The title of today’s TPF is “Know Less”. Traditionally, we seek to know more, not to know less. Yet learning to know less can have the potential to produce not only more but also better. Let me explain.
In Daniel Kahneman’s book Thinking, Fast and Slow, he says, “…we can be blind to the obvious, and we are also blind to our blindness.” Essentially, humans tend to be unaware of what’s obvious and unaware of our unawareness, which can often lead to poor decision-making. Kahneman’s research illuminates that our brains are limited by the information they take in and are limited further when we focus on one task. In layman’s terms, when we are the only person providing answers and solutions, there is a strong chance our answers and solutions are limited by our singular view of the circumstances. And thus, may not yield the BEST final product.
Challenging yourself to know less will take some practice. For some, it may even feel a bit counterintuitive. Below are a few tips to try.
HOW TO KNOW LESS, LEARN MORE, AND MAKE BETTER DECISIONS
1. Listen as if you’re wrong – You might be right, but you could be wrong. Listen to other perspectives as if you are wrong. Use your doubt to listen with more curiosity, and you will hear the gaps in your logic begin to fill in.
2. Use Papers and Pillows – Before making a final decision or submitting a final solution, proposal, etc… write it down on paper (or electronic “paper”). Leave it for a night and sleep on it (pillow). Review it the next day – is there anything to add, amend, delete, or send to someone else for review? Important decisions are not personality assessments – the first answer isn’t always the best one.
3. Future Seek with Diversity – With a diverse group as possible (age, gender, race, experience, perspective), conduct a Premortem exercise. Have the group imagine that six months from now, the project has failed. Ask questions like “What did we need to have in place to prevent these issues? What could we have done differently to avoid these issues? What did we leave undone that could have prevented this situation?” The key here isn’t necessarily that you find the perfect questions to ask, it’s that you have the right people in the room to ask.
It’s more comforting to worship at the altar of our brilliance than to admit we know less than we do. Try to know less and succeed more.
