Over half term we went for a walk in one of our favourite woods. This particular wood we need to drive to and on the way the traffic was terrible. Really terrible. So we came off the main road and drove a more winding way through Northumberland passing fields of crops and sheep, the school my Gran went to (now a house), the church she was baptised at and a lot of beautiful homes with beautiful views on the way. It was a lovely drive and at one point we crossed the main road on a bridge and felt a bit smug that we’d avoided the traffic that was still terrible further north.
We repeated this journey winding a bit further across on the way home and we could see from the bridge that the traffic was still bad.
We can’t always go straight ahead. Sometimes it’s good to go a more varied route and even if it takes longer (which it doesn’t always!) then you can still feel that you’re going forwards whilst also benefitting from more space, more beauty, more memories, more interesting things to see and comment on. Not just on the road, but on your journey through life – and definitely in your business.
Going the direct route may have fewer opportunities, fewer stops, fewer chances to just breathe or to notice things. Sometimes going the scenic route, avoiding the traffic and the painfully slow journey in favour of something more interesting is the best way forward.
When I start working with a new client my very first question is “why did you start your business?” and they proceed to tell me about an experience which kickstarted it for them and the various places they passed through on their journey to get to where they are now. This is without fail a truly interesting response to listen to and very rarely is it as direct as going from A to B without some interesting additions to the journey in there somewhere.
Why did you start your business? And where have you driven through (and who with?) on your way to get to where you’re at now?