I recently had the pleasure of buying a can of Dr. Pepper from a local man in a shopping centre. Considering we don’t have Dr. Pepper here in Brisbane the price was considerably more expensive that you might think… but I didn’t mind paying it. Why? Every time I go into the store the man greets me with a smile and always has something great to say. You can just tell he absolutely loves what he does. How can I tell that he does? Because his heart is in what he is doing.

The opposite of what I am saying

Yesterday I bought my very first table at a local furniture store. The man who runs the store was sitting in a recliner with his eyes closed and didn’t even acknowledge us as we walked in the store. Probably didn’t help that I said, ‘Wow, they are dead on a Saturday,’ as we walked in. Whoops! The table we had picked out of the catalogue was ordered and the man hardly moved. Now I am not one to makejudgments on the spot but I would say he was not happy with his job and his heart was somewhere else.

Where is your heart?

My heart is in creative, idea generating things. I like to make new things out of old combinations and build things. Now, I don’t know which end of the hammer to pick up but in my heart this is how I am.  The point of this post to ask … is your heart in what you do?  Check yourself.  Ask yourself… do I want to do this for the right reasons or the wrong reasons?  Look at the mirror and ask yourself what’s the deal?

How do you know your heart is not in it

When you go to work do you feel the ‘ugh’ feeling?  What do I mean?  A while ago a colleague of mine walked up to the office he was in and he had recently quit.  I said to him, ‘Why?’.  He said to me, ‘Every time I walked up the stairs to come to my office I would get depressed.’  I instantly saw his point.

Now I have to caution you here.  Sometimes you have to build something else in order to move forward before you make the shift.  But, don’t lie to yourself.  Tell the truth.  If you know you aren’t putting your heart into it… find out what you should be and go for it.  That however is another story for another post.

Technorati Tags: Dr. Pepper, Brisbane, heart, judgments, truth

I consider myself successful because not so many years ago I was unemployed with no education and nowhere to go. Now, although I am not financially prosperous, I have a job as an academic where I am able to teach other people about the very things I had trouble learning. I have just completed a PhD and now I am waiting for my marks … which when I consider it what I was previously is nothing short of miraculous! I had help from my friends, family and I believe God. However, I learned some amazing things about this life in this time and five of them I would like to share with you today.

1. Never ignore your heart

When I left school I had the fourth worst score you could get from the high school system in Queensland. This meant I was automatically rejected form every single university in the entire state. I was really depressed during that time because my dream was to go onto university and study. I never really stopped trying. Thanks to my abysmal score I had only one opportunity which was TAFE (Technical College/Polytechnic for my overseas readers). This particular college at the time was the single worst in the state. Intuitively my heart told me that going there was the right choice… not just because it was the only one but I knew for whatever reason it would open doors later on in life. Indeed it did… now I work at Griffith University as an Associate Lecturer in the Business School. Imagine that! I never stopped doing what I knew I should be though from time to time I did wander off track. Always listen to the drumbeat of your heart.

2. Be wary of the advice of others

People usually have good intentions when they are telling you what they think you should do. They cannot see into your destiny and do not know what you know about you. So take advice with a grain of salt. Listen carefully to the mistakes people have made. Like when people say don’t go into business with friends… ask them why? Ask them to explain why that would be a bad idea and listen. You will learn some pitfalls that you should avoid. On the other hand I had someone who kept telling me to stop studying and go and get a job. Now, I have a job and I am studying while I write cool blog entries like this one! Not only that, but I have met people from all over the world and worked with people twenty years my senior on major industry projects. I am not wealthy but I have gained a wealth of knowledge. Hence, I am here telling you (whoever you are – God bless you for reading) what I learned! What a great privilege.

3. Don’t say no because you can’t do it

I have learned that challenges will come. I have stood through what looked like at the time as a great impossibility only to find that I was led through it. Now as a believer I am convinced that impossible means nothing. However, a lot of the times we are facing challenges in our life that we think are truly impossible. What happens is we talk ourselves out of trying. This is a fatal mistake. When you venture out into the unknown you are a pioneer. You are paving the way for others to follow. If you say no, maybe others you will influence will agree with you and likewise not try. There is more to be gained from failing then there is in never trying. I always put action ahead of thinking, which at first seems counterintuitive, but I am all the richer for it. Try your ideas out, if you can, it’s a great way to learn if it works or not.

4. Don’t flog a dead horse

There are times in my life when I wish I could borrow the TARDIS from the Doctor and visit myself and say, ’stop doing this… it’s going to be a disaster!’ Once I get going on a project I will work at it until it’s done. Sometimes my convictions are not well founded… therefore I make disasters. One incident springs to mind in which I had the opportunity to leave a business that ended up costing me HUGE amounts of money. At the time I was thinking it couldn’t possibly fail or rather this CAN’T possibly fail because I had so much at stake. It did fail. I find great comfort in the lyrics of the Gambler at such times. Knowing when to run is oh so important.

5. Learn to love failing

Following on from point 4. can I tell you that I love failing? Well no I don’t. I have some monumental failures (see fiction page) behind me. Sure, I have hurts attached to those failures but I also have learning. I love failing because I have learned something about myself, what I was doing and the problem I was trying to solve. You are not a failure because you have failed you are failure if you fail to learn. Learning is a key life skill. Failure hurts but it’s what you can milk from those failures that will put you heads and shoulders above the rest.

6. Opportunities do not come labelled

Oh how I wish they did. If there is one thing I could leave you with as you read this… please understand some opportunities you will never have again. Once I had a literary agent willing to sign for a book I wrote (again see the fiction page) and he told me to have it edited to suit the US. I was so excited. The guy I hired took over five months to get back to me with a finished manuscript! Initially I was told it would take I contacted the agent again and he’d moved on. I am still not over this but I have noticed… carefully assess every opportunity and make DAMNED sure you have support when you need it. If you don’t think fast, think quick and be smart. You may never EVER get the opportunity again. How I wish I could wind back the clock and slap that guy upside the head but what good will it do me? No bloody good! Expect opportunities and be cautious but go for it if you think it has a shot. You may not get another shot.

7. Be patient and take small steps daily

Patience is a annoying. I hate to wait as much as they next person. My wife recently planted a tomato tree in the backyard of our previous house. Right before we move I noticed a green fresh tomato growing and thought yes! Fresh tomatoes! You know what, we had to move and leave the plant there because it’s roots were so deep it probably wouldn’t have made it. How long did I wait for the tomato only to have it snatched from my grasp? Now I feel robbed! Patience though will get me another plant in just a short while and I will have my fresh tomatoes. Think about how patient the plant is and how slowly it’s roots grow. I have been told that some forms of bamboo will sit under the soil for years and suddenly shoot up only to become a deep rooted pest! We need to be like that. Take steps towards a goal on a daily basis and make good quality decisions regularly as you do. All of the good things in my life I have had to wait for. Day after day, year after year. Now, while I was doing nothing… nothing happened. Yet, if I build it bit by bit I have the complete building at the end. I would urge you to do the same. You may never get there as such but someone will come after you and who knows what your legacy will be like. Don’t wait to develop your goals… do it now but do so one day after the other.

8. Acknowledge, encourage, recognise and honour the people around you who help

I am disgusted to my very bones when I think about the amount of heroes we have in society. Why? Every successful person has people who encourage them along the way and support them. They would be nothing without those people. One person I think of in my life is my mother. Now this may seem corny… but she always has something positive to say when it comes to what I am doing. A birthday card I got from her once said, ‘Happy Birthday Professor’. That blessed me so much that I have never forgot it. At the time I was really struggling and people all around me were telling me to quit what I was doing. God bless you mum. When I look back at where I came from to where I am now I am amazed. Those that put up with me and helped me all know that I appreciate their input.

Thanks for reading this article… remember you can donate or even better leave me some constructive feedback. See you next time.

Technorati Tags: business, Patience, decisions regularly as you do

Recently in a dream I found myself driving a huge crane that was lifting big boulders.  To the side of the boulders were golden rocks that were just sitting there. The first thought that came to me when I woke up was… I am helping others getting work done but not doing what I need to do to make sure I continue to succeed.  The gold that I have waiting to be refined is sitting there as I do backbreaking labour for others … who probably don’t care!  I am doing the donkey work for others at the expense of my own work. 

Part of the harsh realities of life is that you must be careful in selecting what you do to help others.  I believe we should be helping others because it’s part of my values however, if we do too much for others and neglect what we need to do … our opportunities to grow may be missed.  How do you know you are lifting boulders for other people?

You have been doing something for a while and you are making no progress

If you walk up a hill one step at a time you will eventually get to the top.  However, if you begin to walk around in circles your destination will be the same as your starting point!  Have you been doing this for a while… could be you are helping others get ahead at the neglect of yourself?

There is just no time for me

Is this you as well?  The whole idea of time for yourself is important because you are accountable for you.  What I am saying is this: make time.  That’s great but with all the things I am doing there is simply not enough time right?  Wrong!  There could be some things you are doing for others that should be pushed aside.

People around me treat me like a dumping station

A hallmark of finding out that you are carrying boulders for others is the amount of things people just give you to do.  Now, there are some things that you should do and helping others is very important.   Don’t be a dumping station… only take on those things that you know you can do without hindering your own future. 

I just can’t say no

This one is a tough one.  I work with a person who just can’t say no and I am much the same myself.  However, if you want progress in things that are important, you must get tough.  I have had to say no to some opportunities recently because it would have hindered what I was trying to achieve strategically.  Learn that no is a positive way of keeping what’s important on track. 

When you incubate the dreams of your heart does it fill you with excitement… does it fill you with joy?  Then ask yourself this question: is it worth trading what the fulfillment of that for temporary acknowledgment of others?  Think for a minute… when that person gets a promotion or goes onto fulfil the goal they have how will that benefit you?   That doesn’t mean that you don’t do it because it won’t help you but if it interferes it what you should be doing…then you are creating long term damage.  Remember, you can help others carry boulders for you and you can help them but a sensible balance must be retained.    Part of coming into your own is spending quality time building your life vision day after day… minute after minute… second after second.   You can’t come into your own and do what you should if you are lifting boulders for others.

Special Thanks to Alex Blackwell who published this article earlier in the month as part of his series of ‘coming into your own’.

Technorati Tags: dream, incubate, balance

In the haziness of everyday affairs we often are blinded by perceptions, beliefs and hidden assumptions. I have been thinking lately about how much of my life is a problem and how much of it I make a problem. What do I mean? Well consider for a moment that a lot of things we think are real problems are actually not ‘real’ as such. They exist in our heads informing of us that which ‘troubles’ us. As British academic Professor Peter Checkland puts it: an area of concern is something we find to be problematic. Sounds real obvious hey? Think about it for a minute.

The problem of causality

What I have noticed is that people often fail to recognise the difference between how we can cause something to bother us and how others can interfere. Think for a moment about this scenario. You are driving home on the freeway and suddenly a man swerves in front of you nearly taking you out. You react by slamming on your brakes and quickly lose control of your vehicle smashing into a nearby concrete wall. That is a real problem. You have been effected by somebody else’s poor driving. Same scenariobut somebody looks like they are going to cut you off and you react because of what might happen but never actually does. Your thinking caused you to respond not really the other drivers actions… although they were the trigger. In this latter example you can see that often in problem solving situations the real problem is your perception of what might happen. A problem is therefore a perspective that is the difference between what we expect (our point of view) and what actually happens.

The problem of perceptions

Perceptions are as real as reality itself. One might go so far to say that perceptions are reality. Hold on, I hear you say, what I perceive is actually real? No. That’s not what I mean. I mean this: what you perceive to be real becomes real by virtue of the fact that you have perceived it. When you understand or recognise a problem to you it’s real. The effects of it will be as real as if the wind blew the roof right off your house!

So what’s the real problem?

The real problem often is in your head. That’s right. You think something might happen and on the basis of that ‘reality’ you begin making decisions. I do this myself all the time. Ever thought of avoiding a social event because you might run into so and so and it would be a disaster only to go and find out it wasn’t. This kind of thing can get so intense that you begin seeing the pictures in your mind… day in and day out. You begin to imagine what might happen and sure enough before you know it you are making new plans to navigate around something that is deeply rooted in your mind.

Problems as perspectives

Problems are essentially ways of thinking (perspectives) that reside in our sub-conscious mental structure informing us of reality. You can begin to recognise them by asking yourself questions that expose them (I will talk about how to remove them in a later post). Things like: ‘Do I want to avoid the social event because it will be a disaster or because I am expecting it to be a disaster?’. See, we often build a reality to believe in just so we can make a place for the things we think are a problem.

I am going to end this post with a personal story. Before I started my present job I was warned about a member of staff by people I was hanging around with at the time. The people I was with told me that this person (called ‘Bob’ to protect the innocent) was not to be trusted and would rip me off. So believing what I was told I avoided them like the plague. However, I was assigned to work with Bob and found Bob to be helpful, courteous and nice. When I eventually told Bob what I was warned about… Bob told me she was worried about me because of the people I was hanging around! Essentially none of this was ‘real’ but it made for a ‘reality’ that become so real that two people were made to feel very uncomfortable and acted out of these beliefs. The real problem was the perspectives we had.

In closing today I want to encourage you to begin to look into your own life for limited perspectives. Once you see them… make a note of them and slowly begin to change the way you see things. I will write more on this so why not subscribe to my feed to see what I have in store. Thanks for reading!

Technorati Tags: perceptions, beliefs, hidden assumptions, problem, problems, perceptions

I am moving house at the moment so I am strapped for time so I thought I would write a brief post on how I learn. I have spoken about this before here and also more specifically about learning here. How do we really learn things? Instead of writing a post about it I would like you to do this test.

I turned out to be a tactile/kinesthetic learner which according to this test means and I quote, “You learn best when physically engaged in a “hands on” activity. In the classroom, you benefit from a lab setting where you can manipulate materials to learn new information. You learn best when you can be physically active in the learning environment. You benefit from instructors who encourage in-class demonstrations, “hands on” student learning experiences, and field work outside the classroom.”

For me, this wasn’t too suprised because I hate giving tutorials without a physical component. I often find ways to demonstrate ways of saying something by doing it. My earliest memory is of me pulling apart my bike just to see how it fit together. I think I was five. That memory makes me realise that I was always a ‘doing’ and then a ‘learning’ person which in some circumstances may be harmful. However, that’s the way I am wired up. What about you?

This test showed me some of my cognitive biases as well. As an academic I think my theories should work and be useful (I am into ‘action’ research). If they aren’t then what’s the point? All of my research is geared up to ‘pragmatic’ philosophy which means I am constantly applying my ideas as a basis of their validity. I have plenty of opinions which I can’t validate yet most of what I believe I have experienced to be the case. Go ahead and take this test you might be surprised at the results.

Technorati Tags: learner, research

Have you ever been stuck to come up with cool ideas? Today I thought that it would be nice to share some of the things that have worked well for me over the past few years. So here goes: 4 ways to come up with cool ideas.

1. Write (journal) your ideas down

There is a lot to be said for the art of writing. One of the most helpful things I have found in coming up with cool ideas is to write about the topic and see what flows out of my pen. Now this is really the free flow of intuition coming out of your pen. I don’t really know why but writing is a really easy way to find new ideas. Try this: take a blank piece of paper (or open up an office document… open or MS variety for you lovers of Bill Gates) and simply start writing about the topic. Those of you who have experimented with journaling before will understand what I am talking about. This is a wonderful way to find new ideas. When you switch off your reasoning process and move to the right side of your brain you will begin to think in a creative manner. Writing stuff down is a great way to do this.

2. Build a mind map

Mind mapping for me is a fruitful activity. It’s helps to see your assumptions about an idea right there on the page. I have used many modelling techniques over the years but this one is the simplest and quite possibly one of the best (maybe with the except of rich picture building) techniques available. If you aren’t familiar with it I would recommend reading the wikipedia article. Remember though, you can make more than one and then compare your results. This is also very important!

3. Synthesise

This is the art of putting two old ideas together where it was previously thought impossible (roughly speaking). To synthesise means you take one idea and add others to it to see what results. The process of brainstorming is a good example of this. Of course synthesis is flawed because it relies on the premise that you can put two things together and there will be a good result. Clearly this is not so (consider the Pug?). However, sometimes the right amount of synthesis can be a good thing. Adding one idea to another can spark a revolution of creativity which leads to new perspectives not previously available. Try it!

4. Talking to yourself (meditation)

In the bible we find the term ‘meditation’ which I think really means talking to yourself or thinking out loud on one concept for an extended period of time and doing so from different angles. I am not sure why this is so but I have to admit when I talk to myself about a topic my creative processes (I would argue intuitive processes) take over. Once I was stuck on a topic for a model I was building for one of my lectures on the Mobile Workforce. I began to think it through and talk about the concept from every possible angle when suddenly the idea spontaneously formed within me. The students in two classes responded so positively to it I believe most intuitive things are like this. We are often one good meditation session away from the answer!

Remember that when you are creating you are building things up from the inner you. Our minds prohibit this in general because of our capacity as humans to build overly large mental structures which form rules for us to live by. I think that when we engage in creativity we are putting the logical process aside so we can create new things to build. That is, when we build things from the inside we are creating things for the outside. I honestly believe our educational processes set aside creativity and intuition as a second order concept. In a later article on faith I will develop this idea further. I hope you have enjoyed this post and I look forward to hearing from you if you would like to add some techniques to the very short list I have here. Thanks for reading!

Technorati Tags: cool ideas, creative processes, creativity

I am moving house at the moment and we finally got to see the place we are moving into today in full detail.  I have NEVER in my life moved into a house that was so filthy.  Normally, I wouldn’t blog about this kind of thing but I mean MY GOD!  The windows were dirty, the walls had black scuff marks on them, the oven was unclean and so I could go on.  Have you ever had this problem?  Here are four reasons why shouldn’t do the same thing.

Remember the Golden Rule? 

Do unto others?  Why not think of the poor sucker who is going to move in after you.  How about them?  Now we have to clean the house just to make it habitable.  Why not buck current trends and scare somebody by doing something helpful.  I sure wish the person that came before me in my new house had done me this way… now that I have all this CLEANING to do!

A sense of personal respect

To me somebody who leaves a rental property in that kind of state (unless physically or mentally incapacitated) is saying, ‘you know what I couldn’t give a royal damn about whoever is coming after me.’  I see this kind of thinking on the road all the time.  Why do people compete for a space on the freeway?  Don’t you know that one day you will be DEAD and then where will you be rushing too?  Take you time and be courteous.   People who have no personal respect treat others the way they have been treated themselves.   Without recognising it we become the very thing we desire not to become by virtue of the fact that we are displaying the very behaviour we find so abhorrent in others.   So have some personal respect and do something you admire so others can likewise admire you.  Starting thinking about how you effect people’s lives and especially what you can do to make a positive difference… even if they never see you doing it!

All I have really said in this post is that you should display the behaviour that you yourself think you deserved to be treated with.  Now, this is a note to remind us in the world of business not to think that we must not have a different mindset when we rub shoulders with our colleagues.   Who you are on the field is who you are in life.  Don’t give me that, ‘yeah but this is business,’ poppycock … that means you choose to be an arrogant so and so who shelves his morals when convenient.  Don’t do this!  Be different by really being kind and caring about those you know.  Why not frighten the hell of them by doing something out of the blue for someone you hate?  I am telling you this a really liberating way to live.

Really the golden rule could be put this way, ‘Do unto others what you think you deserve (or would like) done to you.  I think Jesus got this right!  Now, if you will excuse me I have packing and cleaning to do.

Technorati Tags: problem?, being kind

Our western educational process generally discourages us from following in the footsteps of intuitive thinking. We are encouraged to follow the well worn path of reasoning but very rarely are we asked to intuitively think about things. Think for a moment about the things you know about yourself. Say for example, you are driving down the motorway and somebody cuts you off. What’s the first thing you would say? What kind of things do you find funny?

These kinds you just know about yourself are intuition. You don’t need to go to far to find the answers because these are things that you know. Ever gone to do something and you felt that you just shouldn’t do it? Or perhaps met an individual that you just didn’t like from the very first time you laid eyes on them? Why is that? I teach a lot of people at university who are very good at reasoning but not so good at intuition. It’s almost like we thing we have to switch off the role of intuition in our education process because it’s counter cultural. Today I want to make a case for encouraging the free flow of intuition.

When you know that you know

The Late Steve Irwin once said in an interview that he always had a deep passion for wildlife. You can tell he wasn’t lying when the man used to quite happily pick up a snake and not worry about it. I had the pleasure of seeing him perform literally weeks before he died. He put so much passion into his shows that it was really amazing to watch. He wasn’t pretending and he certainly wasn’t making it up in my opinion … it was 100% passion. How could he do that? I think because he just knew what he should be doing. He knew that he knew that he should be working with wildlife and with animals. You have instincts on the inside of you that are dying to get out. Can I tell you that you need to develop these instincts. That which you know about yourself will change as you learn more about it but the core ‘knowing‘ or intuition you have will never change. That which you know that you know about you is who you really are.

You never have to think about intuitive things

In a previous article I spoke about the art of conjecture. Often when we take guesses we are basing our decision making on our intuition. Harvard Academic Daniel Isenberg found that top managers often make most of their decisions when they talk out loud to themselves. Why is this? It’s because they are thinking through their decisions to see what feels right. Intuition is always there you never really have to think about it… but sometimes our subtle reasoning processes make us believe things we think are helpful but really are not. A conclusion after careful scrutiny is not intuitive thinking. We are using intuitive thinking when we are doing what our gut is telling is the right thing to do.

Intuition has built some great things

Go back and study some of the greatest entreprenuers. How many of them just knew that they would make it and this ‘faith’ drove them on to create impossible things. I am talking of people like Henry Ford, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Richard Branson and so on. If you carefully look at how these people make their decisions there is as much reasoning as there is intuition. Some of the biggest decisions I have made have been through intuition. It’s not a flawless guide… but it’s a lot better than me just reasoning.

I would encourage you today to stop reasoning so much and begin looking towards your intuition. Knowing stuff is good because it develops us and makes us better. However, than can be no replacement for genuine ‘gut instinct’ in times of crisis, testing and extremity. Don’t rely of your mathematics or basic processes of mental reasoning only… remember your gut! Start today.

Technorati Tags: intuition, university, education process, instincts, knowing

In a previous post I talked about the concept of the logic box. You might remember them as limiting belief systems that we form to make sense of things. They become a box when our thinking is stalled because we can’t move past the logic we have placed in our minds. Today I want to show you four techniques for breaking out of stale thinking patterns and how to break the logic box.

1. Conjecturing

In a previous post I talked about why Sherlock Holmes is wrong when it comes to real world problems solving. In this article I introduced the art of conjecture. A conjecture is an educated ‘best’ guess that allows me to put on another way of thinking than I might be used to. If you are stuck on a hard problem and you cannot see your way out of it… try guessing something that you haven’t thought of previously. The way to do this is to offer an idea that is a guess that will help you to see things differently. When we conjecture, we immediately think of new solutions we haven’t thought of previously. Our logic box problem might be a lack of finance. Automatically you are locked in to a way of thinking that is very limiting because you will say, “well I need more money”. Hence you are now locked in a box you can’t get out of. To get out conjecture your way. So you don’t have enough money… start guessing at other things that might be causing the lack of money. Why don’t you have enough money? Conjecture a different problem. Take a guess: I am not happy because I don’t have enough money therefore I need to find happiness in lack. This would lead you think about happiness apart from materialism which in essence gets rid of you having to need money to be happy. Try another way of thinking: I recognise that I don’t have enough money therefore I must find ways to add more value to myself through different activities. Yet another example: My way of getting money is inadequate… I need to invent different ways to source finance. And so. This conjecturing process moves you from focusing purely on a unsolvable paradox into thinking about new ways to solve the issue. Conjecturing allows me to put on a new way of thinking so I can shift perspectives and assess the problem from a new light. A new assessment suggests new solutions and leads to new strategies for taking action.

2. Assumption/Perspective Shifting

Think for a moment about the things you believe. You hold some things very deeply in your heart and build assumptions based on these things. For example I believe in God. Now, I have built beliefs on top of these assumptions that I am extremely happy with. I believe in the so-called tenants of the Christian faith. These are my assumptions which are built on the back of what I believe. I am aware of these assumptions and I realise how to navigate them. Whenever I am faced with something external to me (like an opposite opinion) I have to recognise that as somebody else’s assumptions. When faced with a paradox (logic box) I need to change my assumptions in order to move forward to solutions. My hidden assumptions are telling me there’s a problem. I need to learn how to shift these assumptions. One way I have found to do this is become the devil. What do I mean? Look at the situation and ask yourself this question: What if the opposite of what I assume is true? Just the other day two people I work with were in loggerheads over an issue. After an uncomfortable week I thought: ‘I am going to resign’. Just yesterday I learned I was assuming there was a problem when really there wasn’t. The ‘loggerheads’ was an assumption about what somebody else thought I should be doing. When I told them the truth the assumptions changed and the perspective they had shifted. For me at least this makes it more bearable to work. At least for now! Remember, conjecturing is ‘believing first’ and then seeing what solutions arise as a natural flow on. Built into that process is a view of what we think our problem is likely to be and solutions flow out of problem identification. Recognise our ‘perspective’ in the problem is important because it shapes what we think issues are. Quite often you will find that you thinking something in your head that is simply not a problem … you just assume it is.

3. Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a ‘free flow’ of ideas. You can also think of this as the creative process in action. When we look at a problem and begin to come up with new ideas new solutions will emerge. From this process you can shift to lateral ideas that will help you tremendously. Brainstorming really involves the rapid interchange of ideas from different angles in a group or individual setting. I like this process because done properly it can surface hidden assumptions, challenge stale thinking and suggest (quickly) new and innovative things that can be done. It breaks out of defensive reasoning and helps us to learn. Read this to find out more.

4. Thinking about what generates the paradox

Traditionally we might have called this ‘systems thinking‘. This is where we look towards things that ‘generate’ what we see by looking at the higher order process. Remember, you may be the victim of somebody else’s assumption making so carefully think about your situation and begin to recognise what’s happening. Where I work there are things put in place by management that make my job difficult. Paperwork by the mound for example. There is really nothing I can do about this yet it will cause me problems.  Yet I have inherited this problem by nature of what I do.  This is still something ’systemic’ that is being generated around me.  In such a case I need to recognise these things and learn to adapt to them rather than flow against them.  To be honest, there are some things you just cannot change.   So how does this relate specifically to the logic box?  There are bigger picture things that form these things in us a lot of times and sometimes breaking them takes ‘bigger picture’ actions.   What we do about these things takes place more on a group level than an organisational one.  This is where you need the support of others working with you.   That however, takes time, planning effort and an agreement of strategic values which I have discussed before.

Breaking out of harmful thinking patterns is a much bigger topic than this post.  I would like to point out that if you are serious about this kind of thing then I would recommend you read a lot more and if needed seek the advice of a professional.  I do not wish to oversimplify the issues I have spoken about here by saying that these are ‘generally’ applicable because that’s not true.  I can tell you however, that doing these things, especially the fourth point, is extremely important.  They have helped me and I hope they help you.

Technorati Tags: logic box, belief systems, Conjecturing, perspectives, strategies, assumptions, ‘systems thinking‘., thinking patterns

Have you ever noticed that Virgin are the same no matter where they are? Consider people that work for them… they all look like they are having fun don’t they? I have worked in a few places that felt like death on a stick. If you met someone who left there and you talked about it what is the thing they remember most of all? How bad it was to work there! In most places there are strategic level values that filter down to the place where we work. The day to day reflects the bigger picture ‘feelings’ and ‘values’ that are at work in the organization. What is it that you wish your business to be known for? A good ‘heart’? A fun place? Well here are some of the things you will have to think about in order to make that happen.

What do you want your values to be?

Gloria Jean have worked well in this country to portray a loving image. They are very public with their charity work and make it known what their values are. What do you want people to think when they think about you? Work it out. For me, I want people to engage with me (either through my work as a lecturer or whatever) and feel like they got something out of it. If my business is teaching… I want people to say certain things about me… so I set strategic values that I live by in my teaching. For example, I want people to leave with a concept… so I use a narrative structure and teach around one idea. If nothing else you will leave that lecture with that idea.

Say you are a tree-lopper. You want people to think something of you don’ t you? You want people to say, ‘that tree-lopper is the best damned tree-lopper that I have ever used I want to use that person again!’ What is the impression you want to give to them? What are the values you want them to recognise? Get the picture? If not, consider it this way. What do you want people to say (i.e. word of mouth marketing) about your business? Write down a list immediately!

Building in values from the top down

Most westernised business have some semblance of a traditional hierarchy. Now before you pick up your rocks let me explain what I mean. There is usually a managerial structure in place that allows you to recognise a so-called chain of command. The person who is at the top of the chain has to create the flow on to the other people in the business. Once you have worked out what you want your business to represent you need to begin working in the values as a matter of practice. This is not an easy thing to do especially if those in the business are resisting it. However, you must persist with this over an extended period of time. Think of ways you can demonstrate these values without the use of coercion and bullying. Be clever!

Finding leaders to work with

Every movement in the history of man is based on a set of values. Setting these values should NOT as spurious as a mission or value statement. Nothing wrong with such things but there must always be practical outlets on a day to day basis. Hiring the right kind of people who share your values is more important than hiring people who are competent. I didn’t stutter! Your business would do better strategically if you had people with passion in the stead of good skills because that passion will flow on to your customers and they will recognise it.

Being consistent

The final phase after working in the values you want your business to reflect from the top down through key leaders is to be consistent. One thing you have to admire about a business with values like Virgin for example, is the consistency of their approach. Sure, they don’t always get it right but each time I have encountered them either on a plane or someone else I have found their approach to be consistent and my engagement with their brand likewise. This is clearly a strategic vision that has been cautiously worked in over time. It’s this kind of consistency that has made it what it is today.

Working with the right people

A general manager friend of mine said something which I have not forgotten. He said that it’s very hard to flow with people who don’t have similar values. It’s easy enough to say but without the right people willing to work with the strategic value set you have chosen for your business it simply will never come to pass. Author John Scott says that the highest form of power is collective mobilisation. When people work together it creates cohesion that no other social power can match. The problem can be that people often get sidetracked by career, selfish goals and other things at the neglect of the strategic vision. Nothing wrong with having goals or looking to get ahead, that’s important. A careful balance is suggested here.

A good strategic set of values is only as good as the environment it’s going into it. Think of your business as a seedbed that grows values overtime. With the right group of people growing the values day after day the right kind of results can ensue and good leadership is always important. Without these elements… you will NEVER have the values flowing out of your business that you desire.

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