What would happen if...?

What would happen if...?

Now THAT is a great question.

It's one that can lead you in creative directions when
asked constantly.

It can also be used strategically to keep you on the right
path - away from bad decisions.

This question is asked constantly in the design of
software, buildings, automobiles... in fact it's probably
the most asked question in the world.

What would happen if...?

But in our personal lives, in our every day decisions
concerning our health, our career, our relationships, this
question is often shelved, locked away, hidden from.

Most people are terrified of it.

Because when we ask it, if we're honest, we usually get
the truth.

We get the "consequences" that we can't ignore.

That's why it's avoided like the plague.

More promising ideas have died quick, horrible deaths by
avoiding this question than maybe any other reason.

What would happen if I ate that piece of chocolate cake?

What would happen if I cheated on my husband?

What would happen if we tested the new software for only
two weeks instead of the usual four weeks?

What would happen if I tried to remember all my
appointments this week without writing them down?

You see, if we don't ask, we can't fully consider the
consequences. And when we don't think about what would
happen as a result of our thoughts and actions, we can't be
smart.

We lose opportunities by the boatload.

In the sports world, it's known as putting yourself in a
position to win. Great managers know that if you can stay
close, you have a chance.

Because if an unlucky bounce occurs, you've killed your
chances to win if you'd made a bunch of dumb errors, unwise
decisions or if a referee's call goes against you.

Achieving great victories, or simply getting any long-term
project done on time, on budget and done correctly doesn't
usually happen because of one great decision or one
spectacular action.

It's done by making a lot of good decisions, which, added
up, can be a great, great outcome.

People like "home runs," but success at anything isn't
about having a great 30 seconds a week ago.

When a person loses 30 - 50 - 80 po'unds or more, for
example, it isn't because they said no to the cheesecake at
the Christmas party.

It was literally thousands of individual decisions made
each day guided by an overriding purpose, and great
questions asked constantly.

When someone builds a company to a million, then tens of
millions and hundreds of millions in sales, it's not only
because they're so "smart" - many big companies have been
built by people with less than average intelligence,
average memory, less than average grades in school, no
people skills.

But the ability to ask...

"Is this the best use of my time and resources?"
"What would happen if we changed this feature?"
"What would happen if we changed directions completely?"
"Is this product still going to be needed in the next
year, two, twenty?"

...is the one of the single most critical abilities you
can develop in yourself and in your team.

What could happen if I have one more drink? Could I get
pulled over - get into an accident? What would happen
then? How much would that cost in insurance, fines,
attorneys and lost wages? What else could I lose? Do I
want to risk all that?

Companies in the vinyl record pressing industry that
didn't ask, "What is the next opportunity?" missed out on
CDs and were gone almost overnight.

People who never consider all the consequences of eating
"just one" brownie will always be looking for the "diet
that works," hiding from the questions.

Asking forces you to see what you may not want to face.

But wouldn't it be better to have the answers?

Wouldn't it make it easier to reach your goals? More fun?
Would success come faster?

Wouldn't you be happier -after weighing the negative
consequences with the positive ones- making the decisions
that will send you in the right directions? Wouldn't you
find it easier to say no to the "tempting" but bad
decisions if you focused on the ultimate consequences
instead of turning away from them?

You know the answer!!
Don't you?

Man, I hope you feel more empowered now. You should...

Because the habit of asking empowering "what if" questions
is one shared by successful people in all areas of life.

Make this a part of your every waking moment, and the
opinion you hold of yourself will grow by multiples, due to
your better decisions and better outcomes.

You'll probably gain one or two more productive hours
every single day.

And you'll be less scared of life... able to smile even
during the many important and impactful decisions you must
make every hour of every day.

So, what else could happen if this became an "always on"
unconscious habit?