Howler Monkeys and Leaving My Corporate Career

Lorraine MoorePersonal Effectiveness

When we travelled in Costa Rica, we first heard and then saw howler monkeys. Their calls are incredibly loud and powerful. But when we saw them, we discovered that they’re much smaller than their cries imply.

A friend told me a story about howler monkeys, and it is a great analogy to resisting change in our lives.

The local people in Costa Rica trap the howler monkeys by putting nuts inside a basket at the base of trees. When the howler monkeys climb down and reach into the basket, they can grab hold of the nut. But if they hold onto the nut, they can’t release their hand out of the basket. So they stay there fiercely holding on to the nut in the basket. That’s how the locals trap them.

That analogy stuck with me.

While I was still in a full-time corporate role, I was providing consulting services on the side. Two people I highly respected asked me for some assistance and my business was launched. Three years later, I realized I had been working consistently at my consulting practice in addition to my full-time job.

Around that time I realized that until I let go of that “nut,” I could not fully invest in my business. It had taken me quite a bit of time to grow the confidence in myself before I made the leap – and I’ve never looked back.

Is your hand caught in a cage? What can you release?

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© 2018 Lorraine A. Moore. All rights reserved. Permission granted to excerpt or reprint with attribution.