Monday, March 25, 2024

Is Consistency Overrated?

When folks use this word, they usually are attempting to speak about steady continuity. The quality of persistence; keeping at it even after the initial excitement, ease, encouragement, or approval wanes. As such, consistency is indeed an admirable quality in any positive context.

Why then are we surrounded by people, institutions, and organizations that have stayed true to their mission and vision, strategy and outputs, or patterns, and yet become redundant, visibly invisible, archaic, and least desirable over the years?

While I am eager to share examples with you, I will not, but I will make it easy for you. Consider TV stations, FMCGs, and restaurants that may have been your top choice decades back and are still alive today but no longer make your preference list. Not because you are not their target market, but because you have outgrown that taste or service level.

It is the same logic for individuals with gifts and talents that used to be but now are not, even though they are still present. These abound in the creative space and Christendom. Yes, Christendom – I said what I said. While many like to make God the excuse for stagnancy or redundancy, a lack of wisdom and drive can indeed debar one from manifesting to full potential and God will not force it.

Consistency is not doing the same thing the same way regardless of everything else. Consistency is;

Failing Forward: Quite simple; do not quit after you fail. Instead, become better equipped from the lessons learned and try again.

Evolving & innovating: Innovation lies at the heart of timelessness. People and organizations grow faster when they devote ample time to proactive thinking and brainstorming. Whatever the scale of your work, make out time to think – take the step – rethink – take steps. Reach out to people (network), read books (articles, podcasts, etc.), research, and take calculated risks.

Rebranding: This can be proactive or reactive; whichever it is can have great benefits or risks. Rebranding helps you to create a new image for yourself, your business, or your work in the eye of those you serve. It can be the route to engaging an entirely new market, audience, or class or changing your output and priorities.

Reinventing: This is not just changing the image of what you do in people’s eyes; it is becoming something entirely new or different. Most times, after doing something for so long we feel ashamed to move on to something else, even when we know that there is nothing for us on this spot anymore. At other times, unreasonable obstinacy keeps one rooted in the same spot, doing the same thing, the same way, and getting no results or fulfillment. Get out of your way, and become again. You can return to school at 30, change your career path at 40, or start a business at 50!

Revising your goals: Goals can change! Dreams can metamorphose! If your perspective at 31 can be different from what it was at 21, then it is safe to say that goals and aspirations too can change. They can be tweaked and modified, and this is just fine! Do not stay painfully devoted to an endgame that is no longer of import, nor serves the intended purpose or humanity anymore.

People say that consistency is keeping at it even when no one applauds you, and this is right. But then again, think about it – do food companies continue to produce even when they are not selling?

You must pay attention to those you aim to reach (is there a better way to reach them), and not mindlessly carry on – that is the broad way to redundancy.

Also, determine your success metric(s) – what does success mean to you? Not to everyone else, but to you.

 

Till your next visit here, stay blooming!

FKhttps://bloomwithme.org
I write about family, faith, work and Life. My pieces focus on how I am learning to bloom in all these and I welcome you to bloom with me.

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I write about family, faith, work and Life. My pieces focus on how I am learning to bloom in all these and I welcome you to bloom with me.

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