You either love ’em or hate ’em. I’m not a fan of the avocado. Or at least I haven’t been up until not that long ago. You see, I find them kinda gross – the mushy texture, and the reptilian, bumpy green skin. (Sorry, if you’re an avocado aficionado!).

Despite my aversion to this green power food, I know that avocados are good for me. So, I tricked myself by hiding them in my morning smoothies. They sure add lots of creaminess and extra nutrition. While I would never eat an avocado alone, I may stop picking them out of my California rolls, and I for sure will continue having them as smoothie companions.

Learning to get along with a food I once despised has helped me realize that I don’t have to avoid things I thought I “hated” in business and in life. In fact, that’s just an old story I’ve been telling myself and I had been missing out! So here are some ideas to help you try something new:

• Make it palatable. Blueberries and squeeze of agave nectar help to mask the avocado taste and tell-tale green tint. If there’s something you don’t like doing, what’s a way to make it more appealing to you? Hate using spreadsheets? How about adding fun colors, fonts, and even graphics. I do that to mine and it makes them a whole lot easier to look at!
• Make it a game. The more I experiment with my smoothie recipes, the more I learn about how to tell when an avocado is ripe and what the best avocado to banana ratio is for optimum richness. By making it a game, I’ve stayed engaged and gotten to know my “tools.” I find that to be the case, too, when I’m doing things like budgeting or pricing. If I stick with it long enough and look at it like a game, I can start to feel more comfortable with all the variables and I can often find more creative solutions.
• Invite others to play with you. I started to take pictures of my smoothies and avocados and sharing them on Instagram. I was amazed to hear how many other people put avocados in their smoothies and how fellow avocado haters were willing to try it in their smoothies, too. I felt supported in my new avocado adventures! It reminded me of the camaraderie that developed as creative souls who disliked the traditional way of doing business came together during my Right-Brainers in Business Video Summit.

So, I’m curious, what’s your “avocado”? And how can you start to make friends with it this week?