In the 1970’s, folksinger Harry Chapin published a song entitled Flowers are Red, a lament about how adults teach kids to limit their creativity. I think about these lyrics once in a while when I consider how today’s digital influences do the same.
Paul Tough, in his insightful book, How Children Succeed, writes “two of the most important executive functions are cognitive flexibility and cognitive self-control. Cognitive flexibility is the ability to see alternative solutions to problems, to think outside the box, to negotiate unfamiliar situations. Cognitive self-control is the ability to inhibit and instinctive or habitual response and substitute a more effective, less obvious one.”
Sadly, the demands for instant outcomes and the explosion of rules and regulations are making matters worse, much worse. But this not just about digital technology. It is second nature for adults to instruct kids on what to do, just as it is second nature for supervisors to direct employees rather than forcing them to think independently. It’s easier, more efficient, and more predictable, so the reasoning goes. But this practice also allows these same employees to skip the hard work of thinking.
The development of cognitive self-control is all about compelling young people to reason through how they make decisions. It is understandable that they will first turn to a supervisor or the internet for answers. Those are the two obvious options. But true growth comes from the exercise of executive function – searching for resources – considering alternatives – taking calculated risks – living with consequences. We can lament the lack of creativity among workers, when we don’t compel them to think in new and challenging ways.
So here’s the challenge: Will you at least once today compel a person under your supervision to think though the problem he or she presents to you? It may a bit awkward for both of you. But you’ll be taking a critical step toward fostering their development. If you do this already, how about doing it even more? Over time, you’ll set the expectation that productive employees think for themselves. We can’t change the whole world, but we can certainly influence our little part of it in a positive way.