No absolutism please

I like Albert’s quote.

Yep I agree. There is often not enough people contributing and I think the way a company goes about brainstorming, debating can help or hinder the idea generation process.

In our office we agreed that the goal is not to use absolutes (ie absolutely, totally, definitively, no doubt, undeniable etc, etc) especially when ideas are being debated, and any of us do get challenged on it, that we just put our hand up and simply rephrase using words that are less than 100%. (ie I think, believe, to me, as far as I’m concerned etc).

For many, that might sound like semantics (especially to those who use the word ‘absolutely’ in nearly every sentence), but to us we find it helps reduce the power gaps and encourages debate and, ultimately, innovation.