Don't Sit On The Fence

Level 4: Serious Player

and

May 17, 2024

Future Guardian,

It turns out, it's just you and me today. Kev and Nic are off galavanting in Phoenix with other amazing people. I'm here, left to my own devices.

So actually ...

I guess that means I have the power.

I HAVE ALL THE POWER!

MUAUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHFHAHAHAHHAHAHaahh11!11

COUGH COUGH COUGH

Ahehm.

Anyway,

As I was writing today's article I realized I was actually just writing to myself.

So I thought ...

What if I make it a letter to myself and shared that with you?

And then I realized, because I had that idea, I had to do it.

You'll see why.

Dear Me,

You ever get this feeling ...

"Man ... I've got a really good idea."

I get that. I get that a lot.

I mean,

C'mon you know this.

You're reading one right now. I was busy writing this very article when I realized I was writing a bunch to myself so I thought "What if this was a letter to me?"

Of course now, You and I are much more inclined to let our ideas live, no matter how strange - as long as we're having a good time with them, am I right?

Anyway,

I used to just marinate in those ideas. I used to just think getting good ideas and thinking about them and not doing anything further was just part of life.

Sometimes I'd write them down.

Usually I'd think they were neat but, who's ever gonna do that?

Sometimes I would take those ideas and try them out. Most of the time I would just wonder ... is it really a good idea? And then do nothing with the idea because I couldn’t answer that question.

I see it differently now of course.

A good idea manifests more than just as an idea now ... it's got form, texture, color ... ENERGY.

I can feel an idea come to me like it's pushing against a wall.

Like it wants to get out and be in the world.

The idea just very, so quietly, screams at me "do it."

And it's because of one simple line.

Sometimes that's a subtle line in sand.

Sometimes a scratch on the rock.

Sometimes a crack in the road.

Sometimes a ripped chasm between two points I must cross.

But always,

ALWAYS it's a point where I am here now, and the path I am walking travels over the line.

Ideas are worthless. Information is worthless. Knowledge is worthless.

Until you do the thing.

Here's another interesting aspect to this dynamic. I can often tell when an idea is incomplete. When an idea isn't quite right. When my idea if implemented in the form of that idea would probably not be successful.

I can tell because our subconscious minds are processing information at incomprehensible levels. There's shit happening behind the scenes which I can't even know is happening but which is giving me understanding in a form of communication I can't even see.

But I know.

And yet.

It's taken me all these years. All these words. All of this revisiting, re-walking through the river to recognize ...

So much of the time the missing piece, the further clarity and understanding I want or need on the idea, that I'm waiting for before I maybe or maybe don't execute on the idea - so much of the time that missing piece can ONLY come from the action of doing the idea.

That's the tipping point.

Where the line lies.

Where you have gathered enough information, enough knowledge, enough clarity, enough understanding, enough knowing about where you are going and why you want to get there, and enough knowing about what the next step is ...

That the only thing that really actually makes sense in the next step is to put the idea into action.

Even if it's a broken idea.

Even if I think "this idea is not completely correct."

Because the missing piece of the information is ALL the understanding and clarity which can only be achieved by Engaging the Field1 with The Idea.

There's magic in The Field.

Like real honest to god magic - shit that cannot be explained except by witnessing the parts of ourselves which are incomprehensibly skilled and powerful at processing data more than we can ever know, that’s sifting through all the data which is only possible to achieve by being in The Field with The Idea, and is telling us missing pieces which are vital for moving forward.

And I can hear you there,

Picking through my words ... thinking "well, what even makes an idea worthy of action?"

After all, surely not every idea is "worth" doing?

WELL my friend.

Let me take that very simple bait, which I the writer certainly didn't place there just for the purpose of continuing this thought.

What the hell even is an idea?

I'm not interested in digging into dictionary definitions of the word. There's definition and then there's contextual understanding in which we all use the concept.

There's the "idea" of what an idea is.

Hang on ...

... I need to wait and see if that broke reality ...

...

Nope,

We're good.

Ok, let's continue.

Is an idea imagined fact?

Like, is it just something that you come up with in your head?

What would that look like?

"I think the color blue is actually not blue it is actually something called perpplecskenat."

I mean, that's complete nonsense, but isn't that completely made up detail a made up idea?

Maybe it can be.

But maybe that silly example is more made up fact, and less idea.

A simple thought.

After all,

There's nothing surrounding it.

I just ... imagined that the color blue wasn't the color blue, or at least wasn't called the color blue.

Again, nonsense.

Because an idea is something more. An idea has context and motion.

When I think of the concept of an idea I think of imagined creation. But to me it almost always has a sense of movement and of potential.

What if?

What if creates ideas.

What if I did XYZ.

Based on the information I know about coffee ... what if I brewed my cup this morning with milk instead of water?

That sounds like an idea! Brew coffee with milk instead of water.

(News flash, it's f$#king gross don't do that)

But let's think further. Because in that case it was the idea to do something. The idea to create something. The idea that something new could exist.

The idea that I could have a different experience.

The idea that I could achieve a new outcome.

"I have an idea!" to me always elicits the thought that someone has thought of something new, someone has thought of something to do, someone has imagined the possibility of a thing.

"I have an idea! What if ..."

Idea to me has motion.

Idea to me is effectively hypothesis.

Based on this information I have, what if I do xyz?

It doesn't have to be rigidly scientific.

I have an idea - What if in the D&D campaign I'm writing and running, suddenly all magic power is lost across the realm and everyone is stuck with their hands and their tools?

That's an idea. That might be a hell of an idea.

Where does THAT idea come from?

The information: Everything I know about the D&D campaign, the world, the story ...

The direction I want to go: and a desire to mix things up in a way that forces my players to think completely differently and solve a problem unconventionally.

What the hell am I doing talking so much about the concept of idea?

Because

An idea COMPELS the maker of the idea to enact it into The Field ... otherwise, the idea is only imagination.

By it's very existence, Idea creates the potential for action to be taken, and therefore forces you to confront your inaction over The Idea.

I am now someone who is NOT making a D&D campaign where all the magic has disappeared.

The Field only exists because of The Idea to engage in it. But by having The Idea, you compel yourself to a place where the only sensible step forward is to go completely to the other side of The Idea which is Engaging that Idea into Reality.

Why is that the only sensible step forward?

Because the only way you can come to The Idea to do the thing in the first place, is if YOUR path in life takes you to that line in the sand.

The other option is to reject the idea.

You can walk away from it.

Most people do.

But you rob yourself of the gift The Idea presents, the gift of understanding of yourself that is only possible in the balance between The Idea and The Field.

That's what I hope to reveal to you today.

Along with the danger most people face ...

The Fence you might end up sitting on.

Theres that point.

That line in the sand, etched in the rock, carved in the earth ...

Whatever it looks like to each of us,

There's always that point.

Where Idea comes to the end of it's path of being imagined and MUST - ABSOLUTELY MUST - be put into The Field for anything further to come of it.

To fail to do so is to leave the idea as imagination.

To leave it as words or a drawing in a sketchbook.

To sit on a shelf, packed between other books.

To be lost in a pile of papers.

To disappear in millions of words in digital documents.

Never again seen.

Never again considered.

Unless you are lucky enough to run into that idea again when you're finally ready to cross the line.

But yet again,

You will be there.

At that point.

The line.

The fence.

It's a great challenge of our humanity to take the idea that we have, which is in the safety of our own imagination, the safety of the paper in front of us, the safety of the screen only we can see ...

To take that idea and cross the line into The Field.

Into The Arena.2

Where there is scrutiny.

Where there is expectation.

Where there is judgement.

Where there is failure.

Where there is loss.

Where there is pain.

The idea is safe within ourselves.

But don't let the idea die in you.

It's not fair to your idea. It's not fair to yourself.

Our ideas are the way in which we, probably unknowingly, chip away at all the things we are not and slowly with each iteration discover more and more who we are.

It's our best way of making each "next best step" towards the things we want, the life we wish to be living, embracing the fullest of who we are.

Our ideas are from the deepest part of ourselves.

And they DESERVE to see the light of day. They deserve to be put into The Field.

Even if no one else ends up seeing them because the idea is incomplete and lacking other necessary components.

Because the idea does not exist alone.

The Idea when put into The Field brings you clarity and understanding far outside of the bounds of The Idea itself.

You can discover truths about yourself simply from enacting the idea.

Is it the most damaging thing you can do to sit on The Fence in front of Idea not actually moving into Reality?

We advocate for slowing down.

We advocate for figuring things out step by step.

In the infinite game of life, it's not about winning, because there is no end to life, you just participate for as long as you are able ... it's about not losing.

But there comes a certain point where Sitting on The Fence may very well be losing.

Where Sitting on The Fence is abdicating your position on the field of life. It isn't winning, and it's not really losing.

It's just refusing to play the game.

And refusing to play the infinite game is the same is losing.

When you have an Idea that deserves to see the light of day and be put into The Field, and you don't Engage the Field with The Idea, you are not playing the game at all.

You're sitting there just waiting.

What is it that brings us to that point where we have The Idea and yet we cannot, or will not Engage the Field with The Idea?

Uncertainty

The unending theme of The Guardian Academy.

The thing about "the line" or "the fence" which keeps people from enacting their ideas into the field is one simple element.

"People prefer the certainty of misery to the misery of uncertainty" - Virginia Satir

It always comes down to Uncertainty.

In every theme and every idea, principle, philosophy that we explore and live here in TGA, when it comes down to doing anything involved with your personal growth you CANNOT move forward without Uncertainty.

Growth equals change. Change equals new. New equals unknown and uncertainty.

Uncertainty is a dangerous state of mind for the uninitiated because when confronted with it your natural reaction is to turn away.

And what could possibly be more uncertain than ...

Here's my idea, it sounds amazing in my head, but I am not sure what will actually happen when I do it.

And you can't POSSIBLY be certain about what's going to happen with the implementation of an idea unless you've already done it.

Here you stand,

On the precipice of "Could Be"

And before you is a chasm of Uncertainty.

You've got to get good at enjoying that feeling of Uncertainty, or at the very least, accepting it as reality.

Heck you can use Uncertainty as a barometer for knowing you're doing the thing.

Hey I feel uncertain in this activity I'm about to do - CONGRATULATIONS - you must be Engaging the Field with something new!

Waiting for The Certain

That's the real challenge isn't it.

I think so often, especially with intelligent, talented people who have ideas and know they need to implement them ...

They will sit on The Fence with those ideas because they are waiting for more certainty or even more clarity about those ideas.

They want to know that the next step is next best step.

Even when you know (perhaps especially when you know) about this whole process of gaining Clarity3 to find Certainty4 on the path before you Collapse Time,5

You can end up sitting on The Fence when truly the next step is Engaging the Field with The Idea because ...

And this part is important ...

That can very well be a necessary part of gaining Clarity.

Moving forward is often part of the process of gaining Clarity in order to figure out that Certainty.

Which means,

Inevitably,

You must move forward sometimes UNCERTAINTLY

In order to get the information.

Am I repeating myself enough?

Are we beating a dead horse yet?

I feel like all these ideas can't possibly be said enough in enough different ways.

Your Unique Path

Here's where it really all matters the most.

Unless you want to try to be someone else and live someone else's life - in which case, go ahead and model everything you're doing after someone else's actions - what matters most is that you figure out YOUR own unique path through life.6

Your own unique path in business.

Your own unique path in health and fitness.

Your own unique path in wealth.

Your own unique path in parenting.

That's all that matters in the end. It's you. How you live your life.

"It's always you. It's always here. It's always now."

What someone else has done is irrelevant.

What's happening when you have that experience of An Idea that deserves to see The Light of Day is that you've walked your path of life right up to that point ...

Right up to that Line.

And in your hesitancy to step over the line you have stopped, held fast by Uncertainty, and have looked out seeking Clarity from someone or something else.

You seek Clarity from something else or someone else out there about what you should do. You look for the models and the systems and the frameworks so that you can know that the next step you are taking is OK.

That you are Ok.

But in doing so you have held yourself from walking your own path.

Because the only truth for you in this moment with this Idea you have of What Can Be ... is that your path has led you to that line, and the only way to continue your path is to keep walking that line by putting The Idea into Reality.

The real next best step.

It actually IS enacting The Idea.

No matter how weird. No matter how odd. No matter how much it seems incomplete.

This is where you have come and the REASON is because the unanswered questions lie on the other side of the line.

They lie along the path that you must walk through uncertainty into The Field - into The Arena.

But What If?

What if it's wrong?

What if I decide I don't like where I've ended up?

What if I look back later on and realize I could have walked a “better” path?

The fallacy of good decision making is that we weigh our choices in our next step based on future analysis of the past.

The outcome does not determine whether you have made a good choice in the step you have taken.

In fact, I would argue, that ANY outcome from a step you have taken IS PROOF THAT YOU MADE A CHOICE WELL.

You know what happens when you don't take action?

When you have your idea of what could or should or might be done to get what you want in life, and you don't enact that idea even a little bit?

NOTHING.

Not a damn thing happens.

No outcome.

If you want a barometer for good decision making?

Ask yourself this.

Did you do a thing and got an outcome from it? You probably made a decision well and at the very least you can gather data to make decisions even better in the future.

Did you not do a thing and therefore didn't get an outcome? You probably did not make a decision well, and you wont have the data necessary to know.

Are there other parts of making decisions well?

Yea DUH!

We want to make our decisions with as solid logic reasoning and evidence as we can.

But we also have to have the presence of mind to recognize when we've come up to that line, when we're at the fence, where what we actually really need most is the information that comes with making that next step into the field.

So,

Dear me,

Look to your present self.

Be cognizant of the feeling and energy that comes with your ideas, because they most likely are coming to you as a result of the path you have walked thus far, and the clarity and understanding you see lies on the other side of the action of putting those ideas into reality.

Don't sit on The Fence with your Ideas.

That is to succumb to Uncertainty. That is to prevent yourself from knowing. That is to refuse to play the infinite game of YOUR unique life and path in it.

And,

If you do find yourself on a fence - if you do find yourself with an idea that you aren't putting into reality, if you find an idea coming back to you over and over again ...

It's probably because there's an action you need to take, and you haven't yet taken it.

Ok?

Great.

Now,

I'm done writing.

You go back through that letter and add some memes or somethin to make it a bit fun ... I got all serious again, and Kev obviously isn't gonna be any help this week.

Sincerely,

By the way, future Guardian.

That inflection point of idea into action is precisely why we made The Arena.

It's hard.

Hard to do on your own.

It's so very easy to get comfortable with our ideas, with our knowledge, with our understanding. To feel like we are moving forward and gaining something in our lives by studying and building knowledge.

But

Without putting The Idea into reality, you've really done nothing.

The personal path you walk is yours to walk uniquely. When you have an idea that has yet to be enacted in reality you've walked on that path up to a point that you need to cross - and as long as you don't enact that idea, or another one by Engaging the Field with it ...

You are just sitting on the Fence. Or even perhaps drifting backwards.

It's ok.

Uncertainty is scary. We're built to feel that way.

If you want the support to Engage the Field with whatever idea or new understanding you have with your unique path in life, step into The Arena, and we'll help you take the next step, and then the one after that, and the one after that.

Join the waitlist here7

Be Useful. Be Present. Love the Journey.
Joseph Robertson, CMO The Guardian Academy

Engage in discussion with the author and TGA+ Community in the comments below - give us your 6WU and/or thoughts after reading. Together we make a rising tide that lifts all ships.
Ready to apply your ideas to reality? You may find our Engage the Field Handbook a useful and effective resource.8
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