A Lesson from Sorry and Chutes/Ladders

You have probably played these 2 board games as a child (maybe again as a parent). As you recall, Sorry has a space that begins a long arrow, and Chutes/Ladders has a space that begins a long ladder–both allowing you to jump multiple spaces, in effect, growing forward (shameless plug!) in your success in the game.

Life presents these options to experience a positive snowball effect, too. The key is to discover which:

• personal habit you do, that will cue up other productive habits. (The book The Power of Habit is a good resource.)
• opportunity to which you say YES, that will give you long-lasting satisfaction because you are adding/receiving so much value
• connection at work or in the community, who will open other doors for you to grow your business or career or personal development
• continuing education resource, that will improve your performance or emotional intelligence to noticeably more excellent levels
• hobby, that, when enjoying it, gives you the therapeutic boost you need for emotional restoration–and just plain more fun in life!

Once you identify and experience these forward-arrows/ladders, schedule them into your calendar/life as regularly as possible in order to fully realize the payoff from the growth agent.

The book The One Thing has a similar message as this blog post, reminding us to find that one thing that, if doing it, will make everything else easier (or even unnecessary!). The message of focus will improve your time management, and avoid the unfulfilling feeling of multi-tasking–and getting nothing really advanced.

One last caveat: Chutes/Ladders also has the dreaded space that begins a long chute backward from your goal. It would behoove you to further reflect on how you often sabotage yourself from success by identifying the habit that “kicks your tail”, losing you time, productivity, health, and relationship harmony. Get some boundaries and accountability around this killer so that it doesn’t hamper your growth nor stop you from riding the arrows/ladders that serve you best on your journey.

Looking for a speaker to pump up your team or association at its next meeting? Reach out at growingforward@paulcasey.org to check calendars and pick a topic that matches the outcome you are looking for.