Learning How to Shift - Again

Guest Contributor: Doug Emerson
Doug's Posts - Doug's Blog

I learned to drive a farm tractor at an early age. I was ten years old when Dad allowed me to drive the "Cub" to mow the grass. The Cub had a manual transmission and selecting the right gear and operating a clutch smoothly were the challenges of the job.

I got very good at it and was a smooth operator knowing when to change gears and how to avoid jerky starts and changes.

When I was old enough to drive a car, manual transmissions were still common, but on their way out as the preferred transmission. Eventually, most transmissions in vehicles became automatic.

The automatic transmission makes life easy and comfortable while driving a vehicle.

As a parallel, we often get our personal and business lives set in automatic for ease and comfort. The problem with running in automatic is that we lose the feel of what the process of change involves. There is no thought about the need for shifting gears because all of the decision making is predetermined.

The benefit of meeting with my mastermind group is that I can get out of automatic and go back to "manual" thinking. As the group discussion involves reasons for shifting thinking, either up or down, I mentally smooth out my business ride. From first gear to overdrive and occasionally to reverse, the shifting process makes the difference and breaks the limitations of running in automatic.

Get the feel of driving your business back by relearning how to shift mental gears.