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Feeling "stagnant" at work = soulcrushing
​10x thinking = soulcrusher-crushing

Being of the generation that I am, when I make a video game reference, my go-to is usually Super Mario Bros.
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Imagine if the entire point of that game were to stomp on one Goomba (the little mushroom creature) over and over. We jump on him, he gets squished, we wait a sec, and another identical Goomba comes out. Over and over and over.
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That would be a pretty boring video game.
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People feeling stagnant at work often find themselves stuck in a cycle of repetitive tasks that seem to offer little room for growth or creativity — just like stomping a single Goomba.
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Days might be filled with things like answering routine emails, attending endless meetings, or managing small, administrative details that never seem to lead to anything significant.
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These tasks might have felt interesting once, but soon start to feel like they’re on autopilot, and we're simply going through the motions.
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Days start to blend together, and this stagnation might even lead to a feeling of dread about continuing in this rut without any clear path for excitement on the horizon.
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If work feels like this, it's because we're stomping the same Goomba over and over.
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The reason video games are fun is because the tasks and challenges continually get harder, and everything is in service of a bigger, more ambitious goal.
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In the case of Super Mario Bros, that ambitious goal is saving the princess.
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It's a daunting goal. It will take a while to get there. We will fail many many many times along the way. We will have many small victories along the way as well. And all this makes the game FUN.
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At work, it's easy to mistake completing daily tasks for the goals. But a powerful way to snap ourselves out of this, is to adopt a 10x thinking approach.
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​10x thinking means aiming for results or solutions that are 10 times bigger or more impactful than the goals we'd normally feel comfortable with.
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Instead of making small, incremental improvements, we push for bold, game-changing ideas that dramatically shift how things are done.
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10x thinking forces us to think more creatively, challenge existing limits, and focus on the kinds of things that can create exponential value, whether innovative ideas, more efficient solutions, or new approaches to our work.
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A recent book on the topic that made a big impact on me is called 10x is easier than 2x. In it, the authors make a strong argument that going for "way more ambitious" is actually easier than going for "incremental improvement."
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With 2x thinking, we make small improvements, so that things get a little bit better.
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10x thinking, on the other hand, requires big, innovative shifts that often eliminate inefficiencies, unlock new possibilities, and inspire more bold, creative problem-solving. It frees us from the mindset of "more effort" and pushes us to focus on smarter, more impactful strategies.
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10x thinking is more motivating because it's harder.
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​Importantly, 10x goals don't always mean we'll get 10x results. But it's a losers game to lower expectations in order to guarantee success.
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And if we aim for 10x, but only achieve 4x? That's still twice the results of aiming for 2x and "succeeding."
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When we create 10x goals for ourselves at work, all kinds of magic starts happening. We get an energy-injection and start enjoying our work more. Our confidence and self-esteem grows. We're inspired to develop bolder, more creative ideas. We accelerate our skills and professional growth. We build resilience. We become stronger, more strategic thinkers. We attract other like-minded, ambitious people into our orbit. And we impress the heck out of our colleagues and bosses.
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It's easy to think that it's "someone else's job" to tell us what our goals should be at work. Especially the big, bold, 10x kinds of goals. But please please please don't wait for (or count on) anyone else. And definitely don't let other people scare you away from aiming high.
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​A few ways we can implement 10x thinking without permission from anyone else:

• Setting ambitious goals for our own career and life
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• Solving big problems that senior execs haven't had time for
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• Solving problems before a boss has to ask us
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• Learning and leveraging technology in creative new ways
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• Developing mind-blowing customer or client experiences
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10x goals are the day-job equivalent of "saving the princess." ​
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Now we've got something worthy of working for. Something that forces us to take on tougher challenges and keep improving.
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It's impossible to set 10x goals and still feel stagnant at work. So let's go crush it.

Sending smiles,
-Tim-
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Let's Lightbulb - Founder / CEO / Crusher of Soulcrushers

Let's Lightbulb is a strategic facilitation consultancy, specializing in outcome-based workshops, off-sites, sprints and trainings. We specialize in working with leadership teams, inspiring creative thinking, and keeping things soulcrusher-free.

If you know of anyone looking for a facilitator for any of the above, we'd appreciate you sharing our info.

Every week in this newsletter, I share how to reduce the stuff that makes our work not-fun, and increase the stuff that makes work fun.

It's 98.3% Pollyanna-thinking-free.

Thanks for reading, and please share with friends and colleagues that might find it valuable — because we need more fun people in the world.