When I moved to the interior of British Columbia, I was shocked by the number of wildfires I heard about each summer. I had never worried before that a lightning strike might start a fire that would sweep through the land, obliterating my town. I’m a city kid and I didn’t know that was a thing. I’ve learned a lot.
One thing Indigenous Nations have long warned - and the rest of us are finally willing to admit - is that all of our tremendous fire-suppression efforts are making things worse.
When fires are put out immediately and forests prevented from burning naturally, it actually creates the conditions for much more serious fires later on. Trees get bigger. Grass, pine needles, and dry brush - tinder - accumulate in piles. The thick canopy prevents rain and snow from saturating the ground. When that area does inevitably catch fire, it will burn so hot and so deep that the ground will be scorched. Nothing will be left. Nothing will be able to grow.
If, on the other hand, fires are periodically allowed to burn, trees are burned down, brush is quickly eliminated, creating a nutrient rich ash that replenishes the soil. What’s left after the fire is clear, fertile ground, ripe for new things to grow. Rain gets in. Sun reaches the earth. Seeds take roots. Some seeds actually require the heat of a fire to germinate - they might have been lying dormant for decades and suddenly they’re springing to life!
The Ecocycle Model shows how our businesses and our lives move through a similar pattern.
In the Renewal Phase, everything has equal access to resources and it’s a free for all as new plants spring up. We try everything and learn so much. There’s no telling what beautiful, unique new possibilities might emerge!
In the Birth Phase, some plants start to really take off, growing taller and staking their claim, crowding out the rest. It becomes clear what will dominate in this new landscape. We channel resources to those new priorities, helping them grow.
In the Maturity Phase, the new forest is grown and thriving. We enjoy it, we revel in it, we rest in it. Our life and work can hold us. They are self-sustaining and strong.
In the Creative Destruction Phase, a new fire ignites, burning quickly, bringing down those things we thought were immovable. This phase brings uncertainty, fear, grief, pain. It is so hard to let go of what was. But it also creates space and possibility. It’s what allows the forest to continue to change and evolve, to return to Renewal.
There are two traps in the model. They’re places where we tend to get stuck, usually because we are afraid of losing something.
The first is right between Renewal and Birth. It’s called the Poverty Trap because it’s where we realize there aren’t enough resources to sustain everything that popped up during Renewal. We want to keep it all, but if we do, nothing will get what it needs. Everything will slowly starve.
The way out of that trap? Stepping boldly into the Birth Phase. Choose the few things that are most important and prioritize them. Which, of course, means letting the rest die. Is it hard? Yes. But it is the only way forward.
The Rigidity Trap is lurking between Maturity and Creative Destruction. We are so invested in the mature forest, it is so familiar to us, that we believe we can stay here forever. We forget that change is normal and even good for us. We lock ourselves in and insist that this is the only way things can work. We fight off fires with every ounce of strength, desperate to maintain the status quo.
But businesses aren’t built for status quo, and neither are people. We grow and change. The patterns that used to bring life start to constrict us. The ‘way we’ve always done it’ feels outdated. There is a growing unease. A longing.
We can double down on what we know. We can try to be satisfied with where we are.
But the possibility of something new and different grows inside. And the more it grows, the more uncomfortable we are in the current reality. We are built for movement, for change, for growth and it becomes impossible to ignore.
The way out of the Rigidity Trap is to step into Creative Destruction. You’re ready when you feel so frustrated with the status quo AND so intrigued by the possibility ahead of you that you’re ready to burn the whole thing down and start over.
That’s the burning point.
Lots of people never get there. But the ones who do get to see the dormant seeds crack open and sprout. They get to see fields of possibility, things they never imagined.
In our personal lives, that can look like ending toxic relationships, coming out to our family, or moving to a new place. In our work, it can mean training for a new career, or choosing to leave a legacy instead of just phoning it in till retirement. In business, it can mean closing down part of a company that isn’t performing, or overhauling the leadership culture to create a place where employees can thrive.
I love the burning point. It’s terrifying and dangerous. It is the point of extreme courage, and complete vulnerability. The culmination of our wrestling with the past for the sake of the future. The place where you see what people are made of, and what they’re really capable of.
And, I promise, it is more than you thought. Are you ready to burn it all down?
I can help you figure out how to start. I can help you discover what’s on the other side.
I’m curious what you think: What trap are you more likely to get stuck in? What do you need to burn down?
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