ALIEN Thinking

Key idea 1

Tackle problems with a new perspective.

India was grappling with a challenging problem that ultimately boiled down to numbers. The country was depleting its groundwater at an unsustainable rate. But where exactly was all this water going? And how was it being used? These were the questions Narayana Peesapaty set out to answer.

The answer turned out to be straightforward. Due to government subsidies, Indian farmers paid almost nothing for electricity, which meant they had little incentive to turn off their water pumps. More water resulted in higher rice yields, and since water was inexpensive, there was little motivation to conserve it.

What could be done to address the groundwater shortage? How could Peesapaty tackle this persistent issue?

The main takeaway is this: Tackle problems with a fresh perspective.

Peesapaty approached the issue from a different angle, realizing that farmers were consuming large amounts of water primarily because it boosted their rice yields.

Most people would have pushed the government to encourage less water-intensive crops like millet, but not Peesapaty. He understood that the market had caused this problem, and he was committed to using the market to fix it.

After nine years, Peesapaty discovered how to transform millet into edible cutlery that could be consumed after a meal. Rather than merely encouraging farmers to switch from rice to millet, he created a market-driven incentive by developing a new, sellable product.

What set Peesapaty’s approach apart was the originality of his perspective. So, how can the rest of us, whose insights may be clouded by routine meetings and daily tasks, develop the ability to view existing problems with a fresh, renewed perspective?

There are several strategies to consider. One key approach is to examine the problem from various perspectives. Peesapaty, for instance, only gained a complete understanding of India’s water and rice issues by traveling extensively, engaging with farmers, and learning about their challenges.

In a well-established company rather than a start-up, this could involve focusing on your most innovative and adventurous customers. For example, IKEA’s designers, motivated by their inventive and passionate customers, frequently participate in furniture hackathons to develop new and improved products from existing items.

The insights they gain from these sessions play a crucial role in the new perspectives they bring to IKEA’s products each season.

Key idea 2

Distancing yourself from a problem enables you to view it from a fresh angle.

In 2006, Dr. Mathias Döpfner, CEO of the German media giant Axel Springer, unveiled an ambitious plan for the company: he aimed for digital revenue to comprise more than 50 percent of the firm’s total revenue within ten years.

At the time, this goal appeared quite unrealistic, as digital sales represented only a small percentage of Axel Springer’s total revenue. Many were understandably doubtful about Döpfner’s ambitions, and there was little enthusiasm.

By 2012, six years later, senior management was still entrenched in their traditional mindset. What steps could be taken? How could Döpfner motivate executives and managers to adopt his perspective?

Here’s the main point: Distance from a problem helps you view it from a fresh perspective.

Döpfner opted for an unconventional solution. Rather than merely giving senior management a lecture, threatening their compensation, or hiring replacements, he decided on a completely different approach: he sent his top executives on a trip to California.

In Silicon Valley, Döpfner organized for his selected team to network with influential figures in emerging industries, aiming to ignite their enthusiasm and adaptability. His gamble proved successful. The trip was so effective that it became a recurring event for the company’s senior leaders. Additionally, Döpfner arranged a major, somewhat unconventional company trip to San Francisco to further challenge and expand employees’ thinking.

It may seem unconventional, but the effectiveness of this strategy was evident. Within a decade, digital revenue accounted for 60 percent of Axel Springer’s total revenues and profits. So, what can we learn from this? While we can’t all travel to California whenever we need inspiration, we can take advantage of strategically timed and thoughtfully planned breaks to shift our usual perspectives and foster innovation.

This doesn’t require anything more than making the most of the reflection time that your schedule already provides. If you have 30 minutes of quiet during your morning commute, use that time to ponder an issue you wouldn’t typically consider in that setting—you might be surprised by the insights you gain.

Key idea 3

Reconnect with the power of your imagination and unlock your creativity.

As children, we were brimming with imagination. We spent hours in our backyards pretending to be astronauts, firefighters, parents, doctors, and nurses. However, as we went through school, rote memorization took precedence over creativity and imaginative thinking, causing our ability to imagine to diminish over time.

We were taught that imagination was juvenile and insignificant, leading us to focus on other matters. Now, we are facing the consequences. This was the situation for the Scandinavian paper giant Stora Enso in 2011. With the rise of online media impacting print, the company struggled to adjust to these new conditions. They needed to conceive of innovative and exciting new ventures, but the company was at a loss.

The main takeaway is this: Reconnect with the power of your imagination to unlock your creativity.

Jouko Karvinen, the CEO at the time, recognized that the company’s thinking had become stagnant. The boardroom was too uniform and outdated; they needed fresh ideas and new perspectives on the future. In essence, they needed imagination.

So, what were their options? Karvinen reached out to the authors, and they concluded that the company’s senior management had depleted its creative potential. To revitalize their imagination, they needed to bring in new talent—they needed to harness the Medici Effect.

The Medici Effect, a term created by author and entrepreneur Frans Johansson, refers to how ideas flourish when diverse and brilliant minds come together. The Medici family, a wealthy and cultured noble house in Renaissance Italy, significantly influenced the arts and sciences through their patronage, contributing to a period of extraordinary creativity. Similarly, under the right conditions, organizations can experience a similar burst of innovation.

That’s why Stora Enso launched their Pathfinder program. They assembled an exceptionally diverse team from various levels within the company and sent them on a six-week journey to destinations such as China, India, Latin America, and the US. The team was instructed to return not with PowerPoint presentations but with groundbreaking ideas. Remarkably, they achieved this goal.

The Pathfinder team urged company leaders to focus heavily on sustainability as a crucial growth area, and their visionary recommendations have proven to be forward-thinking. Today, Stora Enso has transformed from a traditional paper-making company into a global leader in renewable materials. By uniting diverse and energized minds, this once outdated organization found a renewed sense of purpose.

Key idea 4

Experimentation is essential for generating groundbreaking ideas.

If you’ve ever traveled by train across France, you’ve likely used SNCF, the major company that manages the country’s railways. However, this dominance doesn’t allow for complacency. In fact, in 2014, SNCF was dealing with a challenging situation.

In summary, the train services provided to travelers had become uncompetitive. Viewed as expensive and outdated, the railway company was losing many customers to budget airlines, intercity buses, and even carpooling. The future of France’s railways appeared to be in jeopardy.

At this juncture, SNCF contacted the authors. They recognized the need for change but were uncertain about where to start. How could they go about reversing their decline?

The main takeaway is that experimentation is crucial for creating groundbreaking ideas.

SNCF’s biggest issue was its sluggishness and inefficiency, which hindered its ability to swiftly address market challenges and opportunities. The company had also lost both the motivation and capacity to innovate, having ceased all experimentation.

To address the issue, the authors organized a two-day event for the top 650 executives, focusing solely on fostering new, experimental ideas. Following this, the executives received feedback from their peers and had six months to develop and refine these ideas into formal proposals.

The primary goal of the event wasn’t to produce numerous new ideas but to cultivate a culture of experimentation within a company that urgently needed it. And it succeeded.

One innovative concept that emerged was TGV Max, a service modeled after the unlimited data plans provided by mobile phone companies. For a monthly fee of €79, young people could enjoy unlimited off-peak travel on high-speed trains.

So, what’s the key takeaway? Embrace experimentation. Generate as many ideas and hypothetical plans as possible and evaluate them all. However, after consulting with customers, experts, and examining the facts, be prepared to discard any ideas that don’t hold up.

Key idea 5

Innovative ideas always require safeguarding.

It’s tempting to think that coming up with a great idea is all you need to achieve success. You might envision sitting down with pen and paper, brainstorming, having a breakthrough moment, and suddenly becoming an overnight success. However, in reality, things rarely unfold that smoothly.

Ideas are fragile and often as bold as they are delicate. You can’t simply introduce an idea to the world without safeguarding it—without protection from criticism or strong support—and expect it to thrive on its own. You must ensure it has a fair chance of being taken seriously.

The main point is this: Innovative ideas always require protection.

When Bracken Darrell became the CEO of Logitech, he was acutely aware of the obstacles that new ideas face within established companies. He made it his mission to dismantle these barriers entirely.

He referred to one of these challenges as “the pull of organizational gravity.” This term describes the internal force within a company that prevents new ideas from taking off, representing the strength of maintaining the status quo.

To counteract this restrictive force, Darrell divided the company into 27 smaller business units, each designed like a start-up. In large, impersonal companies, ideas often struggle to gain traction, but the start-up model fosters creativity, innovation, and proactive thinking.

Additionally, Darrell made a concerted effort to listen to the ideas of innovators and disruptors. Organizational inertia often stems from employees’ belief that their suggestions will be disregarded. However, at Logitech, Darrell has fostered a culture where employees can be confident that their creative ideas will be heard. Rather than obstructing innovation, Logitech has created an environment that welcomes and encourages it.

If you’re not fortunate enough to be in a supportive environment, there are still strategies you can use to increase the likelihood of your proposals gaining broad acceptance. One effective approach is to highlight how your idea connects with the organization’s history, current goals, and values. By doing this, you can present a groundbreaking idea as something deeply aligned with the company’s established identity.

Key idea 6

Apply the ALIEN techniques together to consistently come up with great ideas.

We’ve discussed several methods for generating and implementing creative ideas, and when combined, these strategies form the ALIEN technique.

Why the name ALIEN? It’s an acronym. A stands for Attention—seeing the world with a fresh perspective; L represents Levitation—detaching yourself from a situation and re-evaluating it from a new angle; I stands for Imagination—envisioning future possibilities based on the present circumstances.

Experimentation provides the E; and N stands for Navigation—guiding your valuable ideas through a sometimes indifferent environment. We’ve explored these techniques individually, but do they function effectively when combined?

The main takeaway is to apply the ALIEN techniques together to consistently create exceptional ideas.

The ALIEN framework isn’t a miracle solution, but it provides a set of tools for generating innovative ideas in any context. While not every new idea will change the world, regularly using the techniques we’ve discussed will lead to an increased quantity and improved quality of your ideas over time.

It’s important to remember that each component of the ALIEN method is intended to help you break free from existing biases and limited thinking. The objective isn’t to access a mystical realm where brilliant ideas are readily available; rather, it’s to help you reclaim and utilize the creative abilities you already have but may have overlooked in favor of simpler, more conventional thinking.

You may encounter internal resistance or even fear when attempting to disrupt your usual patterns of thought. This is normal. If you’re anxious about failing, you can use that energy to identify and address any potential weaknesses in your idea.

The key is to harness your fear. Rather than allowing it to stop you from pursuing your ideas, use it to refine and improve your plans. Turn any anxiety or apprehension into a valuable asset rather than a hindrance.

Final Overview

The main takeaway from this book is that you don’t need to wait for inspiration to hit. By applying the ALIEN technique, you can break free from your usual thought patterns, overcome your blind spots, and make generating great ideas become a natural part of your process.

Practical advice: Utilize technology and data to address and overcome your biases.

Our biases can hinder our ability to recognize problems, come up with solutions, and effectively implement great ideas. One method to overcome these blind spots is to distance yourself from the situation. This can be achieved by using objective data and technology to develop hypotheses and test your assumptions. It’s more advantageous to discover discrepancies early on, when the data doesn’t align, rather than finding out months or years later.