Non-positional Problem and Critical Thinking

1. Non-positional Thinking:
Thinking Beyond the Obvious
Today you’ll see
 that you don’t really know what you think you know
…and you’ll learn
 how to “see” what you’ve never been able to see
before
Shrink-Wrapped in Our Own Thinking:
Thinking That Transforms
Presented by
Ariane David, PhD
Senior Partner
The Veritas Group
Senior Lecturer
California State University, Northridge
ADavid@TheVeritasGroup.com
Non-positional Problem Solving
Leadership Burbank 2016
Leadership Burbank 2016
Ariane David, PhD
The VERITAS Group
Woodbury University
ADavid@TheVeritasGroup.com TheVeritasGroup.com ArianeDavid.com

2. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
The Life of Organizations
 The four principles of non-positional
thinking
 Non-positional problem solving and
decision making
 Critical listening and reading
Today we’ll focus on…

3. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Non-positional thinking is Based on
Four Principles

4. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Principles of Non-positionalThinking
and Intellectual Virtues
Uncertainty > intellectual humility
Curiosity > intellectual openness
Discernment > wisdom
Courage > commitment

5. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
The Science of the Brain
Why should we be uncertain?
A Quick History of the Thinking

6. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Max Wertheimer’s Stroboscope
The whole is more than the sum of the parts.

7. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Sir Frederick Bartlett
 The War of the Ghosts
 “Asian” mask *
 Schemas
Making Memory, Meaning, & Schemas

8. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Sir Frederick Bartlett

9. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Sir Frederick Bartlett
 The War of the Ghosts
 “Asian” mask *
 Schemas
Making Memory, Meaning, & Schemas

10. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Elizabeth Loftus
Eyewitness Testimony
Memory is affected by:
 Pre-existing knowledge
 Post-event information and language
What we remember might never have happened.

11. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Thinking: The Process
Perception, Emotions, Memory
The Neurobiology of Thinking

12. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Perception
 Millions of bits of information every minute; we can perceive
only a tiny number.
 We focus only on what is relevant, what moves us
emotionally NOW.
 Present perception is shaped by the past: based on what we
believe is so, not on what actually is so.
The Neurobiology of Thinking

13. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Emotions
 Body reactions to what’s happening
 Paired with every sensory impression as an
emotional tag at the moment of perception
 The pair become memory
 Purpose: rapid response
 Govern decision-making (myth of rational decision-making)
The Neurobiology of Thinking

14. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Memory
 NOT a video
 NOT stored complete anywhere in the brain.
 Neurons carry only the pattern code.
 “Memory Is a trick of timing”! (Antonio Damasio) like
the image on your TV screen.
The Neurobiology of Thinking

15. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
…thus
 Memories are a subjective and creative fabrications.
 Memories change every time we recall them. We can
never be certain our memories are accurate.
 Confidence doesn’t mean accuracy: memories can be
completely fabricated and seem absolutely real.

16. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Organizing Patterns
 Organizing patterns: templates that allow us to organize
everything; are constructed out of our beliefs about the world
(similar to Bartlett’s schemas).
 We start making them at birth; the first are the most persistent,
resilient, and powerful.
 All future organizing patterns are formed within the first.
 The totality of all our organizing patterns creates our constructed
universe – the only reality we know.
A working model of the brain.

17. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 No impartial evidence needed.
 What we perceive is taken as proof that our
position/beliefs are right.
 Organizing patterns (beliefs) dictate what we see, what
we see reinforces the organizing patterns.
Organizing Patterns
Reinforce themselves.

18. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Examples of Simple Organizing
Patterns
Organizing Patterns

19. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Organizing Patterns

20. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Organizing Patterns

21. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
View from Apollo 17

22. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Organizing Patterns

23. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Organizing Patterns

24. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
…and my favorite
“Sensible and responsible women do not want to vote.”
– Grover Cleveland, US President 1905
Say WHAT?

25. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 We each live in a universe of our own making.
 Its organizing patterns and logic are perfect for physical
survival but tend to hamper good thinking.
Why is it important to know this?

26. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Challenges to Good Thinking
 Tyranny of Knowledge
 Tyranny of Emotion
 Tyranny of Logic

27. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 What is logic?
 What determines if something is logical?
 Can anything be illogical?
Tyranny of Logic

28. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Example: Zero Sum Illusion
 Believing that only one position can be right – if I am right
then you must be wrong
 Believing that there is a limited number of solutions
How many “accurate” points of view can there actually
be on any given issue?
Tyranny of Logic

29. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Tyranny of Logic

30. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Tyranny of Logic

31. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Tyranny of Logic

32. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Tyranny of Logic

33. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Nothing is … either/or
It’s always … both/and
Non-positional Thinking in a Box
In complex situations…

34. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Principles of Non-positionalThinking
and Intellectual Virtues
Uncertainty > intellectual humility
Curiosity > intellectual openness
Discernment > wisdom
Courage > commitment

35. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Uncertainty Principle
 Uncertainty: realizing our constructed universe is not the world, just a
good-enough representation of it that allows us to survive(ish).
 Certainty that our constructed universe is the world leads to almost
all of the world’s problems.
Uncertainty doesn’t mean being paralyzed by doubt,
but rather being aware of the fallibility of our knowledge.

36. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 hold in our minds that our knowledge, beliefs and assumptions
are fallible.
 doubt constructively, with the intention of learning.
 realize that our beliefs cannot tell us with certainty anything
about the world.
 keep ALL conclusions, no matter how excellent, open to scrutiny.
The Ability To:
Uncertainty Principle

37. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
The uncertainty principle makes us realize that we can’t be
certain what color the ball actually is no matter how
obvious it seems.
The curiosity principle makes us want to find out.
Uncertainty Principle

38. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 Means we are eager to discover what we don’t
know, and…
 That we are determined to see the merit in others’
points of view.
 Leads to the impartial gathering of relevant
information.
Curiosity Principle

39. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 Enthusiastically and impartially gather information.
 Be open-minded with respect to the assertions of others and
questioning of our own beliefs.
 Honestly ask, “What is it that I am not seeing the seeing of which
might change everything?”
 Honestly answer, “Do I really want to know?”
Curiosity Principle
The Ability To:

40. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 The desire to weigh evidence impartially, without favoring
confirming evidence.
 Recognizing/questioning our own assumptions and
biases, and seeking to go beyond them.
 Judging the merits of others’ points of view by the same
standards we use to judge our own.
Discernment Principle
Wisdom

41. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 Be truthful with ourselves, and weigh information fairly.
 Recognize when information is factual, provable, anecdotal,
or opinion.
 Assess the credibility of the all sources.
 Identify and question all assumptions including our own.
 Seek an impartial solution.
Discernment Principle
The Ability To:

42. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 Means being determined to move beyond our own point of view,
even in the face of our own fear, and
 Having the courage to acknowledge and act on those discoveries,
and being willing to change our dearly held position, and
 Having tolerance for differing, even opposing, points of view.
Commitment Principle
Courage: The Overarching Principle

43. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 be open to new evidence even if it conflicts with our beliefs;
have courage to acknowledge it.
 discard inadequate hypotheses no matter how dear to us
 adapt oneself to new facts.
 persevere even when it’s uncomfortable.
 operate in a demonstrably fair and tolerant way.
Commitment Principle
The Ability To:

44. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Individual Breakout
5 minutes
Written:
Briefly describe an ongoing/recurring problem at work.
What do people/you think the problem is?

45. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Non-positional Problem Solving and Decision
Making
The Myth of Rational Problem Solving and Decision Making

46. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
There’s one thing, and ONLY one thing that keeps
a complex problem in place:
How we THINK about it.

47. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
The Bridge Bat Problem

48. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Bridge-Bats Bind

49. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Bridge-Bats Bind

50. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 What is the issue or problem?
 What are the decision criteria?
 How important are each of those criteria?
 What are possible solutions?
 What are pros and cons of each solution?
 What is the best solution?
How we usually solve problems:
Rational Problem Solving Method
Bridge-Bats Bind

51. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 Faulty assumptions
 Problem clarity
 All relevant options are known
 Preferences are clear and unchanging
 Maximum payoff is unambiguous and known
 Emotions play not part
 Doesn’t work for a complex problem; never has!
The Problem with Rational Problem Solving
Bridge-Bats Bind

52. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Non-positional Problem Solving

53. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 Beneath every apparent problem is a hard to see condition that fosters the
problem.
 Discovering the actual condition/problem is the most important part of
finding the solution!
 The actual condition/problem involves people and how they think about the
problem, including their attitudes, beliefs, and feelings about the problem.
 Solving only the apparent problem (the symptom) leads to worse problems.
Foundations of non-positional problem solving
Non-positional Problem Solving

54. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Challenges to Good Thinking
 Tyranny of Knowledge
 Tyranny of Emotion
 Tyranny of Logic
The Tyrant Brain

55. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Principles of Non-positional Thinking
and Intellectual Virtues
Uncertainty > intellectual humility
Curiosity > intellectual openness
Discernment > wisdom
Courage > commitment

56. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 What do people/I think the problem is?
 What are the factual issues (technical; human dynamics)?
 How are we thinking about the problem?
 What information is there?
 How does the system operate?
 What will we do to remedy the problem?
Process of non-positional problem solving
Non-positional Problem Solving

57. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 Design a plan that fits the actual issue
 Examine the consequences of the plan on a
systemic level
 Decide on measures that measure what counts not
what’s easy to measure
Non-positional Solutions
Finally…

58. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Group Breakout
(teams of 3)
15 minutes
• Finish filling in your worksheet
• Each person will take 2 minutes to share their results

59. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Solving the Bridge Bat Problem

60. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Bat Facts
 500,000 bats eat 10,000 pounds of bugs a day.
 Bats are no more prone to rabies than squirrels or chipmunks.
 No cases of rabid bats were reported in the area.
 The four reported bat bites did not break the skin.
 All cases involved people trying to handle or interfere with bats.
This information was readily available at the time:

61. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Bridge Bats
What do you think the real problem is?

62. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Austin Bats Create an Industry

63. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
The Four Principles of Non-positional Thinking
And Organizations

64. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Hidden Organizational Thinking
What usually happens in organizations
 Organizational defense patterns (hiding failure and errors)
 Undiscussables
 Blame (the buck doesn’t stop)
 Mixed messages
 Groupthink, group shift, and conformity
 Espoused theory vs. actual theory
 When culture trumps change (Levi Strauss)

65. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Two Kinds of Learning
Adaptive learning
 Based in fear; blame
 Purpose is survival
 Defensive
Generative learning
 Based in curiosity and openness; accountability
 Purpose is growth and self-expression
 Creative

66. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Non-Learning Organization
Blame
Problem
Fear
Blame / Fault
DefensivenessDenial
Distorted Information
Ineffective Action /
No Learning
Fear /Blame
Problems are met with uncertainty and defensiveness.
Positional Problem Solving

67. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Non-positional Problem Solving
Problem
Quality information
and communication
CollaborationEffective action
Organizational learning
Openness / Curiosity
Accountability
Problems are met with uncertainty and curiosity.
Learning Organization

68. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Changing Organizations

69. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Non-positional Organizational Change
Based in the knowledge that:
 Human thought is fallible:
we cannot trust what we think we know.
 Organizations ARE the people in them.
 Organizational thinking IS human thinking
 If you want to create permanent change you need to transform the
people/culture to support it.
A different way.

70. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 Clearly define where you are now
(This is what you figured out about the secret life)
 Clearly define where you want to be
 For each change that you want to introduce, ask
 What in the culture needs to change?
 What are the behaviors associated with these?
 How can we strengthen the things that will help us and
minimalize the one that will hinder us?
 Identify “resistance”
Transforming the Secret Life

71. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 Define a strategy for the change including how to overcome
cultural obstacles and resistance, and reinforce allies*
 Include how to engage people
 Communication: up and down
 Ask for people’s ideas
 Find out what people need
 Find out what really motivates them
 Be consistent in upholding changes
Transforming the Secret Life

72. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Resistance

73. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Overcoming Resistance
News Flash!

74. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Overcoming Resistance
Resistance Does Not Exist!

75. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Resistance is an illusion - it does not
exist.
Only reactions to change exist.
Overcoming Resistance

76. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
All change generates reactions that:
 Reinforce the change (positive feedback), or
 Push back on the change (negative feedback)
Push-back cannot be managed by bull-dozing it. It can only
be handled by understanding what it’s made up of.
Reactions to Change

77. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Reactions to Change
News Flash!
It is not human nature to resist change or
fear the unknown.

78. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Reactions to Change
How, then, do we deal with
push-back?

79. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
 Resistance is a natural, inevitable and unavoidable human reaction to
disruption.
 How much of it we have relates to the size of the disruption and the
way in which it is being handled.
 Begins immediately when people become aware of the change.
 It is neither good nor bad.
 It can be overt or covert
Reactions to Change
Perception is reality!

80. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
• Don’t assume you know what’s going on.
Resistance is very rarely what we think it is.
• Identify specific resistors: people, conditions, fears, motives (think “fruit”)
• Identify the underlying causes of each of these resistors.
• Identify specific enablers.
• Make a Force Field Analysis for resistors and enablers.
• Find ways of weakening resistors and strengthening enablers.
Managing Resistance to Change
Non-positionally

81. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Resistors
(weaken resistors) 
List RESISTORS and assign a value from 1 to 6, 6 being
strongest
Enablers
(strengthen enablers) 
List ENABLERS and assign a value from 1 to 6, 6 being
strongest
5 4 3 2 1 ITEM ITEM 1 2 3 4 5
Change Force Field Analysis

82. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
How can you take this back to your
workplace?

83. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble,
it’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.
– Mark Twain
Parting Thoughts…

84. Leadership Burbank Non-positional Thinking Ariane David PhD
Non-positional Thinking:
Thinking Beyond the Obvious
Today you’ll see
 that you don’t really know what you think you know
…and you’ll learn
 how to “see” what you’ve never been able to see
before
Shrink-Wrapped in Our Own Thinking:
Thinking That Transforms
Presented by
Ariane David, PhD
Senior Partner
The Veritas Group
Senior Lecturer
California State University, Northridge
ADavid@TheVeritasGroup.com
Non-positional Problem Solving
Leadership Burbank 2016
Questions?
Ariane David, PhD
The VERITAS Group
Woodbury University
ADavid@TheVeritasGroup.com TheVeritasGroup.com ArianeDavid.com