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Oct 10 - Drop an Assumption
Drop an Assumption
October 10, 2006
"Folklore has it that explorer Christopher Columbus challenged some Spanish courtiers to stand an egg on end. They tried but were unable to keep it from rolling over. Columbus then hard-boiled the egg and squashed one end of it to create a base. Not fair, the courtiers protested. 'Don't be silly,' Columbus replied. 'You just assumed more than you needed to.'
Assumptions are one of the mind's great success stories. They allow us to anticipate what will happen in a variety of situations and prepare appropriately. If, for example, your boss has been grouchy the last nine Monday mornings, then you'll probably assume that this coming Monday morning isn't the ideal time to ask for a raise. The trouble with assumptions is that the past isn't always a reliable predictor of the future. The more assumptions we make, the more likely we are to see only what we expect to see, and the less likely we are to find the unexpected (von Oech, 2002, p. 32)."
Reference: von Oech, R. (2002). Expect the Unexpected (or you won't find it): a creativity tool based on the ancient wisdom of heraclitus. New York: The Free Press.
What are some of your assumptions?
Expect the Unexpected is available on loan from the Ohio State University Leadership Center. To borrow this resource or any other resource, please go to the resource search page http://164.107.48.88/winnebago/index.asp?lib=???
Learn how the Ohio State University Leadership Center is strengthening tomorrow's leaders today at http://leadershipcenter.osu.edu
Check this out!
The OSU Leadership Center's video "Beyond the Sidelines: Lessons in Leadership with Coach Jim Tressel" is now featured on Coach Tressel's official website.
http://www.coachtressel.com/why_ohio_state/whyohiostate_map.html
Click on the leadership icon to view the video.
Created: 2008-04-01, Updated: 2009-04-10
