How To Think Differently: The Smartcuts Framework

By definition, it's easy to think of obvious ideas.

Obvious ideas are the ones that are adjacent to what we're already thinking. They might be new, but they're within reach.

Non-obvious ideas are harder to reach.

Many of the most important problems in our work and lives fall in the category of "non-obvious" problems. If the solutions were easy, we wouldn't have a problem.

Here's what I believe:

Innovation means thinking differently

It's about coming up with non-obvious solutions to problems.

But here's where the real question comes in.

How can we think differently than we currently think?

Or perhaps better put:

How can we bridge the gap between the obvious and the genius?

That's what my years-long quest to understand lateral thinking is about.

And it's the topic that I dig into here in Episode 1 of my Smartcuts Mini-Series with Innovation & Leadership podcast host Jess Larsen:

Find the rest of the Thinking Different / Smartcuts series here »