November 27, 2015
Stop following instructions
It’s easy to get sucked into a closed system. Where everyone you meet is someone you’ve met before, where the centre of gravity drags you inward,…
It takes courage to stop following instructions. To break the mould. To look at the world and think, there’s a better way.
Most people don’t have it.
Why is that?
Two reasons:
- the instructions are right. Tab A does indeed fit it in Slot B, just like it says on the sheet. And, yup, look at that, it works.
- the fear of failure. We’re conditioned to avoid the risk of stepping over the line. Carrots and sticks incentivise conformance – most managers wield both.
When one thing works and every other thing is actively discouraged … what do you expect?
To think again, to create, to break open the box … to stop following instructions … take them away.
Demonstrate, with actions rather than words, that failure is on the critical path of invention – and that’s ok.
Skippy Strategy: Celebrate learning as much as success.
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Category:
Teams
Everywhere you look. Every place. Every relationship, every interaction or transaction between people, machines, systems, processes, organisations, governments. Everywhere, every time, there’s friction.
Without thinking about it,…