David Goldsmith - Acquiring New Knowledge: Paid to Think

What you should know about your Paid to THINK Single

Here are a couple of tips you should know now about the Paid to THINK Single. The Paid to THINK Single is being offered to decision makers as an educational tool, designed from a long history of people seeking to use portions of content in their quests to do their jobs better. Over the years, countless leaders have received and utilized single chapters from Paid to THINK effectively to solve certain challenges and create opportunities, and now they are available to you, too.

Although each Paid to THINK Single stands on its own as a proven educational resource, be aware that within the content of certain Paid to THINK Single books, you may come across references to other Paid to THINK Singles or to the full edition of Paid to THINK. In these instances, you may want a full edition of Paid to THINK on hand to clarify terminology and concepts not fully described in this particular Paid to THINK Single.

Regardless, leaders and managers have used Paid to THINK Singles as cost-effective means of sharing information with other leaders and/or stakeholders. For instance, if you want to get six managers and 34 group members up to speed on a particular topic rapidly, you dont have to purchase 40 copies of Paid to THINK and ask everyone to read only one chapter within the larger book. Instead, you can economically teach your people by simply securing six copies of Paid to THINK for your leadership team and 34 copies of a Paid to THINK Single and achieve the same outcome!

Paid to THINK Singles offer additional value to people working in NGOs (non-governmental organizations), NPOs (non-profit organizations), and in emerging markets where the need for leadership information is great but where budgets may not be ample enough to cover pricey educational tools and methods. Luckily, Paid to THINK Single gives more people the opportunity to learn and develop..

Paid to THINK Singles make great gifts, and theyre convenient for those who dont want a full book. Whatever your purpose in choosing a Paid to THINK Single, youll find it to be an economical and easy way to learn.

This book is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information about business and leadership. Neither the author nor the publisher is engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services, by publishing this book. If any such assistance is required, the services of a qualified financial professional should be sought. The author and publisher will not be responsible for any liability, loss, or risk incurred as a result of the use and application of any information contained in this book.

This book contained single-subject material from the book Paid to THINK. Content within this Paid to THINK Single, therefore, does not necessarily cover all the terminology or descriptive material referenced within that pertains to the comprehensive resource Paid to THINK.

Copyright 2012 by David Goldsmith

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

BenBella Books, Inc.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available for this title.

978-1-937856-49-6

Editing by Lorrie Goldsmith

Copyediting by Shannon Kelly

Proofreading by Cape Cod Compositors, Inc. and Rainbow Graphics

Indexing by Barbara Holloway, WordCo Indexing Services, Inc.

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LIKE MOST LEADERS, YOU CAN probably recall an incident of your own where you read a magazine article, attended a seminar, or watched an online video and thought, We should do that, but then, despite your enthusiasm and best efforts, you couldnt turn that idea into the outcomes you wanted. Chances are you have since thought back on these disappointments trying to figure out what went wrong. Wonder no more, because its likely youll find the answer youve been looking for right here in this chapter.

Oftentimes, we think we know something when in reality, were only aware of it. Substituting awareness for knowledge is one of the reasons that you get frustrated with yourself or your staff when your ideas dont go anywhere. Its also the reason why seemingly well-thought-out plans veer off course or dont deliver the returns you expect. While awareness has its merits, sometimes the missing ingredient that hinders progress isnt a tactical plan, time, or money; its in-depth knowledge.

Consider awareness to be a first level of learning, where youre using your five senses to gain an initial understanding of a situation. Awareness helps you identify challenges and opportunities, and it gives you a scope of options to address the various situations you face on a daily basis anywhere within your life. Awareness is abundant, because it comes from a variety of sources that are all around us every day. As trends in technology and communications indicate, we will continue to be flooded by this information overload that increases awareness, but that doesnt necessarily mean we will accumulate greater knowledge, a distinction that all leaders need to make. Over time, as you gather more information, connect dots, use Cyclonic Thinking, and do additional research, some of your awareness undergoes a conversion to knowledge, making it usable in different ways.

Knowledge, on the other hand, is an in-depth comprehension of subject matter, and generally an important element to making change happen. Without some in-depth knowledge, much of the information youve accumulated at the awareness level remains unusable.

Say that you manage a public works crew responsible for your citys snow-plowing services. Being aware of the five-day weather forecast helps you anticipate your crews work schedule and better serve the public. If youre on your way to the airport, being aware of local road conditions helps you plan an alternative route around a construction zone to catch your flight on time. When a hurricane threatens your home town, being aware of evacuation instructions or shelter locations can save your life. Awareness is important.

But awareness is not a substitute for in-depth knowledge. I would not want someone who is aware of heart surgery to perform such a procedure on me. Nor would you want someone who is merely aware of gas lines to hook up a gas range in your kitchen. Outside of the office, the difference between awareness and knowledge seems obvious, but when leaders face challenges on the job, many of them try to address complex issues with little more than awareness-level solutions. And that could be one of the reasons why your past attempts to convert thoughts to reality have failed.

Attempting to use these two levels of thinking interchangeably is like trying to fix a flat tire with a circular saw. If you want to achieve Desired Outcomes, you have to select the right tool for the job. I have found that most leaders spend the majority of their learning time building awareness, all the while assuming they are building knowledge. As a result, too many of them dont have enough in-depth knowledge to make the kinds of transformational improvements to their organizations that they might need.