If you know me, you also know I’m not a big math and science guy. In fact, back in my 7th Grade math class, I was in “Group 3” which was the group for all the math dummies.
Interestingly enough though, I managed to get a “B” in my college physics class back in 1986 and always maintained a slight interest in the subject (emphasis on “slight”). Recently, I heard a speaker talk about the danger of holding steady which is also known as the Second Law of Thermodynamics. It’s kind of hard to understand scientifically, so let me give it to you in layman’s terms:
You cannot break even (you cannot return to the same energy state, because there is always an increase in disorder; entropy always increases)
In other words, if you don’t continue to put effort into something, not only won’t you grow, you’ll actually regress.
Years ago, my son’s youth football coach used to have the players break each huddle with the phrase “get better” and it stuck with me. Each year, all of us have to do something to get better. If we don’t, not only will we NOT get better, we’ll actually get worse.
Imagine if:
- An I.T. professional stops taking new certifications
- A beautician quits looking at the latest fashion magazine
- A mechanic refuses to work on electric cars
- A grocery clerk ignores the new self-serve checkout lines
- A social media consultant quits researching the latest trends
You see in these examples how quickly we all get outmoded if we don’t work on our craft. I’ve seen a lot of management training professionals use examples and stories from the 80s and 90s and try to sell them as original even when they’re clearly dated. Either they’re tired of the field or too lazy to learn more.
One of my greatest fears is to become irrelevant. I hope it becomes yours too. With the economy showing no real sign of improvement, there’s not better time to work on being the best in your field and giving 100% of your effort to maintain it.
The laws of science are immutable. The Second Law of Thermodynamics says you need to get better or you’ll certainly get worse. I’m in. Are you?
