1. Then vs. Now
We live in a dynamic world. Technology has brought about incredible changes. Things such as mobile computing, instant communication and key-hole surgery may have seemed impossible before, but are now commonplace. Skills that were considered special and advantageous 30 years ago have now become standard (e.g. typing on a keyboard!). A whole new branch of careers has emerged, including titles such as Lean Agile Engineer, Scrum Master, Growth Hacker, etc. Other jobs that were popular in the 1980’s, such as Switchboard Operator, Keypunch Operator, Typesetter, etc., have become almost redundant due to advances in technology.
The world is not going to slow down. In another 30 years, the job market will look completely different again. Technology will continue to push advances that will make human-based jobs unnecessary, or inefficient. Therefore, we must be prepared. Whether you work a more traditional 9 – 5, or have found your living via the “gig economy”, or you’re a CEO of an up-and-coming startup, developing your skills and developing your approach to problems is necessary to stay ahead.
We can no longer rely on “scripts” or A-Z contingency plans to solve problems. There are just too many complex problems and situations to have a complete answer for. As Mike Tyson says, “everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth”. Therefore, we must learn to adapt to any circumstance.
2. What is adaptability?
Adaptability is being able to change your response when new circumstances arise. While it is impossible to have the answer for every question, we can create a toolkit of strategic tools, which we can implement where required. In the words of Ryan Holiday, “a trained mind is better than any script”
“Tell me what to do!” is a question often asked when we get stuck on a problem; however, does asking this train you how to think for yourself? Of course not. We must train our minds to adapt to any circumstance. Sometimes there will be situations where we genuinely won’t know the answer. For example, a calculus question that’s defeated us or a coding problem where we’ve spent hours tearing our hair out. But in general, we can use a strategic mindset to solve problems.
3. Create a strategic toolkit
Rather than seek instruction for every occurrence, train yourself in the following:
- Independence
- Self-confidence
- Imagination
- Originality
- Problem solving
- Critical thinking
- Resourcefulness
While this list is not exhaustive, here are some questions to ask yourself to prompt development in each of these areas in particular:
3.1 Independence & Self-confidence
- Do you really need to email your manager asking for permission to try something? If it won’t have major negative effects, try it and see what happens.
- Your favourite band is in town for one night only and nobody wants to go see them with you. What’s stopping you from going alone?
- What’s the worst thing that could happen if you take a chance on a decision?
- What assumptions are you making about yourself that are holding you back?
- Can you “fake it ’til you make it”?
3.2 Imagination & Originality
- Think about some big problems the world faces (e.g. homelessness, climate change, traffic). How would YOU solve them? Get as creative as you can. Think outside the box. Now filter down to problems you face in your job/life. How can YOU solve them?
- What approach do you bring to the table?
- What disadvantage can you turn into an advantage? What obstacle can you turn into opportunity?
- What would you do differently than everybody else?
3.3 Problem solving & Critical Thinking
- Have you truly defined the problem?
- Do you really understand the problem? In the words of Einstein, “if I had 1 hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions”.
- Can you explain the problem to somebody who doesn’t know anything about the area?
- What data do you have to help demonstrate the problem?
- What knowledge do you already have that you can apply to the problem?
3.4 Resourcefulness
- You don’t have X but you have Y. Use what you have. Ask yourself, “What can I make/do RIGHT NOW with what I’ve got?”
- Do you really need a huge budget to get started, or could you use a cost-efficient prototype to get you off the ground?
- Who do you know who might know something about the issue you’re tackling? Maybe a relation or an old peer knows something?
- What free software exists that you can use to get started?
4. Conclusion
To summarise how to be adaptive in a dynamic world, we must focus on creating a strategic toolkit. There are numerous ways to improve your strategic toolkit and the list mentioned in Part 3 is not exhaustive. The point is, we should be developing our ways of thinking instead of focusing on creating scripts for specific solutions for one-time problems. The bigger our toolkit, the more adaptive we can be, and the more adaptive we can be, the more likely we are to succeed and create great solutions.