People like to take freeways everywhere they go.  Sometimes people will go way out of their way to get off at the nearest freeway exit to their destination instead of taking the more direct route. (Obviously the more direct route is not always the quickest).  But a little trial and error can find that most ideal route may be a series of surface streets. Yet people are willing to keep going the way they’re used to, even if construction slows it down, instead of trying something a little different. Or there will be a set of rules that everyone follows just because they always have – even though they don’t necessarily make sense.  Or everyone will wait in a long line for the express checkout even when the regular checkouts have shorter lines.

People like to be sheep – it’s easy and it doesn’t involve thinking.  People like to assume that someone else has already figured out the best way to do something.  But, if we take a few minutes to stop and think about what we’re doing, instead of just going with the flow, we may find a better, more efficient solution.

Most of the people we admire are black sheep – they decided to go against the flow, to come up with something new, or to stand up for what makes sense.  Black sheep show up aganinst the crowds of white sheep.  They stand out.  They’re remarkable.  People take notice.

How can you be a black sheep? (or how are you already one?)

(sheep photo by pasotraspaso @ Flickr CC)

This is a guest post by Sarah Worsham, CEO & Web Strategist at Sazbean Consulting and blogging at Sazbean.com. Sarah is passionate about helping companies reach their business goals by using the web effectively. Sarah provides guidance through Internet Marketing, Strategy & Business consulting.