How to Encourage Out-of-the-Box Thinking
Posted January 12th, 2016
Success on any team requires the participants to balance their individual needs/goals with the overall needs/goals of the group. For most people, striking this kind of balance comes naturally, but not for all. Most teams inevitably include at least one member whose out-of-the-box thinking puts them at odds with the majority.
As the leader of the team, these unique employees put you in a difficult position. Their unexpected ideas are often excitingly innovative and fresh. But at the same time, they can’t operate independently and still make a meaningful contribution to the team. If this is an issue you’re struggling with, use these strategies to keep the interesting ideas flowing in the most efficient and productive way possible.
Abandon Your Assumptions
When you make assumptions, you close yourself off to ideas. In everything you do, begin the process as a blank slate. Start by asking questions rather than trying to state facts. When you approach problems/opportunities with this kind of open mind, you allow them to develop organically and unexpectedly.
Reserve Your Judgments
Great ideas don’t always appear as such at first. You might be tempted to judge an idea as too wacky or irrelevant when you first hear it and end up squashing an interesting perspective before it has time to develop. Approach all ideas with respect, and try to seek out understanding through evidence.
Focus on the Data
Instead of assuming you know things or judging them too early, look first for data to either confirm or deny your conclusions. The more data you have, the better. Try to base all of your decision making on real evidence rather than past practices or received wisdom. You’ll be surprised more often than you think.
Learn from Failures
Failure is inevitable and unavoidable. Instead of using the occasion as an opportunity to yell and punish, turn it into a learning opportunity. Every wrong idea reveals something about the right idea. When your team feels that they have permission to fail, they will pursue innovative, outside-the-box ideas a lot more actively.
Brainstorm Big
We’ve all heard that there are no stupid ideas, but we still tend to hold back when brainstorming. Open these sessions up to include ideas/opinions that come from way out in left field. A lot of them will be misfires, but one or two could prove to be the elusive solutions you’ve been looking for all along.
Designate a ‘Devil’s Advocate’
Most teams include one notorious naysayer who is perpetually eager to shoot down other people’s ideas. Their contrary spirit can be an important check, but if they’re the only one offering a contrasting opinion, the rest of the team might start to discount their perspective. Ask someone different to be the naysayer at each meeting so you don’t miss out on an important check and balance.
Managing creativity is not easy but it is important. In today’s hyper-competitive markets there is no room to rest on your laurels. Any business that hopes to remain relevant has to innovate consistently and operate boldly. As you try to shake up your own operations, rely on the resources of Bayside Solutions to add forward-thinking professionals to your staff.
