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From NetSpeed Leader Volume 11, August 2003
It's as important as ever to bring fresh, innovative thinking to the problems we face in the workplace. Continual change, expanding technology, and competitive forces put increasing pressure on us to create solutions to old and new problems.
How do we expand our thinking? How do we get free of thinking ruts that lead to the same old approaches and conclusions? If we are to think outside the box, how do we break out of it?
There's a mistaken notion that managers and experts are paid to have the answers. Creative thinkers know that it's more helpful to expand the range of questions. Asking fresh questions is an essential break-the-box method.
Ask a Different Question. One approach is to expand the range of questions by asking different but related questions. For example, imagine that the original problem is framed by the question "How can we get more employees to attend training classes?" To look at the problem in a fresh way, ask different questions:
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What if there were no classes?
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What if line managers taught all classes?
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How can we find out whether people need training?
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What if each employee had a training budget?
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How could we implement blended learning?
Once you have generated a list of new questions, study them to see whether new ideas come forward. Asking a different question can open doors to innovative solutions. It can help a team question assumptions and broaden the available options.
Ask: How Would They Do It? In this break-the-box technique, you ask how someone else might approach the problem or situation. For example, if you wanted to explore the question "How could we implement blended learning?" you might ask:
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How would Tiger Woods do it?
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How would PBS do it?
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How would J. K. Rowling do it?
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How would a dairy do it?
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How would the Supreme Court do it?
How would each of these "role models" implement blended learning? Answer the question in detail. Then look for transferable ideas that might be worth exploring.
Asking "How would they do it?" is an effective way of breaking out of preconceived notions about the way things have to be done.
Reverse the Question. In this technique, take your original question and ask it "in reverse." For example, if your original question were "How can we make the best use of our training dollars?" the reversed question would be "How can we waste our training budget?" If the original question were "How can we help employees accept the new parking policy?" the reversed question might be "What can we do to ensure that employees reject the new parking policy?"
Once you ask the reversed question, develop responses to it. Then reverse the responses and look for great ideas. For example, with the reversed question "What can we do to ensure that employees reject the new parking policy?" one response might be to implement the policy with no warning, by suddenly just putting up barricades in the parking lots. The reverse of that response, in turn, might be to give employees plenty of warning about the policy before they try to park their vehicles.
Try one or more of these questioning techniques today. Apply them to any situation to which you would like to bring fresh thinking. Even more rewarding, ask a group to join you. To get unconstrained participation, prohibit "Yes, but" comments. Instead insist on "Yes, and" responses that build on members' special gifts and suggestions.
When you want to think more creatively, remember that asking fresh questions is an essential step on the path to fashioning fresh, beyond-the-box solutions.
Note: Much of this content is based on Thinking to Break the Box, a NetSpeed Leadership module.
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