Here we are at mid-year already. Hopefully things are moving right along and you and your team have much to celebrate.
If instead, you have a big mess on your hands – or even a small mess or two – remember these wise words.
It was over 25 years ago that I heard speech by Rosabeth Moss Canter during which she said, “Everything is a failure in the middle”. But for some reason I remembered it as everything is a mess in the middle. Over and over since then, that phrase has been a valuable tool – whenever I’ve found myself or my team in the middle of a project or situation that started out just fine and then became a mess somewhere in the middle.
Hopefully you aren’t dealing with a mess. But if you are – or next time you find yourself in the middle of one, this quote plus Other Resources on this page, can help you get out of the mess and boost morale and productivity in the process.
Whenever I’m in the middle of a mess, people like Nervous Nellie, Self-Doubting Sally or Panicked Polly tend to “show up”. Does that ever happen to you? Do you have goons like those three that fill your mind with goop like:
- You aren’t qualified to do this.
- Nobody in this office is qualified.
- Why are you even doing it anyway?
- It was a stupid idea.
“Everything is a mess in the middle” has a way of saving people from these goons, freeing them from the mental and emotional mess, so that they can focus on finding their way out of the REAL mess and then push through the middle to the end.
Read that sentence again. It’s important.
I invite you to print and/or post this quote (instructions below). And please feel free to send it to colleagues, family and friends. Anyone in the middle of a mess will appreciate the morale and productivity boosting reminder. Especially if you also share the Insider Info below.
Insider Info: Action Tips for Messes & Mid-Year
If your organization doesn’t run on the calendar year, then this may be the end of year for you. If so – this may be a more timely quote for you. Or this one. Or this one.
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