This is what happened in the watch making industry. In 1968 Switzerland was synonymous with time keeping. By 1980 this country was “dethroned” because something new had come along --- Seiko!! Switzerland was profoundly competent in the manufacture of gears and mainsprings but almost overnight this became irrelevant because of a new paradigm in the watch industry. The Japanese saw a new opportunity in the electronic quartz watch and while they had less than 1% of the world’s watch market in 1968, the Japanese today account for over 30%.The United States in the fall of 2008 is in the midst of a national election campaign. One party has nominated a vice presidential candidate who is “out of the box." She comes from Alaska ... about as far from Washington as one can be geographically! This candidate had served as a mayor for some years but her town had less than 10,000 people in it. She is a current governor of her state, but the state has only 600,000 people. The nation had not known much about her previously. For many, she does not into a familiar paradigm and therefore is not qualified.
This article is not meant to be a political statement. I am trying to point out that we all operate in our “boxes” of thinking. We live by paradigms: standards and ideas that are part of these “boxes.”
Consider another example. In my travels in various continents, I have observed that people use different utensils when eating. In America, it seems a fork will do for most meals unless we eat steak and need a sharp knife to cut it or when we need to spread butter or jam on bread. In Canada and in most of Europe, forks are almost always complimented by knives. In certain Asian countries, bare hands are used when eating. Interestingly though, even the use of hands requires the right technique and approach. Some cultures take pride in using only the tips of their fingers. Societies that make use of the fuller hand are considered uncultured and uncouth! How fascinating!
I have found our bondage to certain paradigms true in virtually every area of life. We cannot, or will not even consider other paradigms. In the world of the church it is often said cynically that its 7 last words are.. “We’ve always done it this way before!” Or as someone else said, “come weal or woe, our status is quo!” It is the same in education and in business. I served on the board of governors for a university for some years and was often amazed how academia looks at the world. It was their world and the only world they knew.
Willful blindness, pride, stubbornness, or simply being incapable or unwilling to anticipate new paradigms and realities can be deadly. We must be able to predict the needs of costumers and develop products or services that will fulfill those needs.
So, how about your world? What paradigms are you bound to? What are you missing in life because you have never considered a new paradigm? Some practical suggestions you will find useful are:
1. Deliberately recruit and affirm those who are entrepreneurial and creative in their thinking. We tend to dismiss such folks as impractical dreamers. But paradigm pioneers are almost always outsiders. One example is a young person. He or she does not yet know all the reasons why a new idea is sure to fail. Fred Smith, founder of Federal Express is a perfect contemporary illustration. Thomas Edison, the Wright Brothers, and hosts of others were all persistent dreamers and visionaries. They were ridiculed and dismissed but today we benefit constantly from their discoveries. Woodrow Wilson once said, “I use not only the brains I have, but all that I can borrow!"
2. Find time for “dream” or “vision casting” retreats and get-togethers. Many would consider such activities as a waste of precious time. Yet, out of such vision casting could come new ideas and concepts that will position your business for the future and ensure that you will have products and services as conditions and needs change in our society. Be deliberate about the future and welcome it by preparing for inevitable change. If you wait until you have all the evidence and proof before changing a paradigm, you will likely never change. Be willing to trust intuition as new ideas surface.
3. Broaden your focus from problem solving to anticipation. We often measure managerial skills on the basis of problem solving ability. What about problem avoidance or opportunity identification?
4. Keep an open mind. We resist new paradigms because we are blind. Many exercises have been conducted to show that while our eyes may suggest something new is happening, our brain (experience) overrules our eyes and dismisses new things. Remember the deck of cards experiment? Change the hearts cards to black from red and flash such a deck of cards rapidly in front of your eyes. The eyes may see something different but the brain says, “Hearts are always red. There is nothing unusual about this deck!” Consider these two laughable examples:
“Flight by machines heavier than air is unpractical and insignificant, if not utterly impossible.” Simon Newcomb, astronomer, 1902.
“There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in their home.” Ken Olson, president of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977.
Resources that have been helpful to me and from which I gleaned ideas that I have used here is Peter Drucker’s book, Managing in Turbulent Times, and the writings and lectures of futurist Joel Barker.
I conclude with this challenge from Drucker, “Significant competitive advantage lies with those organizations and individuals who anticipate well in turbulent times."
Want to talk more? Contact me at rick@icarecoaching.com.
Dr. Rick Penner
www.icarecoaching.com
Copyright, September, 2008
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