Babies are born with superhero senses. Do they know it? No, but the evolutionary speed of learning, adapting and soaking in an abundance of daily sensory layers and how fast this is processed into multiple insights about their new world, should leave us all curious and in awe. In fact, this is precisely what happened when Paul Bloom (Professor of Psychology at Yale) observed a series of coincidences of newborn babies crying when they see other babies crying. It is through his curiosity and the multitude of brick road questions and answers which followed, that he was met with a fascinating insight about human empathy and its existence in newborns.
This is one mere one example of how various touchpoints in our life (which go seemingly unnoticed) can provide a roadmap and flashlight to valuable insight into business, problem solving, human interaction and strategy once we are alive to the power it holds.
In the book “Seeing what others don’t: Remarkable ways we gain insight.” by Gary Klein, he explores through his own application of the 5 now Identified ways to gain insights how we may apply these principles in life, mimicking what babies do intrinsically, to gain insight into our chosen subject:
Connections:
We can gain insight by connecting seemingly unrelated pieces of information. This can happen when we are presented with a new piece of information that forces us to reconsider our existing understanding of a problem. For example, if we are trying to solve a puzzle and we come across a new piece that doesn’t seem to fit with any of the other pieces, we may be forced to rethink our entire approach to the puzzle.
Coincidences:
We can also gain insight from coincidences. This happens when two or more unrelated events happen to occur at the same time, and these events lead us to a new understanding of a problem. For example, if we are trying to solve a mystery and we happen to overhear two people talking about something that is relevant to the mystery, this may give us a clue that we wouldn’t have otherwise found.
Curiosities:
This happens when we are intrigued by something and we want to learn more about it. This curiosity can lead us to ask questions that we wouldn’t have otherwise asked, and these questions can lead us to new insights. For example, if we are trying to solve a problem and we are curious about why something is happening, this curiosity may lead us to ask a question that helps us to understand the problem better.
Contradictions:
This happens when we come across two pieces of information that seem to contradict each other. This contradiction can force us to re-examine our understanding of the problem, and this re-examination can lead us to a new insight. For example, if we are trying to solve a mystery and we come across two pieces of evidence that seem to contradict each other, this contradiction may lead us to question our understanding of the mystery, and this questioning may lead us to a new insight.
Creative desperation:
This happens when we are so frustrated with a problem that we are willing to try anything, even if it seems crazy. This desperation can lead us to think outside the box and come up with new and creative solutions to problems. For example, if we are trying to solve a puzzle and we are stuck, we may be willing to try anything, even if it seems like a long shot. This desperation may lead us to come up with a new solution that we wouldn’t have otherwise thought of.
By being aware of these different ways, we can be more open to new ideas and solutions, and we can be more likely to solve problems that seem intractable.
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