When I was a kid I would take a cardboard box, decorate it to look like a car, and then have my older brother and sister whip me around a tile or hardwood floor. When you're 5 or 6 years old, you're small enough to fit in a box, and once you get moving and your imagination kicks in, 2mph feels like 50mph.
When that box wasn't a race car, it turned into a fort, a trap for stuffed animals or a table for a lunch of PB&J and chocolate milk or even a place to play Go Fish. The saddest day was at the end of summer break when it was time to retire the torn and banged up box. Then the search for the next box began!
Now, as a parent, I see that same love for cardboard in my son Sean. He has every piece of technology known to man, and has requested more for Christmas this year, but bring a new box into the house and watch his eyes light up and the creative gears in his head start to move. He surveys the box for a few minutes and then grabs his tape, markers and scissors and starts to create. It really is amazing! I always respected the square integrity of the box, whereas Sean has no problem dismantling the entire thing; only to turn it into something I never would have imagined.
A tall box becomes a double door for a pretend office, a 12 pack beer box is turned into a stage for action figures. I made square or rectangle cars and tables, but Sean's imagination doesn't confine him to shapes and instead he looks at these pieces of cardboard as a blank slate or clean pallet. They become whatever he wants them to become and he makes no excuses for his amazing imagination. Even when the project doesn’t reflect his initial goal, he’s quick to change gears and start over with something new.
#Tryharder to think beyond the frame you're given in life. This world is what you make of it and your view is 100% determined by your choices. Every marketing company or related book says "think outside the box", but we often forget to dream about what we could do WITH the box. A true talent sees the box as something they can change, navigate and manipulate. It takes creativity to have the confidence to take something simple and make it amazing. Taking something of structure and making it pliable.
Before you run out and try to think outside of it, because frankly anyone can do that, first look for ways to create a different view and work to make your overall environment better. When you leave the box, you're often quitting and starting over. When you control the box, you are the master and ultimately determine your journey.
Never underestimate the power of an empty box.
