Put down the duckie

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: nothing will get in your way like you do. Nothing. 

We humans are extraordinarily good at coming up with roadblocks. Sometimes they’re big, like limiting beliefs holding you back. Sometimes they’re smaller, but they still get in the way. 

At my last retreat, I gave the group quiet time to brainstorm goals. One of the participants struggled with this and kept picking up her phone. She wanted to keep moving and taking action, even before she was clear on what that was. 

I get it - the action part is much more fun than the quiet time. But the quiet time is more important. How will you know what to do until you decide where you want to go and why? The answer is: you won’t. You’ll just keep moving and hope you achieve the right goals. 

Back to the retreat. After catching herself picking up her phone over and over, she finally yelled “Put down the duckie!” Which, I’ll admit, sounded a little weird. 

Turns out, it’s brilliant advice.  She was thinking of the classic Sesame Street song “Put Down The Duckie”. In this song, Ernie wants to learn to play the saxophone but struggles because he insists on holding onto his rubber duckie at the same time. Instead of bluesy music, he’s just squeaking. Finally, the other characters convince him to put down the duckie so he can simply play the sax. The result is beautiful music, and a lot of fun to watch. 

What's your duckie? What are you holding onto at the expense of something else you really want? Put it down, just for a bit, so you can focus on something new. You can always pick your duckie up again.