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Archive for the ‘Problem Solving’ Category

Providing Value beats the Billable Hour

August 27th, 2009 by Steve Swann | No Comments | Filed in Business, Innovation, Problem Solving

Here’s a real world example of a major corporate re-thinking and re-inventing how they engage with others – and have others engage with them.

Time will tell if the model works. I really hope it does. The key benefit, as articulated in the interview, is that the relationship is outcome focused. The objective is finding a solution and making it work, instead of how much revenue can we generate or how much cost can we save.

I disagree in part with Amy Schulman’s assertion that the partners will have to  get used to making less money. Those Partners that really understand this new model and adjust their own structure, practices and process to make it work could end up making more money. In the end it’s the value that you can provide.

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caught killing an idea

June 30th, 2009 by Steve Swann | No Comments | Filed in Business, Ideas, Innovation, Inspiration, Problem Solving, Sharing, Solutions, Thinking

Last week I wrote about the idea killing phrase “Yes, But”. The following evening I joined so94px-senegallion1898bw1me colleagues to discuss an ecommerce project they’re working on.

And yes, you guessed it – I caught myself saying “Yes, but…” I was killing their ideas. The good news is that after the first occurrence I caught myself  and was far more supportive and constructive.

What struck me was how easy it was to be negative. Here’s why.

It appears that we are “hard wired” to be negative, or at least to be far more cognitive to the negative. It goes back to our our primitive beginnings when it was necessary for us, as a species, to be constantly on the look out for potential sources of danger.

According to Cognitive researcher Nancy Etcoff, in her Feb 2004 TED presentation

Our negative system is extremely sensitive. It is our sentinal. It is there to protect us from danger.

The following screen shot of one of Nancy’s slides points out the extent of our “natural” negative bias

negative-bias

What’s really interesting here is the (happy) Marriage Formula:

a ratio of 5 positive remarks or inter-actions to 1 negative remark or interaction.

If we extend this into our innovation and creative thinking environment we can see how damaging negative comments can be. We have to work 5 times as hard to overcome a single negative response.

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staring out the window on a sunny day

June 26th, 2009 by Steve Swann | 1 Comment | Filed in Problem Solving, Thinking
May Edward Harrison - daydreaming

May Edward Harrison - Daydreaming

I’ve done it – more than once. I’m sure you’ve done it too. In fact I wish I could do it more often. That’s right, it’s staring out the window on a summers day and daydreaming. In fact daydreaming any time.

Well now, thanks to a Wall Street Journal article by Robert Lee Hotz this activity has been legitimised (in my mind anyway).

The Article entitled “A Wandering Mind Heads Straight Toward Insight” uses examples from Achimedes, Newton and others; and looks for explanation in modern brain research.

…we owe the concept of alternating electrical current, the discovery of penicillin, and on a less lofty note, the invention of Post-its, ice-cream cones, and Velcro. The burst of mental clarity can be so powerful that, as legend would have it, Archimedes jumped out of his tub and ran naked through the streets…

So if you’re in the habit of letting you mind drift be reassured that your brain could actually be working better without you trying to control the outcome.

By most measures, we spend about a third of our time daydreaming, yet our brain is unusually active during these seemingly idle moments. Left to its own devices, our brain activates several areas associated with complex problem solving, which researchers had previously assumed were dormant during daydreams. Moreover, it appears to be the only time these areas work in unison.


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