Lego Life Lessons

If you ever played with Legos as a kid, or you have kids today that are Lego fans, one of the lessons these little plastic blocks have taught us all is that there’s more than one way to approach almost everything. How open we are to those ways is important. Here’s what we mean…

In a recent conversation, we started talking about how kids (and adults) play with Legos. Some follow the directions step-by-step, building based on the instructions. Others don’t follow the directions at all, creating things on the fly using imagination. Neither is better than the other. They’re simply different approaches to playing with Legos.

Here’s another spin on this. Some Lego aficionados keep each boxed set separate and complete. Others combine all of their logo sets into one massive set, mixing and matching to make “out-of-the-box” creations. Still others separate their Legos by color or by the kind of block and style of the piece. Again, there’s no right or wrong answer.

Here’s where we’re going with this. There will come a time when someone brings you a new way of doing something, a new perspective to look at a challenge through, or an idea that feels foreign. Instead of immediately leaning into your “I wouldn’t do it that way” response, the challenge we’re putting out there for all of us is simple…

Choose to show up “open.”

Be open to other peoples’ ideas and different ways of doing things. Be open to opinions or solutions that are different from your own. Open yourself up to stepping out of your comfort zone and trying some new approaches.

It can be hard. As humans, we’re naturally resistant to change and almost always think our way is the best way. Even as we’re writing this today, this is a reminder to our team. We should be showing up “open” – not defensive or closed off to new thinking.

We should be… but are we?

The answer to that question will likely dictate the amount of success and growth we experience and produce. Showing up closed may be what’s holding us back, and showing up open may be exactly what we need to go to the next level.

Call-to-Action
Do a quick, personal assessment. Where am I showing up open, and what areas am I showing up closed in? Do I look at how other people play with their Legos and shake my head because they do it differently than me, or am I open to seeing how they play as simply being a different approach? There are many ways to do almost everything, and our way might not be the best way. Showing up open requires some humility, but try it. It just might lead to the breakthrough you’ve been looking for.

Ready for more?

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