So, what's new?
"If at first the idea is not
absurd, then there will be no hope for it.” (Albert Einstein)
I do like
this quote, although it is not always easy to apply. Generally, we are raised
to follow. Conform. To not think
outside the box.
I was at a
kiddies birthday party over the weekend where one of the moms remarked on the
comments in her child's school report. It boiled down to this: his performance
and development is beyond the average/norm in general, but on some really petty
stuff he is not entirely ticking the boxes (pun intended). The message: the
exceptional, beyond the norm, is not really
celebrated.
I personally
do not think this was the intention of the teacher. Most likely she was just so
focussed on ticking the boxes she has to tick for her performance expectations.
A victim of the system?
Having a
mind-set of innovation and creative thinking is not often visible in the work
place. Furthermore, it is a learned skill. It takes practice, and thank
goodness we can get better at it - it can even become a habit (a good one!).
And yes, everybody can do this - be innovative,
and be problem-solvers.
I saw a
brilliant example of this when we were visiting my in-laws on their farm on the
Botswana border. The farmer implemented a suggestion from one of the labourers
to prevent fires 'jumping' from bordering farms. They sprayed a wide stretch of
grass bordering the perimeter fence with
a water-molasses blend. Sounds absurd, right? The cattle loves the taste
of molasses, they ate the grass short enough that the fire risk disappeared.
Problem solved.
Allow me to
end off with another much loved Einstein quote:
“Logic will get you from A to Z;
imagination will get you everywhere.” Let's tap into the second part more.
