A novice? Really? It may sound counterintuitive as we usually expect to go and seek out an expert, rather than a novice. However, sometimes expertise gets in the way and stops us from seeing things with fresh eyes.
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What if you’ve already decided what happens next? What if you’ve pre-determined the best outcome ahead of time, before you’ve looked for further data or information?
Just like in a pre-nuptial agreement which decides ahead of time what happens following a marriage break up, it can be a powerful strategy to say “If I see X … then I will do Y …?” before you get there.
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People who take naps are twice as likely to solve complex problems than non-nappers*!
10 to 20 minutes is the perfect amount of time to nap to measurably boost your energy and alertness. NASA found that pilots who napped for 26 minutes improved their task performance by 34% and alertness by 54%, compared to pilots who didn't nap**.
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Growth isn’t just a matter of learning new things, but also unlearning old limits. When faced with a challenge, actively consider what previous ideas may be getting in the way of thinking about your new situation differently.
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Go to someone outside of your usual network and draw from their different experiences and knowledge to help you find new ways of looking at your challenges. It’s an effective way of revealing ideas that you haven’t considered before.
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The great Leonardo Da Vinci wrote in his notebooks that you should always assume that your first impression of a problem is usually biased towards your usual way of thinking. He always started by looking at the problem one way, then moved onto looking at the same problem a different way and then in other ways again. He called this “saper vedere” which translates to “knowing how to see”.*
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When stuck on a challenge or problem, try thinking specifically about what you can learn from nature.
It’s a particularly fruitful area for inspiration and has led to many fascinating innovations; from hospital surfaces inspired by sharks, to the bullet train inspired by the kingfisher.
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What if we could learn something from improvising musicians, freestyle rappers and improv comedians?
One thing improvisers are taught is to think ‘YES’ (they have to run with whatever thread is thrown at them, it falls over if they block an idea) – quickly followed by ‘AND’ (as they have to the build upon the idea and add to it in some way).
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