Process Jolt #19 - Refresh your energy, not your to-do list

Welcome to our Conscious Innovator® process!

Are you ready for a new, insight-provoking “Jolt” … something designed to “rearrange your molecules” as it elicits your unique, innovative potential in life and work?

Jolts wake us up. They spur new self-awareness, new capabilities and values, and new actions. Paradoxically, we don’t learn from each Jolt – rather, each Jolt “learns us”! That is, a Jolt sits in the background of our consciousness and then prompts new insights and energy over time. 

Jolt #19: Refresh your energy, not your to-do list

A good ending is the start of a good beginning.

How many times has your innovative project left you feeling excited about what you learned in the process and satisfied with what you accomplished, even if you didn’t achieve all of the results you wanted?

How many times have you had a chance to positively acknowledge the colleagues you worked with and feel their appreciation for your efforts?

How many times have you had more energy at the end of your innovative project, than at the beginning?

A pharmaceutical R&D team was once poised to be the next corporate heroes for inventing a new compound. But when they found it had a serious side-effect, the project got cancelled. The team was crushed with disappointment.

But their VP, Frank Douglas, knew how to turn that into an uplifting completion. He told them:

“[Your work] is a significant contribution to science. I’m going to celebrate what others would consider a failure, but what for me is a significant success.”

Frank gave the team the time they needed to write publishable papers about their scientific contribution. After that, the team was ready and enthused to get started on their next project.

But a good ending doesn’t happen automatically. It takes conscious intention to not succumb to the pressures of minimal time and maximum workloads whereby we either evaluate our work by “post mortem” analysis (often with an emphasis on what we failed at), or we quickly move on to the next big thing on our to-do list, exhausting our energy tanks.

In a way, there are no real endings… only thresholds. To move on, we must leave things behind. A conscious celebration marks our passage into a liminal space of revitalizing our human spirit. It applauds what we have learned and achieved and puts it to rest. It frees us to move forward to our next adventure.

This kind of celebration doesn’t only mean big hurrahs and pats on the back, although those are just fine. It starts with heartfully expressing gratitude, and giving credit to everyone who contributed to the achievement and new knowledge gained.

Conscious celebration also includes acknowledging emotions like sadness and disappointment from ending a precious experience with colleagues, finishing a career phase, or not achieving a key goal. Just like with Frank Douglas’ team.

Once you’ve taken the time to consciously celebrate the completion of your innovative project, and you’re ready to move on… then you can take the time to refresh your to-do list with greater clarity and energy!

-=-=-=- Now it's your turn -=-=-=-

Being a Conscious Innovator® has a 3 phase cyclical process: become aware, capable, and versatile. Try on this Jolt in your life and work, then take self-reflective time to engage in the process:

-=-=-=- An invitation to join our process and share your insights -=-=-=-

If you haven’t already, we’d love for you to join our process and share your own experiences, while learning from the experiences of others! We appreciate what one person said about the Jolt process itself:

Innovation is a world by itself. It can change lives and help people become more positive. Doing a Jolt is already something! A new habit that promotes innovation and reflection.

It’s totally FREE to participate. To sign up and join us, go to this link and follow the easy directions: https://innovate.vci.global/p/the-conscious-innovator. 

Even if you haven’t participated up to this point, it’s never too late to start the process! It’s like a concise gym workout that provides an insightful “pause that refreshes” and evokes your unique, innovative potential in life and work.