The next door shift

One always has options

Whenever we rant about a disappointment or failure in our lives, people commonly say, "When one door closes another door opens". Agreed. But I did not like to hear this time and again at a point when I thought luck was playing unfairly with me. I'd rather go with the famous quote, "If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door."

We're so into something at times that we're unable to see things beyond that. We feel stuck and helpless if things go wrong in that domain. At all times we have a choice to do something about our situation. The next-door shift can be -

1. A solution shift - Using a different approach to the same problem.

2. An environment/situation shift - Stepping out of the planned path and exploring something else altogether.

We all know this but still, it is difficult for most of us to do the next-door shift, especially an environment/situation shift because we relate it with quitting (which as per conventional standards winners never practice!) But I believe sometimes, we need to quit to win🏆

Milton Hershey did both!

Milton Hershey, the founder of HERSHEY's Chocolates, was once an apprentice in a printing shop. Before long, he quit that profession and went on to join as an apprentice in a candy-making business (! environment/situation shift 1!). And when he was 19, he borrowed money from his aunt and uncle to open his own candy shop near Philadelphia which sold different kinds of candies, including nuts and ice creams (! environment/situation shift 2 !). This business failed followed by another one which also did not work out.

He travelled to Colorado to learn how to make caramels with fresh milk. Within a few years, he used a different approach to make his candy-making business a success this time and focused mainly on caramel (! solution shift !). He founded the Lancaster Caramel Company which became a huge success.

With constant experimentation, Hershey learnt how to make delectable milk chocolates by using sweet condensed milk. These chocolates were loved so much that he sold his successful Caramel Company and focussed on building his chocolate company alone ( !environment/situation shift 3! ). He wanted to and he did, and that was how the widely famous Hershey Chocolate Company was formed. 🍫

The Solution Shift

It can get difficult to look at the same problem from a new angle especially after working on it for a long time. After searching up the web, I found a few efficient ways to make this work -

1. Asking yourself what is lacking in the primary solution. Breaking a problem into smaller parts can help gain more clarity about what is missing.

2. Re-examining the assumptions. Some assumptions might be true and some might be holding you back from understanding the fundamental issue that needs to be solved.

3. Almost every other problem faced by you and me has been faced by someone else earlier, be it in a business, a relationship, etc. Going through how problems similar to ours were solved before can help us frame better ideas. It can also help us understand what can work and what can not.

Knowing when to Quit, to Win

Quitting did not make him a failure. Perhaps if he wouldn't take a step back at certain times and pursued what he truly wanted, he wouldn't have created such a legacy. Because he did not give up, he simply re-focused and changed his path. This is why I believe sometimes - Quitting ≠ Giving Up.

Our minds should not be set in stone. There's an abundance of opportunities out there for us and even in the worst days, we still have a choice of how to respond to it. Even if you ever feel completely stuck, this is your reminder that you never truly are and that there is always a solution. Happy Sunday! 😇

<3,

Rashmi