Stir the Soup

When was the last time you radically changed your approach? That you tried something different in your career, or in your personal life? Most of us get into the proverbial "comfort trap," where we become comfortable with the way things are and do the best we can not to "rock the boat." The purpose of this article is to help you increase your success by doing the opposite of this - by "rocking the boat," or "stirring the soup."

Change is normal

Think back to when you were just learning to walk. Or when your child learned to walk. Did you (or your child) try and try again until they were able to walk, or just let things stay the way they are? Of course - trying new things is a natural way of life! After you learned to walk, you learned to run and play sports; it didn't stop with just walking! That is because change isn't only inevitable; it's a natural way of life!

Then why don't we stir?

There is a simple answer to why we don't stir - because we become comfortable. When we feel like we don't have enough, we strive for more. But when we feel like we have our "fair share," we stop striving - and start holding on to what we have. Instead of striving and stirring, we begin worrying and holding on. And using the analogy of soup, the soup which was boiling and cooking is now sitting still, no longer cooking and starting to get cold.

Cooking 101 - How to stir

When the soup is sitting on the stove and getting cold, you turn on the heat and stir it! Similarly, do the same for any portion of your life that is "getting cold"!

Turning on the heat and stirring can be a simple change of mind, or a more complicated turnaround tactic. For many things in your life, stirring can be simply changing the way you think about it. Changing from "my relationship is boring" to "I love my partner," or from "what a gloomy day out" to "I'm getting a free carwash!" can be all you need. Or on larger issues, like "my career has gotten stale," this can take a larger turnaround tactic. Although we don't have enough space to discuss turnaround tactics in detail, turnarounds take market research ("what else can I be doing"), thought ("how can my friends and associates help me"), and action ("what can I do in the next few days to change this?").

Always stir the soup!

Finally, never forget to stir! Look at your life today, and think about what you are just "sustaining" in your life because you feel like you have your "fair share." Then think about what you can do to Stir the Soup! nnn