It’s coming up on almost six months exactly since my last post. Yes, I am still alive. And working. And blogging. It’s just that I got kind of distracted earlier this year with the birth of our first child.
In those last few days when my time was still my own, I had a chance to read Karl E. Weick’s thought-provoking article “Small Wins: Redefining the Scale of Social Problems”. A small win in Weick’s world is a controllable opportunity of modest size that produces visible results and can be gathered into synoptic solutions. Published by the American Psychologist in 1984, the concepts in the piece are just as relevant today.
Here’s what grabbed my attention about the magic of small wins:
“Once a small win has been accomplished, forces are set in motion that favor another small win. When a solution is put in place, the next solvable problem often becomes more visible. This occurs because new allies bring new solutions with them and old opponents change their habits. Additional resources also flow toward winners, which means that slightly larger wins can be attempted.
It is important to realize that the next solvable problem seldom coincides with the next ‘logical’ step as judged by a detached observer. Small wins do not combine in a neat, linear, serial form, with each step being a demonstrable step closer to some predetermined goal. More common is the circumstances where small wins are scattered and cohere only in the sense that they move in the same general direction or all move away from some deplorable condition.”
When I read this article, I thought of my clients, both my law clients and my financial coaching clients. Clients that I work with in either of those aspects are often negotiating a big change that might seem unmanageable. I have encouraged clients to take a “problem solving” approach and think about one thing at a time; Weick’s piece provides some theoretical basis for why that might be helpful.
Today, though, I’ll admit that I thought of myself. This post is a small win in my own efforts to navigate the terrain of self-employment and parenthood. I’m blogging for the first time in months, doing abstract thinking and writing for…dare I say…fun! I can’t predict what will follow from taking this step; if Weick’s theory holds true, though, something will follow that will ultimately move me in the direction I want to go in this new landscape.