Not sure if any other family in the world did this, but I grew up thinking that if you cut the ends off a cucumber, and rubbed the end cap with the main body, it somehow magically pulled the bitterness out of the cucumber. I was also afraid to tear off the mattress tag or cross my eyes because they’d stay that way.

Anyway, one day someone told me that cucumber exercise did not make a difference and I stopped doing it. Surprisingly, the cucumber tasted just as good. I also tore off a mattress tag one time but I still follow the cross-eyes rule.

Sometimes we just need someone who challenges the way we think to help us move into brave new worlds, give up foolish traditions and habits, or find exciting new ideas.

This is one of the benefits of being in our Renaissance Executive Forums groups. Each month we in me

et privately to discuss how we do things and what we are working on. The leaders in our groups are experienced in running their business, leading and developing their teams, and reaching their goals. When we share an idea, ask a question, or review one of our long-standing company traditions, there are others in the room who don’t work for you and can quickly see the futility of your ways, or the opportunity you are missing and can help you make the change. The right CHANGE can be very good for you.

In our monthly meetings, we challenge the status quo of each others business models and then provide support for that crazy idea like not rubbing the ends of the cucumber. Maybe a better example is the crazy idea of making an online shoe store that is more about customer service than shoes. (Zappos), or perhaps replacing taxis with Uber drivers. We need people who know us well enough and have been where we are going, to help us up as we take that leap of faith. (Read “Great Leaders are a bit Crazy”)

We all have limited time and resources available to reach our goals, any time someone else can shorten your learning curve, spare us the frustration of going down a path that leads to disaster or sharing ideas and resources that make our efforts more productive, we should take advantage of it. You should too.

If you have never experienced what it is like to be in a group with people who can do this for you, come join us at our next open forum and see what this is all about, and the real value it provides our members each month. Email me to sign up for our next event or for more information at RobertH@REFDallas.com.

Robert Hunt