Deep Six It

When I was in high school, I was very happy to get into an Honors English class, and very unhappy when I got the first draft of my first paper back, and the teacher had written on it, “You have some good ideas here. Now, deep six this and start over.”

I didn’t know what deep six meant, and so I stayed after class to ask her, and when she explained that she meant I throw it away and start all over again, I was a little horrified that I would be throwing my words in the trash, but it turned out to be a very good idea. It’s a lesson that I’ve taken throughout my life into different scenarios where I feel like I have a solid goal, but sometimes and maybe you’ve experienced this yourself, the plan can get sort of complicated if you’re in a situation like that where the goal is clear, but the process of getting there has gotten too complex.

Consider what that very wise teacher said, to start fresh with the idea and the goal in mind, but to approach it without the clutter of a bad plan in front of you.