A New Perspective in 3 Minutes

Like me, you probably think that to get information that really makes a difference in your thinking or your actions, you need to spend significant amounts of time on the subject – reading books, researching articles, checking out www.wikipedia.org, and maybe even calling up some friends that are experts on the subject to pick their brain.  I learned that it doesn’t have to be the case. 

You see, I am a proud new owner of an iPhone 4, and I am eager to spend any down time refreshing and expanding my knowledgebase.  In my search for a good, well-rounded information source, I came across a great podcast series from TEDTalks. 

Though I am reluctant to think that it could actually be this easy to fundamentally change something about myself, or the people around me, I am proof that 3 minutes is all it takes to actually lead to a new perspective and absolute change.  And, even more surprising, it was achieved by a video on tying shoe laces (watch here: http://bit.ly/shoetiet).

Terry Moore, the speaker in this particular video showed me how to tie my shoe.  Seriously.  I’ve been doing it wrong all my life.  And, more importantly, I’ve taught my kids the wrong way (which is why their laces keep coming untied and why I can say that this 3-minute video resulted in absolute change for me).  Not only does this solve a consistent problem in my house, and for all of those school teachers that spend time tying and re-tying students’ shoes, it also proves that sometimes a new perspective is all we need to make significant change in what we do. 

Here’s the quick story:  My son knows how to tie his shoes.   However, the laces would always come untied (sometimes within minutes of tying the shoe).  So, my son started to realize no matter how many times he re-tied the laces, they would still come untied.  To no surprise, he walked around all day with his laces untied, gathering dirt, gum and anything else that lingered on the ground.  I found myself reminding him to re-tie his shoe laces regularly, and re-tying them for him even more often.  I am sure the school teachers were doing the same.

This is where the absolute change comes in.  Simply reverse the direction of the twist in the knot and gain the advantage!  By learning to tie the laces differently – better – I have positively changed my son’s daily experience, helped school teachers, and eliminated one (of many) reminder conversations with my son.  Greatness!  A new perspective and absolute change, all in just 3 minutes.  Thank you TED Talks.

Now, what is the small “twist” that we can apply to our marketing and sales that will lead to absolute change in our business?

photo: captured from TED Talks video: Terry Moore | How to tie your shoes