How to Think out of the Box 2.0

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2022 was supposed to be better. We were supposed to be crawling if not running out of the COVID pandemic by now. We were supposed to be getting back to normal.

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Instead, we are facing a continued COVID cases, airline cancellations, product shortages and epic uncertainty about the future. Inflation is running out of control and a war in Uktraine is threatening global stability.

What can we do? How can we live out of the 2022 box?

Let’s first review where the “thinking out of the box” phrase came from. There is no consensus about origins of the phrase. Most citations relate it to the Nine Dots Puzzle.

Instructions: Link all 9 dots using four straight lines or fewer, without lifting the pen and without tracing the same line more than once. Try in your mind or on a piece of paper to solve that puzzle. Don’t peek below for the solution.

It is impossible to execute without going out of the box. You must “think out of the box” in order identify a solution. Below is a sample solution example that is obvious once you let go of your need to stay inside the box. There are many others.

I think this type of thinking is what we need to make 2022 awesome. We may be constraining ourselves by thinking inside the box. We may have solutions to the many problems facing us individually and collectively that exist outside of traditional thinking.

How can we begin to think out of the box?

Step one is push the calm button. No one makes excellent decisions when in panic mode. This is difficult to do but can be done with practice. Next time you start to panic, check you pulse at your risk or look at your watch and measure your heart rate. Give yourself a minute to think. You will make a better decision if you don’t make it when you are in threat or panic mode

Step two is suspend your disbelief about possible solutions. Think for a moment about why a proposed solution could work instead of immediately judging an idea. This is another difficult skill. Too often we jump to judgement. We can easily identify the problems with a possible solution but fail to recognize the value in certain approaches. So, suspend your disbelief. Consider a wide range of option. Then and only then proceed to action.

Step three is to stop expecting other people to solve the problems. Stop complaining and start solving difficult problems. Live in the arena and sweat it out. Swim in the sea of uncertainty. Expect to be wrong. Be okay with failure. Just get up and continue pushing forward in spite of not getting it right the first time.

That is a primer about how you THINK OUT OF THE BOX.

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