Abstract
Frank Shushok Jr. challenges us to “think free.”
Though educators are a diverse and, dare I say, “motley” crew, most of us collectively believe we are forward–thinking, creative, and even innovative. This entrepreneurial mind–set can be observed by the uniform response we've all had to marketplace inventions such as the iPhone, Redbox, and TED talks—“Why didn't I think of that?”
OK, then, since we're among the higher education family here, let me ask another question. When was the last time you observed a higher education “invention”—a novel idea, a much–needed but never before dreamed of product, an overnight sensation—about which you thought “Why didn't I think of that?”
I know. Me neither. Or at least, not very often.
Where are the big, bold, transformative ideas emerging? Where are the world–changing inventions that will reshape the way students learn in and out of the classroom? Who will see beyond the practice of benchmarking and instead number among those benchmarked?
If you are like me, you've been in dozens of strategic planning sessions. Often the vision for such efforts begins with charges to think boldly and look for competitive advantage, to push the boundaries of innovation, and to “think out of the box.” Unfortunately, my experience has been that the end products are incremental improvements to existing processes and products. In the rare cases where innovative ideas are under consideration, I've observed a common pattern whereby those ideas are whittled from bold to boring. This is for good reason, as bold ideas are often risky, threaten people's terrain, and come with the kind of obstacles that all new ideas face. In the event that a bold idea survives the brainstorming process, it is likely flattened like a pancake as it traverses the organizational hierarchy. And nothing kills innovation like benchmarking. If other institutions aren't already doing it, we surely shouldn't. I'd love to have been a fly on the wall when the University of Phoenix, Walt Disney World, or Redbox was conceived. We often forget that benchmarking merely tells us what is currently happening at other institutions, not what could be, nor what is desperately needed to open our imagination to new innovations.
Of course, most individuals have no intention of stifling creative thinking about the future, yet we often fall prey to Gareth Morgan's metaphor of organizations as “Psychic Prisons” whereby people become imprisoned by the images, ideas, thoughts, and actions of the organizations they helped create. I call these “ruts” and believe them to be often held at the unconscious level. Or as John Tagg suggests, “The real root of our most persistent and pernicious problems is in the invisible enemy, the one we don't see because we see it every day: the organizational paradigm governing our institutions” (pp. 4–5).
Big ruts are constant companions to the human experience, and they are dangerous enemies to creativity, innovation, and ingenuity. It is for these reasons that Steven Sample, former president of the University of Southern California and author of the book The Contrarian's Guide to Leadership, engaged his executive team in the seemingly bizarre practice of “thinking free.” For Sample, thinking free requires participants to embrace the discomfort (and allocate scarce time in an overwhelmed schedule) to contemplate outrageous ideas and often impossible ways to tackle a problem. As a young engineer and assistant professor at Purdue University, Sample was struggling to replace a clock–motor timer as the way to control a dishwasher. He describes himself lying on the floor and forcing himself to imagine ladybugs, microbes, and even planets controlling a dishwasher. Sample credits this exercise with shaking him free from drawing on existing ideas to uncover a new way to run a dishwasher—the kind of device now operating in millions of home appliances today.
As is the case in any industry, there are new opportunities waiting to be discovered. According to Giovanni Gavetti, superior opportunities are available, but most strategists have similar mental representations. The end result is everyone racing to the same heavily occupied position and missing the attractive opportunities and unique possibilities. Why? Gavetti argues that these overlooked opportunities are “cognitively distant” and require a mental leap to spot and overturn the status quo. Associative thinking, Gavetti argues, helps leaders cope with the cognitively distant and learn to think differently. He cites Steve Jobs, creator of Apple, as an example. Jobs linked his knowledge of computers with his interest in calligraphy to create the basis of the typography for the Macintosh. This innovation paved the way for the multitude of fonts on all computers. Clearly the business world is replete with examples, but what's new in higher education these days? Pause for a moment and draw to mind the game–changing kind of efforts, programs, experiences, and inventions that boldly traverse new territory for the betterment of students and their learning. If you're like me, most of what comes to mind are tweaks to what we saw when we benchmarked our peer institutions or a modestly improved product we imported from our previous campus.
If seeing distant opportunities is infrequent and difficult, what is one to do to improve the chances of recognizing them? Gavetti draws from the burgeoning cognitive science literature to better understand our mental processes and our natural tendency to compare unfamiliar things with those we have already experienced. The end result is that we continue to approach new problems and environments by dipping into our old reservoir of experiences and solutions. It is no wonder, therefore, that we find ourselves returning to overcrowded positions. Gavetti's associative thinking and Sample's “thinking free” are practical examples of structured ways to engage these sorts of practices. In short, learning to associate seemingly unrelated problems and ideas, perhaps from different industries and in different contexts, or simply considering the outrageous is an ingredient to the kind of leadership that allows organizations to land distant opportunities.
On the day I found myself writing this article, two stories in the same issue of The New York Times highlighted the necessity for “associative thinking” and the importance of drawing on the experience of other enterprises. One article, “Top Universities Test the Online Appeal of Free,” touches a sensitive nerve by describing the possibilities, advantages, and strengths of free online education (an almost outrageous idea). The other article, “Malls’ New Pitch: Come for the Experience,” cites the struggle for malls to compete with online shopping. The New York Times reports that instead of mounting disparaging rhetoric or empty defense, mall owners are instead “thinking free” and redefining their niche—which is no longer a product but an experience.
Morgan's metaphors, Sample's thinking free, and Gavetti's associative thinking all represent powerful exercises for leaders and organizational participants to suspend judgment, rest in uncomfortable uncertainty, and search for new possibilities before picking apart operational obstacles to new approaches or bold changes in practice.
Practically speaking, what might this look like as a higher education practice?
Picture yourself gathering your colleagues together to think about the possibilities for the future. Begin by agreeing to spend an entire hour with one another considering ideas that will likely be unworkable. Everyone should agree to work through the discomfort of considering unusual ideas and resist the temptation to point out the obstacles for the entire exercise. In fact, with each idea, everyone should only provide ways the idea could work.
A sampling of possible “thinking free” starters:
How might we create a way to deliver all our services and programs without physical facilities (buildings)?
Design a division or department more expansive than the current one and organize it without departments and without titles.
Figure out how to deliver all our services on the campus from somewhere else.
Imagine our division as a startup entrepreneurial enterprise, a democratic country, or an art museum.
On my campus, I work with a group of colleagues interested in getting out of ruts and discovering innovative ideas to strengthen the student experience. In a student affairs division with 3,000 employees, we know that the craziest ideas, or perhaps the least articulated, are nestled deeply in the minds of colleagues working on the front lines—far from the conversation circles of senior leadership. Our thinking free experiment began with exploring manageable ways to unearth these ideas without getting stuck on bureaucratic communication protocols. The conversation started with a commitment to thinking about untenable ideas that would give all 3,000 employees the opportunity to present their ideas at an imaginary podium and microphone to the entire university community. While we were not able to make such an event work (which we never anticipated), the exercise ended up revealing an event we will pursue. In fall 2013, we unveiled “Fri–idea–tions”—a series of coordinated Friday forums that invite all staff into “think free” conversations about innovative ideas to help us better pursue our mission and goals. If nothing else, these moments are sure to help us abandon our ruts. Most likely, these ideas may collide with other ideas to reveal new practices, organizational structures, and inventions.
Underlying each exercise is the assumption that providing students with a transformative learning experience is paramount. To stick with the process will no doubt prove difficult, but it can shake loose ideas for thwarting the status quo. While most of the ideas will be unworkable, illogical, or even stupid, they may also lead some to say, “Why didn't I think of that?”