Ajay: Hey! Are those dark circles beneath your eyes?
Rajeev: Oh that’s nothing. My team threw a surprise party yesterday night for crossing the milestone of our first 1000 customers. It was almost early morning by the time the party was over.
Ajay: Haha! That’s fun. So I guess you like surprises?
Rajeev: Who doesn’t?
Ajay: In that case, what if every month you are not only surprised, but those surprises also help your business grow beyond your expectations?
Rajeev: That’s insane! Who can give such surprises?
Ajay: You yourself.
Rajeev: What?? I don’t understand.
Ajay: Call it the rule of monthly surprises if you like. As a budding entrepreneur this will help you grow, explore more avenues and enjoy what you are doing. Just surprise yourself every month.
Rajeev: Intriguing. How do I do that?
Ajay: Many ways. You usually have an idea about yourself, how you think, how you make decisions, how much you can work, what goals you can achieve in a month and so on, and you work accordingly, right? What if once in a month you do it a bit differently?
Make a decision that’s unlike your usual ones. Try a different strategy. Take a risk that you have been unwilling to. Outdo your monthly targets. Send a ‘hello’ to that investor who you thought was too big for your startup. Walk to your office instead of driving. Take stairs instead of the lift. Smell a lily instead of your usual roses.
Rajeev: That sounds wonderful!
Ajay: Don’t bother about surprising the customers or the board or your team. This is all about you. Give it a shot and you will find your confidence level going up. You will work harder, better and your productivity levels will be much higher.