Full View

     “Oh, I don’t read / watch / listen to the news because it’s always depressing.” I hear an alarming number of people – friends, business colleagues, workshop participants – say these words.

     When driving a motorcycle, the rider needs to take in a multitude of road conditions. More than the side-to-side scanning done in an automobile, a motorcycle rider needs to absorb continuous information about the road surface, dangers to the side and front, and frequent checks to the rear.

     We need to take as broad a view of our world as a biker takes of their driving conditions. You cannot learn from other people’s experiences if you isolate yourself from them. In our professional lives we encounter a range of people with their differing beliefs, customs, perspectives, and experiences. In order to communicate and converse with people we meet we need the broad world exposure possible primarily through our media outlets. We learn how to prepare ourselves for unexpected situations by reading and watching similar situations. Rather than stick our heads in the sand and isolate ourselves from the news, we should embrace the greater information at our disposal.

     Instead of being depressed by bad news, be enlightened by more information. Learn of yet another bad thing happening to someone else should have you thankful that you are doing as well as you are. Hear of yet another disaster and you are more aware of what you need to do to minimize the effects of something similar happening to you, and should spur you into action. Discover greater misery in the world – or around the corner – and examine what you do to help other people. Consider doing more for others when you can.

     You make better decisions; see things with a more open mind; minimize costly mistakes; run your business better; and become a more-rounded person when you keep up-to-date with current events and with the world around you. There is a lot going on out there.

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