Take time to think.
“Easy to say, harder to do”, is, I am sure, the response many will give.
Why is that, though? Logically, the vast majority of the returns in any business or organisation come from big thinking, not the execution.
How is, then, that this quote comes flying forward from the “Think Unthinkable” report :
“Leaders of industry [are] extremely bad at thinking, and they don’t get challenged very much either”
I encourage reading that report, in which there is much about both parts of that statement.
So, how about taking time to think ?
Or, how about first taking time to NOT think, to clear the mind with some true and deep silence (follow my tags on SILENCE), I write often on the topic.
Now once you have taken time to be silent, then what to think about ?
How about starting with reading, and making it a habit.
I am the first to admit that over the years I have often not made much time to read, yet I do read voraciously and widely. Here is the current pile of books on my desk.
All of these I ordered in the last few weeks and will read them all soon, then I already have the next few in my mind (and welcome ideas for other books to read!)
I can’t count the number of times a leader has asked me for a book recommendation then not read it. However, I can also remember many occasions where I’ve done the ame and the next time we spoke they had read the book and taken at least one or two ideas and inspirations that they could then apply to their business.
Take time to think. Trust me, it is time well spent at many levels.