You might have heard or used the expression “pushing the envelope.” It is a flying/engineering term that refers to the performance envelope of an airplane. The envelope is an area of a performance chart, prepared by engineers and test pilots that covers typical operating parameters of an airplane such as speed, load carrying capacity or how much stress the airplane is capable of handling without breaking apart. Imagine a stock market chart covering a few years and then put a box around any few year period of the chart with its highs and lows. The box is the envelope and the chart allows a pilot to look up, in advance, a set of flying conditions and have a pretty good idea of whether the flight can be made safely.
We are taught as pilots that safety lies within those bounds. When we get near the edge or even go a bit beyond it, we are “pushing the envelope.” Fortunately for the pilots of the world, the engineers are by and large a conservative lot and they build in cushion or a “fudge factor” to make sure the wings don’t come off when the pilot goes a little over the edge. The engineers know pilots well.
We all have different capacities when it comes to risk tolerance but I think this is both born and learned. My daughter is mostly fearless about new things and consistently performs good calculus on risks. She doesn’t take unnecessary chances, even after she has mastered an activity, but she does push herself to grow. My son approaches things much more cautiously. Once comfortable with a basic level of skill, he proceeds to expand his comfort zone or performance envelope until he scares himself sufficiently to know that he found an edge. For him, however, the edge is not a static line and he returns again and again until he gets comfortable at or even beyond the edge. If he is successful beyond it, he pushes outward until some opposite force intervenes to push back toward activity that better balances his skills and the conditions in which he is operating.
Staying within the envelope when flying makes great sense. The cost of an error is simply too high to justify voluntarily exceeding the limits. You may push your personal limits as a pilot with safe margins for error but not the structural integrity of the machine. Emergencies sometimes produce events that require pilots to wildly exceed performance limits. Whether its the fudge factor, materials performing better than designed or divine intervention, pilots and airplanes often blow through performance envelopes and survive, albeit sometimes bent and broken. You often hear pilots say, "if you can walk away from the flight, it was successful."
So what about risk and the rest of your life? Seth Godin, in his book Poke the Box, writes about failure. In a nutshell, he concludes that if you aren't failing, you aren't pushing hard enough. An intriguing concept, particularly given that I have long prided myself on never failing at anything. Of course I have failed. Post-mortem, though, I look more like Sancho Panza in these events than a failed conquistador on a personal quest.
Update from Day 4 Goals.
1. I selected a website host with one-click WordPress installation. The site is up, but not built.
2. I selected a web designer. I owe him copy, photographs and a list of desired features.
3. My interview got postponed until today or tomorrow.
4. No progress on workspace.
Goals for Day 5.
1. Write first draft of copy for website.
2 Spend 1 hour in workspace.
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