Build a Tower, Build a Team
It makes sense that while MBA students may be trained to find the single right plan, children go through an iterative process of building prototypes and learning from each what works and what doesn't (Wujec, 2010). I know from watching my own children that they explore ideas and try to make them a reality. When it becomes a reality, they decide if it turned out the way they intended it to; if not, they try something else. In general, I agree with Wujec's (2010) explanation, however, I also feel it is not so black and white all the time. Depending on any given child in a group working together, they may get discouraged because they don't feel they have any good ideas to contribute. On the contrary, one child may feel only their ideas are good and try to take over hampering the team effort.
Personally, I think kids perform better than MBA students because they are more attuned to their creativity. Children don't necessarily know what's possible and what's not and therefore explores numerous options given their resources. Most children are also very good at asking for help in assisting in what they want to accomplish whereas adults may be less inclined to ask believing it is their job to do the work and no one else's. In addition, because children often play, they are apt to work through problem-solving as they discover something that either needs to be understood, changed, or created. My oldest daughter, as a school project, had to develop a cause and effect scenario, record how it works, and submit it for review. After an hour of collecting baskets, utensils, string, toys, and boxes, she had to work through multiple set-ups that included a pulley system that would eventually trap a rat. After many revisions, it worked - hypothetically (it was a toy rat). "Some research suggests that the way kids play contributes to their ability to solve divergent problems; a problem that yields itself to multiple solutions" (Dewar, 2014).
I believe CEOs are or can be, victims of their own successes. The more CEOs make decisions that help them problem-solve, the more their approach to problem-solving will remain the same as long as they see themselves as successful. With that said, an executive assistant may be that outside, objective perspective the CEOs need to get beyond their limited view on the problem. In addition, an executive assistant that has known the CEO for some time may understand how the CEO thinks, thus looks at the problem-set in such a way that provides a solution amenable to the CEO.
If I were to facilitate a process intervention with respect to Wujec's (2010) video content, I would pay close attention to the team's behavior; individual as well as between themselves. I would look for those that have taken a back seat or feel left out. I would approach them asking what they think makes the task so challenging and what ideas they had. I would also look for contention between the team members and distract them with some new ideas, or thoughts on how they can move forward. I may provide comments of encouragement and support to facilitate how they feel about their efforts. I would also ensure everyone understood exactly what the directions and the objectives were. Mostly, I would be observing and listening to their teamwork activities to follow their cohesiveness and effectiveness and offer quick injections of how they can better utilize their resources.
One of my favorite things to do is step out of a working group and assess it's behavioral and process activities for efficiency. Understanding that children improve their problem-solving skills through all types of play peaks my curiosity as to how I can implement a similar process amongst adults without actually giving them toys. Playing with brainstorming as an approach over just providing a task to problem-solve may be on par, or perhaps making a game out of it may also prove beneficial to the creative process.
References
Dewar, G. (2014). The cognitive behaviors of play; Effects on the learning brain. Retrieved from https://www.parentingscience.com/benefits-of-play.html
Wujec, Tom (2010, February). Build a tower, build a team. TED Talk. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/tom_wujec_build_a_tower_build_a_team#t-254391
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