Becoming an Angel’s Advocate …an Important Collaboration Tool

How do you feel when someone takes an excellent idea that you’ve offered and then says: “Let me play Devil’s Advocate“. Do you sit back and think – oh boy, here it comes! You know they are about to rip your idea apart. Other forms of this show up like:  We’ve tried that before… or yes that’s interesting, BUT…. One of my consulting partners even has a list called 100 Ways to Kill an Idea! You can just imagine the many forms this can take.  I find that they all leave me feeling frustrated as I disengage from the task at hand. What if we tried something different?  Something that offers a more positive approach to idea-sharing and allows us to be more inclusive in our communications with each other. I have always been grateful for the TLC (Tender, Loving, Care) Model as it sits in the back of my mind. It allows for the recognition of diverse thinking and collaboration that foster so many great innovations and ways to problem solve. Here is the model:

Key Takeaway:  New ideas or ways to solve problems many times need to be nurtured.  They can start as hunches for those with intuitive thinking and then further analyzed by those with strong logical or analytical thinking.  This is the basic idea of iterative thinking – looking at things from several perspectives. Of course, we recommend using a Whole Brain approach as we think through the Purpose, Process, People & Possibilities components of different ideas and the brain model itself.  But most importantly, creating an environment for sharing and cultivating new thinking in a more positive way will have a giant impact on a team or organization. 

Tell us your story…We’d like to hear from you on what your companies are doing to create more collaboration; allow for innovation and diversity of thinking. Email me or click here to share more in the comments section on our Top Tips page. Others may learn from your story and what you share. To see a list of all the Top Tips that have been published, please see the complete blog.