Great to see you making the point that people need to generate answers/ideas in isolation to avoid the dreaded groupthink. A basic requirement to leverage the most out of the Wisdom of Crowds.
Exactly Kieron. People start converging their views at the very first sign if they can get something to latch on. That does not help when you are trying to educate people with different beliefs. You need them to walk from where they are to a new place individually.
I use exactly the same techniques in workshops or on virtual calls. I’ve used virtual white boards like Miro or Figma to display them on the video calls. It’s good for people to know it’s pointless having the exercise unless participants can contribute individually.
Always amazes me how people actually think the same thing about 80% of topics but because they use different language to articulate the same idea they think they disagree. So without the isolation technique a group will sit around a table talking about the same thing but thinking they are contributing different povs for an hour whereas using an isolation/post-it note technique they’ll all move on in seconds having seen they are in fact in agreement.
A couple of times I’ve run a workshop where a very senior leader/C-Suite wasn’t in the workshop and then decided they needed to join and immediately start to dominate conversation which kills progress of strategic development instantly. At that point I just tell everyone it’s time for a bio break, take the leader aside and politely explain to them that either they follow the post-it process like everyone else or they leave and wait to see the output.
I’ve just been here on Substack a few days but one of the first posts I’m developing is going to be about this.
A super interesting read Shashank!
Love smart use of cartoon characters, Powerpuff girls used to be my favorite :)
Thank you Charu :). It was a hit of nostalgia for me
Exactly !!! Same :)
I love this flow- starting with the “what’s our strategy?” will really make people think.
I always find that asking that question triggers so many reactions in teams. Brings out wonderful insights.
Just discovered you on the TL but excited to read this!
Looking forward to hearing your views Ben. Have fun reading :)
This is a great plan to introduce actual strategic thinking to any group.
Thank you Elmer :)
Great to see you making the point that people need to generate answers/ideas in isolation to avoid the dreaded groupthink. A basic requirement to leverage the most out of the Wisdom of Crowds.
Exactly Kieron. People start converging their views at the very first sign if they can get something to latch on. That does not help when you are trying to educate people with different beliefs. You need them to walk from where they are to a new place individually.
I use exactly the same techniques in workshops or on virtual calls. I’ve used virtual white boards like Miro or Figma to display them on the video calls. It’s good for people to know it’s pointless having the exercise unless participants can contribute individually.
Always amazes me how people actually think the same thing about 80% of topics but because they use different language to articulate the same idea they think they disagree. So without the isolation technique a group will sit around a table talking about the same thing but thinking they are contributing different povs for an hour whereas using an isolation/post-it note technique they’ll all move on in seconds having seen they are in fact in agreement.
Ahh interesting observation. Never thought about it like that. Thank you for sharing Kieron. I will keep an eye out for this phenomenon next time.
It really is fascinating.
A couple of times I’ve run a workshop where a very senior leader/C-Suite wasn’t in the workshop and then decided they needed to join and immediately start to dominate conversation which kills progress of strategic development instantly. At that point I just tell everyone it’s time for a bio break, take the leader aside and politely explain to them that either they follow the post-it process like everyone else or they leave and wait to see the output.
I’ve just been here on Substack a few days but one of the first posts I’m developing is going to be about this.
Looking forward to reading it. Managing strong headed business leaders is often a challenge in such scenarios. Love your approach.
Confusing objectives, vague ambitions, action plan as strategy… I love it!
Thank you Jens :)
Nice. Love it.
Its always very fun to ask about what strategy is.
I usually do this in interviews and summarize the results for everyone after the prep stage, but I might consider starting with this.
Thank you Alex. I wanted to share something people could do with minimal preparation. In-depth interviews help a lot I must add.