When one considers the accelerating role data and data/behavior tools (apps) are put at our fingertips and how they are helping to define and differentiate business success, who is being challenged to take part and play a role? I suggest, that it is everyone. All who use some form of a smart device are linked to either be engaged or to know how to leverage that engagement. With so many people involved there is a high rate of change and a race to continually gain a competitive advantage. Therefore, change is the new norm.
The challenge is to be able to think and adapt in this new environment. How are we to do this and think differently to solve problems quickly and with new insight? I go to the following quote:
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them
Our world is moving and changing much faster than Einstein’s was, therefore his statement is even more profound in today’s context. But does he suggest we have to think forward or back in regards to “the same thinking”? He just said the “the same”. Have we lost sight of great thinkers of the past and the effectiveness of how they thought? I would also suggest that the societies of the past left the challenge of original thought to a select few. But now, everyone is talking about thinking differently to not only get ahead, but stay relevant.
I believe the past has something to teach us about how to think. Many of these thought leaders of the past were not only great mathematicians and engineers, but they were also artists and musicians. They leveraged a holistic approach to gain access to the higher planes of thinking. Often finding inspiration or “aha” moments by challenging their minds across a broad set of subjects and skills. Many thought analytically and creatively; formulas and data with visual exploration (sketching). I suggest that we have lost this art of thinking approach and it is hindering our progress.
Is the technology of our environment we’ve created possibly hampering our own thought process? We are biologically wired to think holistically, yet we compartmentalize our thoughts through our electronic tools & programs coupled with structured, patterned behaviors. This is not to say that some technology can assist, but it rarely can match the wide open aperture of our eyes, the agility of our hands and the open dialogue of human interaction. Unlocking our thinking is not that difficult, it just requires us to allow ourselves to step back and embrace tools that require the use of our opposing thumbs and personal interaction. Think and explore with your hands. Write, draw, form…create from your insights and share by putting them in the physical hands of others. You might be surprised what that technology can unlock.
This is a great blog, thank you!