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Blink 3 of 8 - The 5 AM Club
by Robin Sharma
Listen to the Intro
Stretch summary
Scott Sonenshein
Unlock The Power of Less and Achieve More Than You Ever Imagined
17 mins
Table of Contents
Stretch
Summary of 7 key ideas
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Key idea 1 of 7
It’s easy to get lost chasing what others have.
If you saw your neighbor driving home in a shiny new car, how would it make you feel? For most people, the sight might cause a pang of jealousy. After all, the entire human conception of success is based on having better stuff than others. This habit is called chasing and it pushes us to pursue things we don’t actually need.
For instance, researchers at Vanderbilt University found that people literally tend to perceive their neighbor’s lawn as greener than their own.
It may be a cliché, but, in the popular imagination, a healthy green lawn means success and prosperity. The desire for such status symbols is in fact so powerful that people work tirelessly to have the best lawn in the neighborhood. However, the results are often for naught: Meticulously manicuring your lawn necessarily means diverting resources from what makes you truly happy!
So what’s the solution?
Well, on the other end of the spectrum from chasing is what’s called the stretcher mindset. In a nutshell, it refers to focusing on what you want to accomplish with the resources at your disposal.
In order to have a stretcher mindset, the first step is to feel assured that you’re in control. For example, say you work in a clothing store. Retail can be soul crushing, but by simply imagining yourself as the owner of the store you can boost your confidence in an instant.
Just thinking that you’re in charge of the circumstances will help you seize the reins and tap into your creativity.
Beyond that, staying mindful of the situation at hand and the resources at your disposal will compel you to be creative with what you’ve got. In other words, you’ll have to recognize your limits and, once you know what you can and can’t do, you’ll be able to creatively pursue the options before you. That’s why studies have found that teams with a deadline or budget produce better results than those with more open-ended parameters.
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What is Stretch about?
Stretch (2017) is your guide to discovering your true creative potential. These blinks will teach you how to identify the resources, both internal and external, that you need to unlock new possibilities, reach for the stars and excel at life.
Best quote from Stretch
Stretchers find beauty and richness in places where others struggle to see anything of value.
—Scott Sonenshein
Who should read Stretch?
- Entrepreneurs in search of new strategic approaches
- People who think that more is always better
- Business people stuck in a creative rut
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