You’re probably familiar with the definition of insanity, right? Doing the same thing and expecting different results. Of course sometimes you can do the same thing and you do get different results, like when you drive the same highways to and from work and it takes different amounts of time each day depending on traffic and accidents, and sometimes you can wear down someone with repeated questions/requests, but for many things that have few, if any, varying factors, the definition certainly applies.
Based on some recent conversations I was thinking about another kind of insanity. Do you know anyone who will ask you or someone else the same questions multiple times, for instance what day a holiday is or how much something is or if something’s available for purchase or what the options are for something? I know several people who sometimes lapse into this habit or practice, that it’s more than just second guessing or double checking or making sure they heard you correctly, but that they clearly don’t have faith in the answer you’ve given them and want to make you doubt yourself by asking you again and again. It would be one thing if there was a question of parameters that they could adjust or that they had a specific something they wanted checked or confirmed that might not have been checked initially, but that’s not the case and what they’re asking is the same exact question over and over again. Frustrating and something that might drive you insane, right?
I’m all about ‘measure twice, cut once,’ but 1 foot is still 1 foot and will always be 1 foot and you can’t change that no matter how many times you measure it. So in success journeys where you’ve asked someone to help you with something, or if you’ve delegate it to a team member, as always start with as much information as you possibly can so that they don’t have to go back time and again to update their answers based on additional information you didn’t share initially even though you had it. If you notice that you have fallen into this habit or practice, I would encourage you to really think about why you ask a question multiple times (especially if it’s unconscious and not a matter of doubt or distrust), and make changes to your life and communication efforts so that you don’t stress yourself out as much and you do your part to make sure that people understand what information would help you understand their conclusions so that you don’t ask them the same questions again and again.