Plant the Right Seeds

It is Spring…or so the calendar says.  Regardless, this is the appropriate time of the year to think about planting, putting down seeds, watering and fertilizing them for future growth.  There is a certain amount of pleasure we get when we put in the work and then watch the blossoming of our efforts grow into something that we can all enjoy.  This is a great time of the year to watch the sprouting and the natural re-invigoration of life around us.

The best results, of course, are based on the fertility of the environment that we are working in.  This is great for the physical landscape.  How about the mental landscape as well?  Let us update the above paragraph slightly by substituting “idea” for “seeds” to get the following:

This is the appropriate time to think about planting, putting forth ideas, watering and fertilizing them for future growth.  There is a certain amount of pleasure we get when we put in the work and then watch the blossoming of our actions grow into something that we can all enjoy.  This is a great time to watch the sprouting and the natural re-invigoration of life around us.

Virtually the same words, with similar actions and similar outcomes.  When we work together in a group, we share (plant) ideas between each other, take hold of them and they have the potential to become something wonderful (said completely from my optimistic point of view).  When the right time comes, we have envisioned in our mind the outcomes we desire.  That tinge of fear / doubt begins and then comes the second guessing: What if the weather is not good?  What if my idea is not good?  What if no one likes my planting? What if no one likes my idea?  What if I have the wrong seeds?  What if I have the wrong ideas?  I remember when Gab and Bec were younger and learning to play softball, we would teach the kids that when they went to bat, instead of standing there watching the pitches go by and striking out, to swing – we wanted them to go down trying instead of standing there like a spectator.  The same applies here as well, better to make the attempt and fail, (learning something out of the endeavor) rather than do nothing at all.

With planting seeds, we will never know the outcome if we do not try planting in different grounds to find out the best results; keeping in mind that certain plants grow better in different climates (think of how many palm trees you see in New Jersey).  Ideas are no different; for an idea to take hold, there must be a receptive audience (think of how many breweries exist in the middle of a dessert wasteland).  In either case, stay true to your visions and dreams, be bold and plant the seed to meet the vision, then enjoy the outcomes you have sown.