The emergence of artificial intelligence – or the mechanization of thought processes – represents a significant upheaval in human living and working conditions. Consequently, numerous workers around the globe are voicing their concerns.
FOBO
, or the Fear of No Longer Being Relevant.
These concerns are not completely unjustified. The World Economic Forum (WEF) monitors the expectations of worldwide employers regarding future skill demands. By 2025, they
reported
That approximately forty percent (39%) of current skill sets are expected to become obsolete or altered within the coming five years.
But there is no need to fear the coming wave. As new technologies are incorporated and AI takes on more of the cognitive load of just about any job, our ability to use freed-up brain space to innovate and problem solve will be in hot demand.
Beyond developing digital proficiency, key abilities for the future hinge on thought processes. This includes analytical reasoning, inventive ideation, inquisitiveness, tenacity, and continuous education.
Why these skills? Because machines can’t empathise with what humans need, desire or aspire to, nor can they come up with creative solutions to meet those needs. We are entering a new space in which machines
augment
human thought, without replacing it.
To stay relevant in the age of AI – we need to be better thinkers.
Top-notch teams thrive when each member contributes effectively, combining their strengths to maximize the group’s overall capability.
So how does one go about thinking better? Unless you’ve done a philosophy or science degree, chances are you’ve never been taught how to think. In fact, even with a tertiary education, it can be difficult to catch ourselves in biases, assumptions, norms and limiting beliefs that keep us locked in our own worldview.
Here are four simple yet proven methods to do better thinking. As an author of two books on high performance, I’ve used these methods to improve my own thinking. I’ve also seen great results when using these methods with leadership teams to overcome challenges and create new strategies.
Full spectrum thinking
Full spectrum thinking is a concept created by Matt Church and Peter Cook in their 2018 book
Think
. Full spectrum thinking encourages us to flesh out an idea by scoping it from four different angles: from “left brain” rational view to “right brain” creative view, and from big picture “conceptual” view down to detailed “concrete” view.
For example, to flesh out an idea like “culture drives performance”, incorporate the research and statistics that support the idea, share a story that brings it to life, frame it with a model or method, and add a metaphor for clarity and interest.
When you develop an idea across all dimensions, you enhance its depth and attractiveness by ensuring it caters to various ways people prefer to process information.
Yes
and
, yes
but
This is an additional problem-solving approach presented by Church & Cook in
Think
. When you hear a concept or idea that you either agree or disagree with, use this method to build upon the idea with your unique perspective.
“Yes, and” asks you to elaborate on why you agree with an idea or concept. “Yes, but” asks you to consider the opposing idea, or provide a contrary view.
Yes is different to no. Yes suggests we are building concepts. No suggests we are debating concepts.
Examples are: How can we grow both revenue and margin at the same time? How can we improve both productivity and engagement? How can we gain market share and consolidate our offerings? These questions seem paradoxical until they are considered as opportunities for radical change.
Scientific thinking
The primary idea underlying scientific thinking is to view opinions merely as hypotheses that should be examined to determine their validity. Scientific thought helps prevent cognitive biases from obstructing the pursuit of truth.
For workers, adopting a scientific approach to thinking is about being willing to test ideas and let them go when they don’t work out. The smart people at Google X have designed a whole innovation factory around scientific thinking.
They lead the charge with innovations like autonomous vehicles, unmanned aerial drones for deliveries, intelligent eyewear, advanced contact lenses, and even internet access via high-altitude balloons. For them, setbacks are viewed optimistically since an employee once noted, "Dismissing a sound concept paves the way for groundbreaking ideas."
Design thinking
Design thinking was a concept introduced by Hasso Plattner and David Kelly in 2004 as a revolutionary way to transform problem-solving. This approach encourages individuals to identify and tackle problems through three unconventional ways:
-
Empathise
– understand the problems and challenges from the perspective of the “user” or customer
-
Work together
– recognise that creativity sparks from collaboration – that working together can and does produce a better result than individuals working alone
-
Fail effectively
– work fast to build a minimum viable product (MVP) and test it. Adopt a “fail fast” mentality, seeing continuous improvement, or iterative improvement over perfection.
Applying design thinking, in just about any context, quickly evolves their thinking. It also helps people better respond to feedback and improve.
Top-notch teams thrive solely based on the capabilities of their individual members who collaborate to harness their combined strength. Should you be chosen for a group, it’s likely because your intellect was recognized.
Learning how to use it, as well as encouraging diversity of thinking with your colleagues, will ensure that you’re better together than any one of you could be alone.
Stephanie Bown
acts as a performance collaborator for leaders and their teams, and has written two books on achieving high performance.
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