Meanwhile, from the box…

Consider things inside the box...

You have heard the expression, “Think outside of the box,” and if you’re like me, you have wondered what exactly was kept outside of the box that was so handy.

Over the past month, I’ve noticed the expression being used a fair amount by folks who are ignoring the resources that are available in the box. (This is not to be confused with the expression “let’s approach this creatively” which I believe always means that in the next budget, somebody is going to get it.) The “outside the box” deal is usually used in a context always suggests that things are bad in the box. If we keep doing things the same way, the movie will have an unhappy ending.

It seems to me that it may be time to start looking around the box. Maybe it’s time to color the walls of the box, on the inside. Maybe it’s time to add a guestroom to the box. Maybe it’s time to get a cardboard knife and cut a skylight into the box, to let the sunshine in.

There is a lot to be said for approaching the problem with a new perspective, a new angle, and often, a new attitude. But it seems a little shortsighted to me to forget about the box we used to get there in the first place.

See if this fits, with the stuff around you.

Good luck with the changes that surround us. We’re going to need all the cleverness we’ve got, and that luck.

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