an anxiety-provoking terror for our guests.
Luckily, my organization’s marketing manager, who was volunteering in the tent, immediately knew what to do. He took a small artist’s paintbrush and some black paint and started making seemingly random marks on each blank shirt as he was handing them out to guests coming in to paint. He handed the guest a shirt and said “Start Here” while pointing to the mark on the shirt.
Miraculously, no one was stuck anymore. They had a place to begin thanks to his leadership!
With this memory in mind, I went back to that blank PowerPoint Deck and started in the middle, with a slide I already knew I needed. I gave myself permission to flow from there in all directions until I had completed a really great presentation. By abandoning the false notion that I had to start at the beginning, I was able to generate enough creative energy to finish the project.
Linear thinking does not work for everyone. In grade school English class, I struggled whenever I was asked to draft an outline of my entire essay before writing it. I was similarly challenged by following equations in math, until a high school teacher taught me how to look at the equation holistically, rather than as a linear sequence of steps. Around the same time, I discovered that when asked to recreate a timeline for a history quiz, starting in the middle worked much better for me compared to approaching it chronologically.
It turns out that many of us are naturally good at nonlinear thinking. Nonlinear thinking is a way of problem-solving by using different perspectives. Instead of following more traditional linear approaches to solving problems, nonlinear thinking utilizes creative and unconventional methods to create solutions.
Despite my early lessons, I find myself giving into my conditioning and attempting to do things with a linear thinking approach. One way is not better than another, but I should know by now that nonlinear thinking works best for me. Dialing in your authentic thinking style is a key part of developing your leadership brand. Maybe, just maybe, nonlinear thinking is just what you need to break through to the next level of success.
Where are you blocked, locked, and stopped in your leadership? Try starting in the middle, or at the end, or with a small part you feel excited about, even if it’s not the conventional starting point.
If you’re interested in learning about your own patterns of thought and unlocking your creative potential, send me an email at bill@getemergent.com. I’d be happy to help.
And in keeping with the theme, I’ll end with something you usually begin with: a quote that ties it all together.
“The only thing worse than starting something and failing is not starting at all.”
– Seth Godin
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