Sphere-logic verses Box-logic

With all the lists that come out at the year’s end, those that identify the most overused business cliché’s and buzz words are my favorites to read. On my own list of most hated phrases is to “think outside the box”. 

Thinking outside the box is a metaphor that means to think differently, unconventionally, or from a new perspective. This phrase often refers to novel or creative thinking, and looking beyond the obvious.

An example of this is Taco Bell and their successful marketing campaign “Think Outside the Bun”. It simply applied the metaphor to think beyond the hamburger and try something different, implying their product as a solution.

I call this Box-logic, and while it is a useful tool and metaphor, it is an overused cliché that is uninspiring and incomplete in solving problems. In its day, facing a problem involved three separate steps; find a solution, take action, deliver the results. Thinking outside the box only addressed the first step – finding a solution, and it’s only half the equation. Today, unfortunately, the cliché presumes an action will be taken which then leads to the desired result. The metaphor is but one piece and does not consider the whole problem, nor was it ever intended to.

To be truly successful in today’s work environments, merely confronting problems is not enough. We must solve them and deliver the results in real time. Innovative thinking with immediate action is required to achieve the results and deliver a solution. Developing solutions to problems today needs to be a seamless event, and can be stated as the following equation: Problem: Innovative thinking + Action + Results = Solution.

In working with The Arnold Group, we looked for a way to view problems in a three-dimensional way. We needed multiple perspectives not just to the problem, but to the actions, the results, and the solution as well. Using a baseball as our metaphor, we see each element of it is attached by an endless seam. If we think of each element of the baseball as innovative thinking, action, and results all sown together as a sphere, then the baseball itself is the solution to the problem. We call this Sphere-logic.   

Sphere-logic works with the whole equation in mind. Like the baseball, one element ends where the next one begins. The principle of Sphere-logic is to move effortlessly from innovative thinking to results to deliver the solution with the least amount of resistance, like a ball bearing.

Ironically, Sphere-logic came about by out of the box thinking to find a better approach to how problems are faced and resolved today. As business evolves, so must the tools that help us be successful at what we do. While Box-logic will help us look beyond the obvious, Sphere-logic will help us deliver the solution. 

Question: Where can you use Sphere-logic in your work today?

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. I'd like to know what you think. Please feel free to let me know in the comments section below.