A few nights ago I was watching an episode of the excellent quiz show QI (hosted by OD’s favourite celebrity Tweeter Stephen Fry) when a common myth was shattered. It turns out you can fit a square peg into a round hole. No hammer required.Let me explain:
Stephen showed the audience a special shape. It’s made by taking a cylinder that’s as tall as it is wide and removing two equal wedges. It’s difficult to describe in words, but you can see a 3D image here (be sure to click the ‘3D image’ tab).
The amazing thing about this shape is that depending on how it’s oriented, it can slot perfectly into these 3 very differently shaped holes:
“So what’s this got to do with Organic Development?” I hear you cry. Well, it’s a really good demonstration of some of the most important elements of our CAN-do philosophy (see the first and second parts of our philosophy post if you haven’t already).
1. You can solve any problem with a CAN-do approach
The square, triangular and circular holes are a bit like like the problems in business and life in general. At first glance, there seems to be only one solution to each problem - and it certainly seems impossible to fit a square peg in the round hole.
However, if you think a little differently, you can ALWAYS find a RANGE of solutions.
2. Think differently
To solve the problem of fitting a square peg into a round hole (a 2D puzzle), you need a 3D solution. Indeed, the shape I described earlier is just such a solution: you can rotate it to fit a square hole as well as a round one. This is an example of a ‘CAN-do’ approach which makes seemingly impossible tasks easy to solve.
At Organic Development we try to think about every problem in 3 dimensions rather than 2. By using digital tools and a little grey matter we can solve business problems in unique, innovative and often elegant ways.
3. Keep trying!
Unfortunately it’s not possible to find the right solution first time, every time. Sometimes your first idea doesn’t quite fit.
The trick is keep trying, think differently and don’t give up.
This is an important part of the Organic Development CAN-do philosophy. When we approach a new project, we focus on what we CAN do rather than what on what we can’t do. In other words, we explore the possibilities before considering the limitations. More often than not, that means trying things out, throwing them away, then trying something else. Failures are inevitable bumps on the road to success. Don’t stop just because the journey is longer than you expected!
4. No such thing as "can't"
‘Can’t’ simply doesn’t enter the Organic Development vocabulary, and it shouldn’t feature in your vocabulary either.
Adopting a CAN-do approach in your business lets you solve problems that seem impossible at first. It’s the approach we take to every problem we encounter, and it’s something you can do as well. Once you get used to this way of thinking, you’ll see that fitting square pegs into round holes is much easier than it sounds.
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