It’s been a while since I’ve started a post with this, so here’s one for nostalgia’s sake. There’s an old saying that goes “think outside the box.”
You’ll hear this one a lot in life. Work, school, social interactions, this particular phrase pops up literally everywhere. I’m sure I’ve even said it on this blog once or twice before really giving it some serious thought. And after doing so, I’ve come to a conclusion that I felt like sharing with you all today.
It is completely and utterly useless. Pure malarkey (I think I’m dating myself with that one). A big steaming pile of horse manure. And I’ll tell you why. The phrase “think outside the box” means to think unconventionally. Beyond the norms of what we as people would generally think of in a certain situation or when a certain task is required of us. To go beyond what first springs to mind. To really get the old creative juices flowing.
The problem is that this phrase is used so often, that we are told to (and do) think outside the box so often that it becomes impossible to define where the box actually was to begin with (not that there ever was a clear definition, since the phrase can be applied to literally any situation). So if everyone is thinking outside the box, why is there a box at all?
There shouldn’t be. So get rid of it. Fold it up and throw it out with your recycling (and you should all be recycling, environmental conscience is a big win for any business in my book). If you really need to let off some steam, light it on fire (but please be careful, David T. Rosen and all associates, businesses and holdings are not responsible for any damages or injuries that occur while setting fire to a hypothetical piece of cardboard).
I have told you in the past to be creative, and that is definitely still true. What I am telling you now is to be even more creative. Thinking outside the box doesn’t cut it anymore. Everyone is doing it. You need to go beyond that. Beyond the realm of originality into the downright crazy. Into a whole new level of innovative that has never been tried, that has never been done before, that will grab the attention of people not only by the quality of your idea, but the sheer ballsiness (apologies friends, a better word does not exist) of attempting such an idea in the first place.
I won’t lie to you. Some of the ideas you and your coworkers may come up with will seem downright crazy. Risky even. But nobody ever got rich by playing it safe, and you want the maximum Personal Independent Earnings you can possibly get your hands on, don’t you? So forget thinking outside the box. Forget the box entirely. You never needed it in the first place.
