One of my preferred strategies for thinking about the future as well as for trying to spur creativity and innovation is what I call in my book, Jump the Curve, engaging in “the power of play.” To really hone this skill, it helps to think like a child. Unfortunately, this isn’t an easy thing to do—especially after years of having our creativity systematically crushed out us by well-intentioned but, often, clueless adults.
Well, it now appears that we adults are inflicting even more damage on our unsuspecting and overly trustful kids than was previously imagined. According to this study, children learn to imitate us even when we take incorrect or unnecessary steps to perform a specific function. (For a more detailed explanation of the Yale study, you can read the full study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences).
In other words, because of our unwillingness to unlearn our old ways of behavior, we are hurting our kids ability to better solve problems because they are imitating our poor or ineffective methods.
What I take away from this study is this: If you are unwilling to cultivate a beginner’s mind or if you are unwilling to see the world through the eyes of child, that’s fine; but know this—you aren’t just hurting yourself, you are also putting your own child at a disadvantage because they are very likely to imitate you and thus adopt your preconceived ideas, your biases, and your old, ineffective methods for seeing and dealing with today’s rapidly accelerating world.
