“Problems cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them.”
– Albert Einstein
“The method of the enterprising is to plan with audacity and execute with vigor.”
– John Christian Bovee, mid 19th century American author
Orville and Wilbur Wright were audacious. Edison was audacious. Karl Benz, who invented the automobile – was audacious. Peter Durand was audacious when he invented the capability to can food, but it took the even-more-audacious audacity of Ezra Warner to invent a device that allowed you to open it without a chisel and hammer.
Too often it might seem “safest” to proceed with something less than audacity.
If making a difference is our goal, often times the opposite is true.
“What if we ___________________________?” might be the question. If the answer is “No one’s ever even tried that!” we might be on the right track.
“What would it take to ___________?” if answered by, “Well, there’s no way you’d consider ________” might be just the outcome we want.
Why?
Because then we can respond by saying, “What if we would consider _______?” And in that moment — in that tick of the clock, the conversation changes from one about what we have done to one about what we could do, given the opportunity.
Possibility thinking is a learned behavior – and it is a behavior, not a skill. Probabilities matter less during ideation than possibilities. Possibilities are all we have, if our goal is to change the game dramatically, and that’s my goal.
Audacity will serve us well, especially since danged few of the conventional answers make sense anymore, in case you’re wonderin’… Just sayin’…
Leave a Reply