Your Escape Plan

There is so much we can learn from our kids (or kids in general if we don't have any).

Kids are naturally curious . . . which means they tap into their creativity more naturally and are rapid learners. Kids are more spontaneous and tend to find more ways to have more fun more of the time.

We of course were all once kids and so we had all of these capabilities. And everything I read says we still have these capabilities inside us, we have just misplaced the keys. (After all, how valuable is your car without the keys?)

Enter KimandJason.com whose tag line on their home page is: Escape Adulthood. Return to Childhood. If that line doesn't make you smile, there's no need to read on, because you don't get it. But I hope you will, because you need to get it.

Are Kim and Jason suggesting we ignore our adult responsibilities? I don't think so - and neither am I. What they want us to do is attack adultitis. And in their quest to annihilate adultitis, they created a 40 day Escape plan. This plan was designed as a challenge between Kim and Jason (they are married). Each day they created a challenge for themselves to do something to attack adultitis. (One really cool thing is that we as readers can vote with which of them we think did a better job that day based on their blog posts - how cool is that?)

These challenges are all fun and all relevant to all of us - even if on the surface it might not seem that way. How can you apply The Escape Plan?

1. Do it for yourself. Start with today as your day one and Spend at least 15 minutes immersing yourself in a field you know nothing about. (the Day 1 Challenge) . Using my New Learning Game could even be one way to do this challenge!
2. Do it with a partner - challenge each other in much the same way that Kim and Jason did.
3. Do it as a whole work group - and if you can't do one a day, do one a week- and you have a tremendous team-building activity for the rest of the year 52-7 = 45 weeks left, take out a few weeks for holidays and to get started and there you go!
4. Find specific challenges to use with a team or group. Wanting to build the creativity of a group? Find a challenge! Wanting a fresh new icebreaker for your next training session? Adapt one of the challenges.
5. Engage your Customers in these challenges. I won't give you the answer here - I challenge you to find a way to do it!
6. Follow the plan and then share your experiences and challenges with others through conversation, email or a blog. If you are a leader this will help others see you as a learner, a risk-taker and a human - something followers don't always think of their leaders as (unfortunately). If you are a parent, your kids will either think you are crazy, the coolest parent ever, or both (don't worry, they probably already think that - this will just be a confirmation).

Those are just a few ways I have thought of this morning. You will think of more.

My real advice is go to their site and do something.

Remind yourself of your kidhood and you will rediscover a valuable part of yourself that will not only make your life more satisfying and enjoyable, but make you more successful in everything you do.

Thanks to Phil Gerbyshak for pointing me to The Escape Plan and to Kim and Jason for challenging all of us.