Making Your Gray Matter

November 2008

Contents This Month

· Assumption Smashing

· Pygmalion in the Classroom and the Workplace

· Presentation Maps

· Quotations

· Update Your Email Address

· Refer Madness

Assumption Smashing

One of the biggest barriers to creativity is assumptions. We make assumptions immediately when assessing the problem or challenge to be resolved. These assumptions constrain our ability to creatively explore new solutions. Next time you’re in a “brainstorming session,” spend some time assumption smashing.

Generate a long list of assumptions you have about the situation/challenge/
problem at hand. Once you have done that, spend some time exploring the results if those assumptions weren’t valid or true. Here are some common assumptions people make when solving a challenge:

· Training people costs money

· Paying people better increases productivity

· Incentives are expensive

· Workforce reductions improve the “bottom line”

Once you and your group have generated an exhaustive list of assumptions, start smashing them. The easiest way to do so is by asking “What could/would you do differently if that wasn’t true?

Pygmalion in the Classroom and the Workplace

In the 1960s, Dr. Robert Rosenthal studied the effect of teacher’s expectations on the performance of their students. He had the principal of a school tell three school teachers that:

· Their teaching methods had been observed and that they were the three best teachers.

· They were going to be rewarded by teaching classes of specially gifted children selected on the basis of superior IQs.

· The students were expected to improve their IQ scores by between 20% and 30% over the following year.

· To avoid complaints of discrimination all this information was supposed to be kept strictly confidential.

Tests at the end of the year revealed that the three classes led the whole district in grades. As expected the students managed to improve their IQs by between 20% and 30%. The principal called the three teachers into his office again and congratulated them. He then informed them that the students were not special students at all – they had been randomly selected and were average students. The teachers were also told that they were also randomly selected!

My wife, Amber, works at Accenture and manages relationships between her company and Third Party Advisors (TPA). Sometimes the relationships become strained and the Accenture people become angry with the TPAs. Amber frequently tells her colleagues that getting mad at them will only make the relationship worse. She knows how expectations can change someone’s performance.

Presentation Maps

One of the most common uses for Idea Maps is in preparing for a presentation. It’s a popular tool because it helps us remember our content better and it’s easier to find our place if we happen to “go blank.” Here’s how you can use an Idea Map to prepare for a presentation:

1. Idea Map your content. Don’t try to organize this into a presentation! Simply include everything you think of that might be included. During this process, you’ll think of things you need to research further. When I do this, I draw a blank brown line at the end of the item to be researched. This is my personal code for doing more research.

2. Research those items. Get specific with this research. As I tell coaching clients and workshop participants, it’s difficult for an audience member to argue with you if you cite specific research and methodology. It’s much easier for that person to be contentious if you simply say, “Research has found that…”

3. Draw your first draft of your presentation notes Idea Map. Now you want to structure it as a presentation. This means including your Attention Grabber, Points Preview, Points Review, and Final Statement.

4. Rehearse at least twice with this Idea Map. This will start engraining it into your memory. It will also enable you to identify parts of the map that need redrawing.

5. Create your final Idea Map. Since you have already reviewed the map at least three times (once in drawing your draft and twice during your rehearsals), you’ll be able to compress the map even more. Print large enough that you can set the map down and easily refer to it without picking it up.

Quotations

“I will not allow anyone to walk through my mind with their dirty feet.” – Mahatma Gandhi

“If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.” – Albert Einstein

Update Your Email Address

Don’t miss an issue of Making Your Gray Matter. If your email address is going to change, let me know about it.

Refer Madness

If you had a good experience in my workshop/seminar, share it with someone you know. If you provide me with a lead that generates new business for me, I’ll pay you (or your favorite charity) $250 (less if it is less than a full-fee engagement).

If you belong to a professional organization that needs a speaker or If you know any business or non-profit organization (including your own), that could benefit from my workshops, presentations, coaching, or needs a facilitator:

1. Tell your contact about me.

2. Tell me about your contact. Call me at 972-378-0937 or write me at dgunby@mindimensions.com

3. Wait for your check (if I get your contact’s business)

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