The Definition Of Insanity
44. The definition of “insanity” is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome.
Want to know what your life will look like five years from now? Don’t change a thing. Many reading this book fit right into this statement. You may be wondering why you are where you are and it’s because you keep doing the same thing over and over and you arrive at the same place every time. To break this cycle you need to try a new approach, and most likely something that is new to you and may be a little out of your comfort zone. If what you have been doing to try and get where you want to go is the same plan over and over, it may explain why you are standing in the exact same place as where you started.
Many make the comment that they are in a rut. That no matter what they seem to do they keep ending up with the same outcome. For the most part, that is because people are unwilling to try new things and venture out of their comfort zone. You use this Tool when you see this being a problem with your personal growth. We need to try new approaches when the ones we are using aren’t working.
It seems pretty simple, so why don’t we do it? The reason is also simple, new things feel strange and awkward and we have been conditioned to avoid things that feel different. So the bridge that must be made is that we are treading water in our present state and need to find a new way to get where we want to go. I understand that treading water allows us to survive and that if we tread long enough, something may come along. The risk in this line of thinking is that we can only tread so long. Also, when we tread water we stay in the same spot, and that is not where we ultimately want to be.
As you read this, I hope you identify quickly if this is what you are doing. That is what this Tool is designed for. To shake you a bit and make you see that the reason you are in the same place, the reason you have not been growing, is because you have been doing the same thing again and again. Even proven strategies need to be modified now and then to further the advancement process.
So if you have been changing nothing, then that explains a lot about how you have arrived at the place you are. In addition, if you have been using the same strategy that has worked but now you’ve reached a plateau, then maybe it is time to shake things up a bit. By understanding that doing the same thing over and over will yield the same results, you will understand that the process of success requires that you look for new avenues to reach your ultimate goals. No matter how successful or unsuccessful you are, you must constantly be open to there being a better way.