There is a discussion these days in the Co-active Network Forum, about clients that don’t know… how to get them unstuck?
I don’t remember in what book I’ve read this: by saying “I don’t know” you really block your mind and stop the thinking process. And how can you get new ideas if your mind is blocked?!
When I hear my clients saying “I don’t know” I usually ask them to put aside that thought, and to notice what other thoughts are coming … after. I even encourage them, by offering to join the brainstorming. This way, we usually come up with much more ideas, and they’ll have to choose those they want to implement. And I don’t miss the chance to point out how many ideas they came up with, after they put aside the “I don’t know”.
In my new drawing style, I asked my right hand to choose the colours and to draw freely something based on “I don’t know”… and it came out with this:
(The upper gray came from scanning the drawings from my sketchbook)
I was surprised by how little was on the paper when it stopped drawing.
Curious again, I allowed my hand to draw freely while I hold in my mind the thought: “I know everything I need at the right moment”. And this is what I’ve got:
If you’re sensitive, please notice what you’re feeling when you look at each of them. Do you notice a difference?
How often do you catch yourself saying “I don’t know”? And how often are you curious?
Do you use another method to get you unstuck from “I don’t know”?
Please share your thoughts about this topic. I’d like to know what you think.
Gabriela
www.quantumlifecoach.ca
PS: If you’d like to brainstorm together, let me know. 😉
Great blog Gabriela
Amazing the drawings! Simply amazing.
Great job
Thanks Patrick! 😉 How are you doing with “I don’t know?” ?
Great insight Gabriela,
Awesome idea to draw what comes thorough mind in various mind sets. Maybe, you could elaborate how to move from being in “I don’t know” to being more “in the know”. Me, in many situation, I’m replacing “I don’t know” with “I am evaluating my options”.
Best regards,
Margareta
Thanks Margareta! I start drawing in this style after a Holotropic Breathwork™ experience in a workshop, back in 2008.
When I coach a client and we get to “I don’t know”, the next question I ask really depends on what the topic is. It’s not easy to talk in general about “I don’t know”.
As I said in the blog post, one way is to be open: put the “I don’t know” aside, quiet your mind, be curious and notice what new thoughts are coming to your mind. Another way is to start brainstorming alone or with someone else. If it’s about a situation when someone else is involved, put yourself in her/his “shoes” and try to see how the problem looks from that perspective.
If you have a specific situation in mind, let’s talk. Usually I have lots of ideas, and this might start well the brainstorming… and keep it going. You’ll decide when we stop the brainstorming, what ideas resonate with you and which one you want to implement.
Gabriela
Great insight Gabriela,
Awesome idea to draw what comes thorough mind in various mind sets. Maybe, you could elaborate how to move from being in “I don’t know” to being more “in the know”. Me, in many situation, I’m replacing “I don’t know” with “I am evaluating my options”.
Best regards,
Margareta
Thanks Margareta! I start drawing in this style after a Holotropic Breathwork™ experience in a workshop, back in 2008.
When I coach a client and we get to “I don’t know”, the next question I ask really depends on what the topic is. It’s not easy to talk in general about “I don’t know”.
As I said in the blog post, one way is to be open: put the “I don’t know” aside, quiet your mind, be curious and notice what new thoughts are coming to your mind. Another way is to start brainstorming alone or with someone else. If it’s about a situation when someone else is involved, put yourself in her/his “shoes” and try to see how the problem looks from that perspective.
If you have a specific situation in mind, let’s talk. Usually I have lots of ideas, and this might start well the brainstorming… and keep it going. You’ll decide when we stop the brainstorming, what ideas resonate with you and which one you want to implement.
Gabriela