Discover the full collection of #ThinkfullyHabits
Think back to your team deliberations or those discussions that take place in the groups you are part of – who generally speaks first? When in a team or group setting, the best discussion usually happens when the most senior person or leader (assigned or self-appointed!) speaks last.
Read MoreIn 1492, Italian explorer Christopher Columbus sailed west from Spain across the Atlantic Ocean to East Asia. From the books and maps available to him at the time he calculated where he thought Japan should be located to the west of Spain. Several weeks later he found land. He sighted Cuba, which he thought was mainland China, and in December the expedition landed on Hispaniola, which Columbus thought might be Japan. He called the land he discovered the Indies.
Read MoreDoes making a joke feel a bit frivolous? A distraction that should be avoided? Or saved for after work? If so, it may be worth taking a quick step back to look at what the brain is doing when making a joke, and the benefits of doing so.
Read MoreWe all have a natural disposition to daydreaming. In fact, people spend nearly 47% of their waking time thinking about something other than what they’re doing, regardless of their activity.*
For over 60 years, Psychologist Jerome L. Singer has pioneered ground-breaking research into daydreaming. He identifies three different styles.
Read MoreHow often do you consider the opposite of what you want to know? If you’re like most people, the answer is likely to be not very often.
The 19th century German mathematician Carl Jacobi was known for his ability to solve difficult problems by following a strategy of ‘man muss immer umkehren’ which means, “Invert, always invert.” If you haven’t yet heard of Carl Jacobi, it's worth taking a moment to acquaint with his ideas since he is widely considered to be one of the most inspiring teachers of his time and one of the greatest mathematicians in history.
Read MoreWhat if we didn’t need to start from scratch when trying to solve a problem or if a partial blueprint already existed? The trick is often knowing where to look. How often do you take inspiration from nature and the natural world as a place to start?
One example (from many!) is how the porcupine quill is inspiring the design of surgical staples to help improve the healing process.
Read MoreWhen we have expertise and face a situation we've seen before we often instantly spot what to do and how to do it. Experts are typically experts precisely because they spot relevant patterns that other people don’t, or are quicker than others to spot them.
However, this doesn't mean the expert, who is able to rapidly jump straight to the best solution, is good at sharing the rationale behind this or helping others learn from the situation.
Read MoreHow often do you find yourself torn between options, caught in a dilemma or pulled by competing ideas? If so, it may be that you are in what Jim Collins and Jerry Porras call the ‘tyranny of the OR’, where you find yourself choosing between two apparently contradictory strategies. They contrast this to the ‘genius of the AND’ which is recognising that ways forward may come from a combination of ideas.
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