“I have a lack of resources.” We’ve all heard it so many times, we’ve probably said it ourselves. Lack of money, time, contacts, a better boss, education, opportunity… and the list goes on. But is this really the issue? If you had $10,000 or a million dollars, a 48-hour day or unlimited opportunity, would things really be that much different? Would you be more creative, more passionate? Would you reach your dream? Would you consider yourself a success? I doubt it.
People who attain their vision are resourceful not simply rich in resources. Did many of the early tech start-ups have significant funding, support, encouragement, or any at all? There is truth to the two guys in a garage image. Though they may have had a lack of resources — what many of these individuals did have was resourcefulness. What is that?
Resourcefulness is the ability to use creativity, intelligence, courage, determination, and other attributes, to overcome obstacles using what you have inside. Vision and passion fall into this category. It’s not something you allocate or put in next year’s budget, it’s the ability to see the opportunity and the belief you have the wherewithal to succeed. Resourcefulness sees the end goal and expects some hurdles. In fact, a resourceful person knows some mistakes lead to even better outcomes. It is all taken in stride. Resourcefulness makes you dig deeper to your essence and talents, rather than settle for conventional wisdom or the easy answer.
I’ll argue that too many resources can hinder advancement. Here are a few examples:
Too many people on staff. The easy response to many problems is hire more people. It generally isn’t the answer. More participants mean additional people to manage and they bring their own set of needs and demands. Hiring en masse is not selective. Now you have a large group of average individuals who fill you census number. Are they the right people? If you calculated by contribution, you probably would have done better with fewer, dedicated and smart employees, possibly higher paid talent, than another average worker.
Another consideration. No human should be doing the work. Maybe technology would be better performing the job. Did you consider that? A resourceful person asks these questions before spending a penny (many times because they don’t have the penny but that makes the commitment even deeper). They also are forced to dig deep to answer the question, “Why are we here?” A larger staff requires none of this.
Too many choices. Watch people at a buffet table. They pile on the food, not because they are hungry but because they don’t need to make a choice. On the other hand, take a person on a limited budget who plans the menus, shops within their means, wastes little, and you’re more likely to see nutrition balance, inventiveness, and greater satisfaction in a job well-done. You see this type of resourcefulness in developing nations where nothing is tossed and everything has multiple purposes. People with more resources rely on things rather than ideas.
Lack of vision. It’s hard to muster up passion when you don’t know what you want or where you want to go. Resourceful people are curious and see options in everything. Think about artists using found objects, such as steel drummers, and street performers. They don’t run to the finish line to get the race over, they actively participate in all aspects of the event, keenly aware opportunity could appear at any time. Their clarity eliminates the static and the useless distractions, and allows for ideas to flow.
Understanding resourcefulness is a resource. The easy question to ask is, “What resources do we already have and how can we use them better?” The more pointed question is, “What do we, as individuals and teams, bring to the table that comes from who we are and what we are capable of regardless of resources?” Your ultimate resource is your resourcefulness.
To hear Tony Robbins’ take on this topic go to his TED talk.
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