There was no evidence that Microsoft would flourish. In fact, in the eyes of the IBM board that the young Bill Gates presented a new way of computing, that was all make belief. It was the realm of the unknown. They turned the young boy down and proceeded putting faith in the known.

Culture, Oh Culture!

Our greatest enemy in the pursuit of purpose is the attachment to the present, the known, the understood and the comfortable. Anything outside of those parameters puts our guards up faster than Jerry Mouse would scatter from Tom the cat. And yet, purpose firmly operates outside of those parameters. Purpose is relevant in the future, seldom understood in the present, and does not guarantee any comfort. No wonder we shun it.

It is widely reported that the CEO of Nokia said the following:

“We didn’t do anything wrong”

Wrong! You did everything wrong by staying adamant with the known and refusing to embrace the unknown. Recently, (almost 7 years later) I am seeing Nokia deploying the Android Technology for their smart phones! Great response, but 7 year late! Purpose is always going to be relevant to the future. When you have lost relevance, chances are that you have lost the touch of purpose. Chances are also that you have already fulfilled your purpose and the next thing for you is to be promoted to glory. Therefore, Embracing the adventures of the unknown is a great way of not only staying relevant, but also getting closer to your purpose and deploying it.

Fear of the Unknown

It is perhaps safe to say that we are all plagued by this. I was talking to a client of mine some time back. Much as I told her that I am a “High C”, in that I am more cautious than I am daring, she honestly thought that the otherwise was true. My point is simple. It is very subtle at times to be plagued by the fear of the unknown, even for the bravest among us.

This is therefore how you would know that you are gripped by the fear of the unknown:

1. You hate change and you are scared of it
2. You always put down other people’s opinion
3. Your future is not bright and you are scared of thinking about it
4. You are either a racist, a tribalist or operate pure cronyism
5. If you are employed, you are scared of stepping out on your own to pursue your passion
6. You are filled with excuses as to why what you have not even dared try will not work
7. There is little adventure and new fun in your life
8. You get jealous of other people doing new things
9. You are a control freak.
10. The apple of your eye is comfort. If anyone or anything messes up with it, there is world war 3.

Embracing The Adventures of the Unknown

There are three major reasons why I think you should love the unknown. Let’s discuss that now.

1. Helps you Grow

Growth and development my friend, is not in the realm of the known . That’s why you should be very worried when all those who are in your environment cannot teach you anything new.

• For growth, you will have to change your address/environment so that you can change your experiences.
• For growth, you will have to love experimenting with things you have not known, things you are uncomfortable with and things that seemingly are way above your pay grade.

All these are in the unknown. Several years ago I got a first job. It was un-unconquered frontier for me and it really made me grow. I tell you want, I love growing and within a space of 5 to 7 months, I had outgrown that place. Then I knew that I needed to move on but I never made any decisive action. I was chained by the fear of the unknown. One day I boldly walked out of that job…this was 4 years late!! I stepped into the unknown. I am what I am today because of that bold move. Now, please note that everything did not turn rosy when I quit. It went from bad to worse. I was being fed by a landlord that I owed money. But I grew. When I came back from that down path, I was elevated higher than I had been in my life both in status and financially. That is what the unknown does for you.

2. Helps you Discover Your Purpose

As already discussed, purpose is not lying on the surface waiting to be picked. Purpose has to be discovered. The very act of discovering denotes that you have to go past the known into the unknown. You have to be daring enough to do this. All I know is that your purpose will not be discovered in the known. There are however hints that help you delve into the unknown. These are things that you either feel in your spirit or heart, things that you are passionate about or thing that you are gifted with. Some of these lie in the unknown or the unexperienced.

3. Helps you to Develop Your Potential

One of the things that I am passionate about is speaking. About five or so years ago, I conceived an idea of recording short inspirational messages and posting the online. Do you know why I have not done that to date? It is because of the fear of the unknown. I already have a two or so powerful messages that need to be worked out and brought life in the format of “Spoken word”. This is the realm of the unknown to me, but it feeds off of my potential. Potential just like purpose, lies in the realm of the unknown, unused and un-experienced.

So as you can see, to the degree that we are operating in the unknown, to the degree that we choose to embrace it, to that degree we are growing, deploying our potential and discovering our purpose. A good thing to do will be to challenge yourself every week or month or even year to walk straight into the unknown and see what happens.

Leaving the Comfort Zone

However, staying in your comfort zone cherishing the good old days and all that you know will not help you grow. If you have discovered your purpose, chances are that there are some aspects of your potential that you need to deploy. For example spoken word. So let me give you my word that in 2018, you will be blessed to listen to or watch a new channel of the spoken word on Life Signatures. It’s time to grow. It’s time to deploy my potential. It’s time to make my purpose sharp. Thanks to the unknown.