If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten ...

"If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten"

Storyline: From the article Challenging the Rules from the book A Whack on the Side of the Head by Roger von Oech.

When faced with a seemingly intractable problem, a very effective creative thinking strategy is to play the revolutionary, and challenge the rules.

In the winter of 333 B.C., the Macedonian general Alexander and his army arrived in the Asian city of Gordium to take up winter quarters. While there, Alexander heard about the legend surrounding the town’s famous knot, the “Gordian Knot.” A prophecy states that whoever is able to untie this strangely complicated knot will become the king of Asia.

The story intrigued Alexander, and he asked to be taken to the knot so that he could attempt to untie it. He studied it for a bit, but after some fruitless attempts to find the rope ends, he was stymied. “How can I unfasten this knot?” he asked himself. Then he got an idea: “I will make up my own knot-untying rules.” He pulled out his sword and sliced the knot in half. Asia was fated to him.

Reflection:

If constructive patterns were all that were necessary for creative new ideas, we’d all be creative geniuses. Creative thinking is not only constructive, it’s also destructive. Creative thinking involves  breaking out of one pattern in order to create a new one. 

All too often, we become ensnared by the familiar phenomenon:

1. We make rules based on the reasons that they make a lot of sense.
2. We follow these rules.
3. Time passes and things change.
4. The original reasons for the rules may no longer exist, but because the rules are still in place, we continue to follow them.

So what knots can you untie today?

Comments

[Samuel Patrick]

Interesting part of this story is that there were many people before Alexander who had tried fruitlessly to untie the knot in traditional way by trying to find it's end. Alexander was called Aleaxander the Great because he thought diffrently and had courage to act that way.

[Kuldip]

Yes, this is the type of decisive and risk taking leadership that many organizations need. What is the ultmiate objective vs getting bogged down in following traditions. In my company, we recently discovered that we were following a rule that was established by a former director in mid 80s. It was no longer benefical but no body had bothered to question and blindly following until our New Vive President cut the cord.

[Bhasker Patel]

This is excellent.

[CT]

Hi In this era, the statement could be "If you do what you have always done, you will get LESS THAN what you have always gotten." While we stand still, others could have overtaken us.

[Douglas Monen]

Does anyone have all the words to the poem listed? If you always do what you've always done then you'll always get what you always got, if you always get what you always got then you'll always be who you've always been. This is as far as I could get, I know theres more lines. can anyone help me?

[FridayReflections]

The quote "If you do what you've always done ... " is from Zig Ziglar. I think it's also in an Aerosmith song! Not sure about the original poem though. Thanks Douglas, I'll look it up.

[Lisa]

I was at a presentation last night where the COMPLETE quote from Socrates was used. I didn't write it down because I figured I could Google it. I'm still working on it and that's how I arrived here.

[Lisa anderson, Career and Life Coach]

I think it goes like this: If you always do what you've always done you'll always get what you've always gotten. If you always get what you've always gotten then you'll always be who you've always been. If always are who you've always been then you'll always think what you've always thought. If you always think what you've you've always thought then you'll you'll always feel what you've always felt. If you always feel what you've always felt then you always do what you've always done.