Tales of the unexpected.
Did you ever watch this famous TV program by Roald Dahl? For those of you too young to remember….”Tales of the Unexpected was a British television series that aired between 1979 and 1988. Each episode told a story, often with sinister and wryly comedic undertones, with an unexpected twist ending” [Wikipedia].
I was in my early teens when it first made an appearance on our screens and if I am completely honest it used to scare me to death. I don’t know if it was the real life weirdness, the fact it was completely different to my life or just the twist in the tale that made me feel uncomfortable. (It might have even been the theme tune.)
The thing was though, however uncomfortable it was I couldn’t not watch. I begged my mum and dad to let me stay up each week. Why? Well it wasn’t to scare myself. Those of you who know me well know I can’t watch anything scary. It was because I had to know how it ended. I spent the whole episode like a TV detective trying to figure out the various ways the story ended.
I often think back to this program and wonder how much influence it had on my life and work today…I can link the program to a few of my behaviors now.
1.) Curiosity – Whenever I’m in a position where everything is new and different. I’m
open to all possibilities. It’s scary yes, but also a little exciting to think what might
happen.
2.) Connecting everything – like my younger self, when working with someone new, or on a new project. I’m constantly asking questions (like a TV detective) trying to connect all the nonsense together to figure out the right ending.
3.) Looking at things differently – I’m a good soul at heart, so mostly take people at face value and honestly. However, I’ve learnt that sometimes things are in reality different to how they are presented to you.
These qualities are helping me now in this ‘Time of the Unexpected’.
Am I a little scared? – Yes, every day, but it’s also a little exciting and I certainty can’t look away and disengage.
Am I worried about how this is going to end ? – Hell yes. However, it’s my job as a leader to connect it all together and get myself, my team, my clients and my network prepared for all the possible endings, no matter what might happen next. I am spending some of my spare time looking at the currently situations from all angels. Trying to make sure I consider every perspective of it now and how it will affect the future.
None of us truly know how this current unexpected situation will change, move on, end. But we can all stay curious, connected and alert to all possibilities and then start to plan for them. Let’s help each other – combining our knowledge, keeping things factual and acknowledging what we know can start to help us all feel more comfortable in the unexpected happening.
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