Perspective & Decision Making

We've all seen examples of our bias, or point of view, keeping us from a solution. One of the most popular was the challenge of connecting all the dots on a sheet of paper without ever lifting our pen or duplicating a line already drawn. Our frame of reference kept us from success by staying within the box. When we removed that self-imposed stipulation, it was easily done; hence "think outside the box" was coined.

There are others now, but the message is the same, although the puzzle challenge is different. A colleague of mine, Ichak Adizes, found one that required putting a puzzle of a plane together to make a square, but it required that you have the plane flying upside down to do it. As an Air Force pilot, I have flown inverted (upside down) many times; it is not a big deal. But do you think I could put this puzzle together? Not on your life. . . until I was told to turn it upside down!

And so it goes; we must stay open to the facts & data before we decided to "impose" a solution. The more experienced we are, the more we are a solution in search of a problem. Put another way, we jump to conclusions; or even worse, we've "been there, seen that" and become a Kia, a "know it all." And if you haven't noticed, Kia's are not liked and wrong much of the time.

In a business, we use data to clearly identify the problem which, when analyzed, will point the way to a solution. Too often, there is an immediate reaction to a problem when first suspected that sends us on the wrong journey. Take the time, and have the patience & discipline to wait to "discover" the action to be taken.

In the consulting world, I often make the comment that, "I believe I should recommend/decide very little; rather my job is to facilitate your discovering the solution." This is not always lived up to, but an aspiration strived for.