We spend our lives gaining knowledge of the world around us. Unlearning things, making room for new knowledge or corrected or updated knowledge, is a skill we aren’t usually taught and don’t often practice. Here are 8 important things to know about Unlearning.
We're joined for this discussion by Pete Cafarchio who is an executive coach that helps transform leaders, teams, and cultures. Pete is the CEO of Oculus Consulting and helps practitioners perform at their best.
We Discuss:
- What is unlearning and why is it so important?
- What are the implications of unlearning for us as consultants?
- What are the implications for our clients?
- How do we effectively challenge a client’s stuck mindset?
- What's preventing us from applying this strategy?
Key Highlights:
- Unlearning is challenging deeply held beliefs and assumptions to make room for new perspectives (6:36).
- It takes courage since consultants are paid for what they know (6:15).
- We tend to defend our thinking, but feeling defensive can indicate we're not fully convinced about something (24:25).
- Self-awareness of our emotional reactions can reveal opportunities for unlearning (25:05).
- Groupthink and technology like social media algorithms can reinforce entrenched thinking, making unlearning more difficult (17:58, 30:04).
- Practical tips for unlearning include exposing ourselves to contrary views (35:02) and asking questions that imagine project failure scenarios (36:32) or competitor advantages (37:13) to surface overlooked issues.
- Facilitating unlearning conversations creates value for clients by getting them to reconsider assumptions (44:23).
- Information is now ubiquitous; consultants add value through context, application and strategy (43:36).
8 Takeaways:
- Unlearning involves challenging ingrained beliefs to make room for new perspectives, which takes courage since consultants are paid for their knowledge. (6:36)
- Feeling defensive about an idea can signal that we are not fully convinced about it and presents an opportunity for unlearning. (24:25)
- Technology like social media algorithms tends to reinforce tribal thinking, making unlearning more difficult. (30:04)
- Intentionally exposing ourselves to contrary opinions helps to challenge our assumptions and unlearn. (35:02)
- Asking “what if we fail” questions imagine failure scenarios to uncover overlooked issues. (36:32)
- Posing “what would competitors do” questions surfaces organizational vulnerabilities. (37:13)
- Facilitating unlearning conversations creates value for clients by getting them to challenge assumptions. (44:23)
- With ubiquitous information, consultants now add value through context, application and strategy rather than just providing information. (43:36)
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