Could a screwdriver do it?
Last week I offered you some tips and tools for risk management, let’s build some more tools this week.
When I was in high school, I was pretty good at opening beer bottles with all sorts of tools. People actually came to me for help.
I guess I picked it up from one of my heroes: MacGyver. One of the greatest series from the 90s. Do you remember him? This guy was a legend! He could get out of a buried coffin with a lighter and a paperclip or make a bomb with gum and a Bounty. If he was around today I am sure he could solve climate change with a pen and a hanger. Maybe Greta should give him a call!
Obviously, a bottle opener would generally be a better option than a coin or a lighter to open a beer bottle but you don’t always have one to hand!
When you go into a DIY shop (not that I am big DIY guy or assume you are but stay with me) you always have plethora of tools. Tons of screwdrivers, hammers, chisels, etc.. A screwdriver for this, another for that, for different types of heads, or with different kinds of grips.
Could I open a beer bottle with a screwdriver? Sure I could (I did)…
Can I use it to stir my coffee? Well, sure…
Could I maybe use it as a fork? Well…
This makes me think of an improvisation exercise where you use an object for anything BUT what it has been designed for. It’s designed to awaken your creativity. This is incredibly fun and great for the creative process: it is all about imagining and pretending!
Why would you do that in real life?
I wouldn’t dare to suggest that we limit our childlike playfulness and natural creativity (a topic worth diving in in the future) and to accept the status quo. There are countless example of breakthroughs that have come questioning the status quo. But “Is there a better way to do this?” is a different question.
A tool has a purpose. Then the question is “do I have the right tool for what I want to do, accomplish, have or be?”
We can ask ourselves this question about our website, our advanced degree, our office building, this meeting, that job description or the choice to work a nine-hour day. What’s it for? What’s the tool for?
I remember having this conversation with a friend who was talking about her desire to go back to uni to pursue a degree. Amazing! We need to celebrate life-long learning! But when I asked what this degree (as a tool) would be for, she could not articulate it. We discussed the topic. I made the analogy that it is better to go in a cave with a lamp and to the beach with sunscreen, rather than the opposite way around. She laughed.
I am not convinced that we always use the best tool at our disposal for the job ahead. Maybe…
We don’t know it – yet
It is too expensive – cost vs investment
We tried and didn’t like it – have you ever had a bad meal?
We are scared of change – changes always suck at first
We fear the unknown – from birth, everything is unknown
Whatever the reasons your tools do not have to be expensive or the same tools as the others are using. Your tool simply needs to do the job you need it to do better than any other alternative method. It needs to give you the outcome you want with minimal effort and friction. It needs to help you.
Back to my world-class beer opening skills, my closest friend was a master at opening beer bottles with his teeth. He was great at it, but we can all agree that teeth may not be the best tool…
QUESTION…
If time or money wasn’t an issue, what enablers (tools) could help you do the job better or faster?