All Who Wander Are Not Lost

The other day I was was in an unfamiliar part of town, with a couple of hours between appointments, so I decided to do some running in a nearby park.

The park was unfamiliar to me, and there was no trail map, so just I set out. The idea was to get back where I started in a reasonable amount of time.

I had a purpose and a goal, but no clear idea of how to get there. Sound familiar?

While running decisions came up constantly – this path or that one? I used my gut. Sometimes I was wrong, but the dead ends didn’t bother me, because I was enjoying the run.

Okay, this isn’t an exercise blog, so what’s the point?

Earlier this year a Conference Board report finds that job satisfaction is at a 22-year low. It’s sad how few Americans are enjoying their work these days.

Can you really innovate when the people you’re working with want to be somewhere else? People need motivation, and that motivation needs to be more than just money. You need to create an environment based not on fear of failure, but of exploration – even of exhilaration. So that even with the blind alleys and wrong turns, people feel they’ve accomplished something.

The lesson from running – how you get there is important.