Four Perspectives

The Artist

"It's really quite remarkable. When my mind isn't calm and reflective, i.e., when I'm not 'on', I'm just not present enough to do work of any value. I can plow on, but what I produce is invariably of low quality. Mechanically, I do what I normally do but the output is measurably inferior. I'm so aware of this now that when I'm not in the right state of mind, I rarely attempt anything creative. It's like trying to barbeque in the rain - it's possible but you wouldn't expect an acceptable result. When I am 'on,' creativity is almost effortless. I instinctively know what colors to use and how to apply them. I almost don't have to think, and the work I produce is discernibly superior, to me and to others."

The Strategist

"Much of what is viewed as strategic thinking I now view as noise. There is too much rote and too little reflection. Doing the same types of analyses over and over, or even updating the old ones, rarely tells you very much more. In fact, what it does is cloud the real issues and incisive questions that need to be asked. It is hardly surprising that with the apparent speed of business and the propensity for rote processes, much of what we call strategy is actually of little value. In fact, in some businesses the timeline is so short that strategies are out of date before they are complete. What we have found much more useful is to slow down the thinking and the dialogue and raise the quality. We focus on what are the few new and unique questions that we cannot easily answer. These tend to illuminate the understanding of our business and industry just by the asking We spend time analyzing these questions along with those about which we do not have a common view. The resulting conversations invariably deepen our understanding of the real strategic issues and allow us to hone in on the two or three things that we really need to do or address to gain competitive advantage. The other intriguing aspect of this approach is that we emerge from the strategic reflection process with a common view, a simple plan, and intrinsic motivation to implement."

The Analyst

"The real value for me in using insight thinking has been its ability to focus the problem. Too often, considerable effort is expended to answer the wrong question or, at best, address it in an overly complex and invariably inefficient manner. We now have an innate sense of when we are doing this. It starts to feel 'off.' This now gets us curious about the problem, how we have articulated it, and how we are thinking about it. By turning our efforts back to that, we invariably redefine the problem or, at a minimum, refine the approach. The depth and rigor of analysis do not diminish; in fact this often allows us to go deeper. In some sense, our aim or guidance system has gotten better. The same phenomenon also allows us to spot errors in the answers we produce."

The Athlete

"I call it 'in the zone.' Despite the apparent rushed nature of the game to those on the outside observing the play, I feel I have all the time in the world. I also have an innate sense of what is going on. I know where my teammates are; likewise for my opponents. Things are measured, not frantic. I can hear and am aware of the crowd but it does not distract me. I even notice how my pumps grip the floor. With all of this comes an intense sense of judgment - to the point that I know where to pass and when to shoot and whether the ball will go in or not, and all this well before the shot actually gets there."