Weekly Question & Framework: June 14, 2024

Hello and welcome to the Curiosity Chronicle Weekly Question and Framework. In three minutes or less, I will give you one question and one framework to get you thinking going into the weekend. Without further ado, let's dive right into it. A question to simplify your life what is the one decision that can remove 100 decisions? In a blog post from 2020, Tim Ferriss referenced something he learned from a podcast conversation with Jim Collins. Don't make 100 decisions when one will do. End quote this is a powerful rule for life. We're surrounded by decisions that scream for our attention day and night. Unfortunately, most of us are very bad at differentiating between the important and the urgent, so we weight every decision equally and drive ourselves crazy in the process. To reclaim your sanity and improve your life, spend a few minutes identifying one decision that can remove 100 others a few examples from my Setting up an auto order from a meal prep service for healthy, macro friendly lunches. I no longer have to think about what to eat for lunch on any given day, which frees up my mind to focus on more important things. Sending out our laundry for wash and fold twice each week. This one decision meant my wife and I no longer had to think or talk about laundry, which was a constant issue in a household with a toddler who loves playing outside. Saying no to all agenda Less Phone calls these calls were where my energy went to die. If there isn't a specific action item for a call, I say no to it. This freed up a lot of time on my calendar that I was able to redeploy into energy creating in person meetings. Take a look at your own calendar in life. What are some single decisions that you can make that will remove hundreds of smaller decisions from your plate? A Framework for Creative Problem Solving the PO Creativity Method no is the basic tool of the logic system. Yes is the basic tool of the belief system. PO is the basic tool of the creative system. Edward De Bono Edward De Bono was a physician, psychologist and author most well known as the originator of the concept of lateral thinking. Lateral thinking is a problem solving technique that involves an indirect creative approach. Traditional thinking, which we can refer to as vertical thinking, is grounded in logic and restricted by its focus on existing patterns, frameworks and rules. The aim of lateral thinking is to break free from the confines of vertical thinking to formulate more creative, novel solutions to complex problems. The po, short for Provocative Operation Creativity Method, is a process for engaging lateral thinking by deliberately challenging conventional wisdom or perspectives on a given topic. The process is quite simple. One make provocative statement Begin with a provocative statement that appears entirely absurd or contradictory. For example, I might say cars don't need wheels. 2. Engage the statement. Fight back against your bias to reject the statement. Engage with it in good faith. How might the statement be true? What would that world look like? Explore the new ideas and possibilities. Using our example, I might start envisioning how a car would move without wheels, perhaps glide or sit on a magnetic field. 3. Extract useful concepts from the exploration. Pull out any creative ideas or perspectives that can be refined for use. Concluding our example, I might pull out a few futuristic design ideas that enable cars to move in any direction and improve traffic flow The PO Creativity Method is an extremely valuable process for startups and large organizations alike. It forces you to engage with new and novel perspectives in an open minded manner. It doesn't mean that you will necessarily run with any of the crazy ideas, but it will lead to more outside the box thinking that creates healthy progress. Next time you or your team feel stuck in a pattern of linear, logical, vertical thinking, consider engaging the PO Creativity Method. You won't regret it. That's all for today. I hope you enjoyed it. I hope you learned something and I hope you'll share it with others. As always, until next time, stay curious friends.