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Category: Problem Solving

How not to be replaced by Artificial Intelligence (AI)?

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Recently I received a text on my WhatsApp which made me laugh. It was to suggest AI do our laundry instead of taking care of our thinking and creative work. Jokes apart, it is one of the most valid fears in the current technological climate for far too many people and all businesses regardless of their size. A fear of being replaced by AI.

But despite it being the most common fear felt by various sectors including the creative taskforces such as writers, thinkers, product designers etc, some AI leaders and behaviour scientists don’t seem too worried. They insist some aspects AI can’t take away from humankind and one of them is human creativity.

In one of the podcasts published by Harvard Business Review, hosted by Alison Beard with the authors of Tomorrowland, they argued that the human mind is incredibly complex and has an ability to be uniquely creative which cannot possibly be ever replaced by Artificial Intelligence.  Gabriella Rosen Kellerman, who is a physicist and chief product innovation officer and Martin Seligman, a psychologist, and author of several books, discussed four ways an individual or an organisation can cultivate creativity in day-to-day life.

Integrative Approach

One of the most popular moves people make when they look for creative solutions to a known or unknown problem by thinking of the integration of seemingly different things in one box. The idea is that things that don’t look similar might be the same. One of the prime examples is a smartphone, which combines a phone on the wall and, a camera that requires film and a record player all in a single device. This was unimaginable forty-something years ago.

Splitting Approach

It is the reverse of integrative, which is, that the things that look the same, may not necessarily be the same. One of the uses of this kind of creative approach can be seen in medicinal science. For instance, symptoms of smallpox can look the same but can cause both mild and deadly reactions depending on the causes. So their treatment will not be the same.

Figure Ground Reverse Approach

Figure Ground reversal is a remarkable approach. It is when certain solutions are invented by doing something unrelated. They helped shape some products such as GPS which was not meant to be GPS or SLACK which was supposed to be a video game for internal communication. This way of looking out for creative solutions comes from triggering a brain circuit that lights up when you are not looking for a solution but it is the same brain circuit that lights up when we are focused.

Distal Thinking Approach

This one requires time traveling in the future while keeping the feet in the present. Using divergent thinking to explore many possible solutions without the constraints of time, space, and any other limiting elements. Tesla’s self-driving cars are one of the examples of Distal thinking.

You can listen more why Artificial Intelligence is not a threat for creative thinkers or SMEs here: A Deeper Understanding of Creativity at Work (hbr.org)

Disruptive Innovation: Yay or Nay?

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In today’s fast-paced business world, the mantra for small and medium-sized enterprises and businesses (SMBs and SMEs) is clear: disrupt or be disrupted. But what exactly is disruptive innovation, and why does it matter so much?

Coined by Clayton Christensen in “The Innovator’s Dilemma,” disruptive innovation refers to a process where a smaller company with fewer resources successfully challenges established businesses. These innovations often start in low-end or new market footholds, initially underperforming established products in mainstream markets. However, they gain traction by offering more suitable functionality—often at a lower price—and eventually move upmarket to challenge industry leaders.

To understand disruptive innovation, it’s helpful to contrast it with sustaining innovation. While sustaining innovation improves existing products for current customers, disruptive innovation targets overlooked segments, often with lower initial quality but at a lower price point. It introduces new business models and carries higher risk, but with the potential for industry-wide change.

Some of the real-world examples abound; Netflix disrupted traditional video rental with its DVD-by-mail service and later streaming, transforming entertainment consumption. Airbnb created a new market for private accommodations, challenging the hotel industry. Tesla’s electric vehicles and direct-to-consumer model accelerated the shift to sustainable transportation. Uber’s ride-hailing app revolutionized urban transportation, disrupting the taxi industry.

So, how can SMEs foster disruptive innovation? Here are key strategies:

  1. Create a culture of experimentation, encouraging risk-taking and learning from failures.
  2. Focus on unmet customer needs through extensive market research and design thinking.
  3. Invest in emerging technologies and consider partnering with or acquiring promising startups.
  4. Prioritise long-term success over short-term profits; means sustainable business model and practices.
  5. Embrace open innovation by collaborating with external partners and diverse perspectives.

Innovation experts emphasise the importance of this approach. Clayton Christensen warns, “Disruptive innovation can hurt if you’re not the one doing the disrupting.” Steve Jobs asserted, “Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.” Jeff Bezos advocates for customer focus, allowing for more pioneering work. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings notes, “Companies rarely die from moving too fast, and they frequently die from moving too slowly.” Ignoring disruptive trends can result in loss of market share, obsolescence of core products, and declining revenue and profitability.

For those wanting to dive deeper, recommended reads include “The Innovator’s Dilemma” by Clayton Christensen, “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, and “The Lean Startup” by Eric Ries.

It’s important for us to realise that the change is constant and disruptive innovation isn’t just a buzzword—it’s a survival strategy. By understanding and embracing it, small and medium sized business leaders can stay ahead of the curve, create new markets, and drive meaningful progress. The choice is clear: disrupt or be disrupted. Do you agree?

 

Leading with Purpose and Authenticity

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Mastering your capacity to be the best business leader comes along with finding your purpose, being your authentic self, and most importantly, not worrying about what others think.

But living in a world where performance and competition are rewarded from a very tender age, it becomes increasingly challenging not to get affected by the opinions of others. So, when your concept of self is inherently built on the preoccupation of what others think of you, often individuals, who are leading a workforce of hundreds and thousands, get on an inauthentic, mediocre, and joyless road; a path that only takes one to ineffective leadership.

So, how do high-performance coaches help their clients achieve what otherwise seems incessantly difficult and how do Fortune 500 companies still thrive in high-stakes environments? Mindset-training.

In his book, Finding Mastery, Michael Gervais talks broadly about why training our minds is the most important step in designing, building and strengthening a self-concept that we think truly matters to us. Not to others, but to us.

He explains, that our mind is our constant companion, accompanying us wherever we go – to the pitching deck or the boardroom. It serves as the unifying thread, weaving together our feelings, thoughts, and ability to concentrate on the tasks at hand. Whether grappling with emotions due to losing clients or tackling an internal company conflict, our mind is the ever-present tool that guides us through. Here is how you can also train your mind to master any area of your life or your business. The three things it comes down to are,

Identifying the principles that matter most to you in your life. Be radically committed to it. Once you know what those are, hydrate them and keep them alive in your action.

Mental Training: The greatest trick you could play on your mind is to tell it what you want it to hear. Imagine it for it to manifest.

Deep focusing is what many neuroscientists and Yoga practitioners recommend, but it is another way of refocusing. Keep coming back to what your purpose is and bring the focus back to it. Every time you get side-tracked by life’s or business challenges, deep focus and realign your mindset and actions with core principles.

In the end, mastering leadership comes to tune into your signals and strategically refusing to entertain noise by others.

We explore more about leadership and Innovation in Help to Grow Management:

Help to Grow: Management Course | Kingston University (kingstonuniversitybusinesstraining.com)

Good Friction vs Bad Friction

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Friction.

The very sound of it says stop, re-evaluate, reimagine.

Like Yin and Yang, opposite but inter-connected forces, friction can disrupt and change the direction of a workflow, business-relationships, and balance sheets. Strong leaderships know how to spot it, when to use it and which one to use. But despite all the intended goodwill and a claimed good strategy, business leaders often overlook it and misuse it.

So, what really is a good friction?

How can you spot it?

How can you introduce it?

And last but importantly,

How can you use it to fix the potholes of low performance, disengaged teams or a bad sales month for instance?

Good friction is a deliberate intervention means to help your taskforces, your clients and your stakeholders move towards a happier work culture and stronger businesses. As soon you identify the gaps and disengagements in processes, you gently but firmly create a friction and make a space for changed systems to come alive. This might bring discomfort at first, but once you hit at the right spot, it creates ripples affect. For example, if delays are seen in a project delivery due to lengthy chain of bureaucracy.  Why don’t you enable easy, quick and autonomous pathway of decision making to have engaged, confident and happier workforce?

Think about the problem and ask yourself how I can help.

Now bad business leaders, use friction to exercise their authority, mask their incompetence or use it as a coping mechanism to hide from their own burning out and workload. Instead of incorporating agile processes, they use complex ones; instead of enabling an agency of working well and feeling good to have well-built clientele and a sturdy business, they insist on deploying rigid and tiresome processes.

Choose your friction wisely and choose it empathetically.