According to Edward de Bono, we all run the risk of falling into the “intelligence trap.” It is assumed that intelligence goes hand in hand with thinking. Often however, intelligent people are in danger of becoming poor thinkers. They are in effect, trapped by their own intelligence. That is, they use their intelligence to entrench themselves in support of one point of view, and because they are genuinely intelligent they can mount some very convincing arguments for their position.

Consider … if you had invested significant time, dollars and effort in being promoted and developing a level of skill and expertise in doing things a certain way, the notion that there might be better ways, other than yours, can be extremely confronting!

Resistance to change and new ideas by intelligent people, is one of the main reasons change management and improvement initiatives don’t always get traction. We don’t help things along either as we have have a strong tendency to defer to the views of those who can mount a convincing critical argument. Critical assessment however is only a part of the thinking that we need to embrace and use going forward. Criticism is a powerful weapon in the hands of those who suffer the intelligence trap. Criticism however is easy, it’s a simple matter to pull a new idea to pieces or critique an as yet unproven concept.

A quotation from Dr de Bono that often springs to mind is “You cannot dig a hole in a different place by digging the same hole deeper.” Intelligent people/experts can be very effective diggers of single deep holes.

In an increasingly complex world we need to be constantly digging holes in new and different places in an ongoing attempt to uncover new and better ways of not only doing things better, but just plain surviving.

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At Think Quick we don’t simply assist with your issues, we help build your capacity to solve your own.

We provide new perspectives and new means of looking at your organisational issues so that appropriate and sustainable action can be designed in-house to address them.

In every instance we use accredited and experienced practitioners and practice a range of contemporary techniques designed to address the thinking of participants so that the focus leads to tangible and improved design and action.

The world is highly complex and rapidly shifting, so to be able to act with impact we must first be able to make sense of what is happening around us. The methods we use are designed to do this. Sessions are designed to replicate the way people behave in real life, as opposed to the way we “expect” them to behave in organisational settings.

Amongst the methods we use are those developed by Edward de Bono and include Lateral Thinking, Direct Attention Thinking Tools and the Six Thinking Hats. We also focus strongly on the Cognitive Edge methods which enable the emergence of fresh ideas, insights, new design and solutions derived form the multiple and diverse perspectives present in the room. The cognitive Edge methods are based on participation and discovery, as apposed to more traditional linear and prescriptive group methods that are common.

All of the methods applied are focused on gaining new insights, navigating through complex issues thereby allowing organisations and participants to take advantage of new opportunities in conditions of uncertainty.

The strengths and benefits of these approaches are:

*    We generate means of seeing the world through the eyes of participants, rather than via the narrower interpretations of a facilitator or third party.

*   We assist organisations to develop contextually appropriate interventions to address issues rather than applying standard methods that have minimal impact when issues are complex.

*    The methods tap directly into the knowledge of the assembled group and generate new design possibilities and participant buy-in. With this buy-in, outcomes tend to be more resilient and sustainable.

*    The methods allow for the navigation of issues for a fuller exploration rather than a solution oriented approach reliant on our first pattern matches that are not always the best fit.

*    The methods encourage innovative thinking and generate a range of possible solutions by tapping into the diverse perspectives and knowledge of the assembled group.

*    We use techniques that allow for wide scanning and the identification of weak signals that potentially have economic and human costs to the organisation.

*    The methods used move participants from a static approach to addressing issues to one in which there is a strong focus on design and forward momentum without the paralysis of perceived risk.

Our accredited and experienced practitioners have successfully facilitated many sessions and projects across public and private sectors and have worked closely with clients to determine need and co-design and process to ensure the best possible outcomes.

Think Quick also assists in the design and implementation of projects where new perspectives and new approaches are required.  These include evaluations, navigating change, strategy, planning, leadership and culture related interventions.

For more information contact Frank at think.quick@me.com

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