Time to let go of old beliefs?

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Time to let go of old beliefs?

Jeff Bezos has a great quote about the benefits of being able to let go of old beliefs

“People who are right a lot listen a lot, and they change their minds a lot. People who are right a lot change their mind without a lot of new data. They wake up and reanalyze things and change their mind. If you don’t change your mind frequently, you’re going to be wrong a lot. People who are right a lot want to disconfirm their fundamental biases.”

Similarly in Robert Pirsig’s “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” there is the story of the Monkey Trap.  I thank Andreas Wettstein for reminding me about this powerful change management story.  A hollowed-out coconut is chained to a stake and has a hole just big enough for a monkey to put a hand inside. Some food is placed inside the coconut and an inquisitive monkey will at some point reach inside. Delighted to have found some food, the monkey holds on tight with a clenched fist, but the hand is now too big to withdraw from the coconut. Trapped by the fear of losing the food the monkey is stuck.  Letting go is all that is needed to move on…

Arkaro uses stories like these in business transformations. Listen to Armel from Burkina Faso draw on the story as he reflects on the value of the Commercial Excellence transformation with Arkaro.