Dylan Emerson

Dr. Hirschfeld
MGMT3900 Sec. 003
8 November 2020
Principles for Chapter 9, Chapter 10, and Chapter 11
Chapter 9
● Tasks can always be made easier with creativity.
○ I derived this principle from Yokoi’s invention that was essentially an extendable arm
with a gripping tool on the end that allowed him to lazily retrieve distant objects. This
scenario reminded me of several stories I’ve heard of people finding unique ways to
make their jobs easier by using a little creativity. One such example I recall is of an
individual who works in IT that programmed software to essentially automate his job so
he could have more downtime and be less stressed throughout the workday. Although this
practice may be deceptive to one’s employers, it is a good example of how using a little
bit of creativity can make one’s life much easier.
● Old technology drives new innovation.
○ I derived this principle from Yokoi once again, during his time with Nintendo’s research
and development department. I found it interesting how rather than learning the new
technologies, Yokoi put an emphasis on developing with old, understood technologies to
create a higher quality product. One such example that stands out to me is when one of
Yokoi’s colleagues came to him stating that one of their competitors had released a new
handheld console. When learning that their competitor utilized color screens, Yokoi
simply shrugged it off. Rather than wasting time learning new technologies, Yokoi and
his engineers utilized old technologies they already understood and innovated with them,
creating unique user-experiences that outclassed all of their technologically-superior
competitors. This can be applied today by making a higher quality product with old
technology, rather than attempting to create a mediocre product while learning a new
technology.
● Push the boundaries of technology to the impossible.
○ I derived this principle from Ouderkirk and his glitter. Ouderkirk had wanted to innovate
a new kind of glitter utilizing many thin plastic layers that could reflect and refract light
in all directions. After consulting groups of expert optics specialists and being told it was
simply impossible, Ouderkirk knew he was onto something and invented a new form of
glitter that dazzled in all directions at once. This anecdote demonstrates how innovation
can occur in areas that may seem impossible. If experts agree that something cannot be
done, there’s a high likelihood that someone simply hasn’t thought of the idea before,
leaving room for innovation.

Chapter 10
● A collective with different perspectives may outperform the experts.
 ○ I derived this principle from reading about the Good Judgement Project. In this project,
collective groups were put to the task of forecasting future events without any expertise
in the fields they were forecasting. When put up to the challenge, these collective groups
often significantly outperformed the experts. Even when experts had access to intense
academic training and classified information, the collective groups with many different
perspectives and experiences were much more accurate. It’s important to keep this
principle in mind when forecasting one’s own future endeavors because a collective with
different perspectives will offer new insights that would be overlooked by specialists.
● Combinations of deep thinkers and expansive thinkers produce higher quality results.
○ I derived this principle from the discussion of hedgehogs and foxes. Hedgehogs are
people that are focused narrowly on one subject, and often do things by the book; foxes
are people that accept ambiguity and contradiction, with experience in many fields. When
these two types of people are put together, the foxy people will be able to take a problem
and bend their traditional ways of thinking in order to solve the problem most effectively,
while the hedgehogs - with their exceptional experience in a narrow field - are capable of
utilizing their tools and training to solve the toughest problems that don’t necessarily
challenge their way of thinking. Equipped with people of many different backgrounds
and specialties, this combination produces higher quality results than traditional teams
because it is ready to face any challenge that is thrown its way.
● An open-minded team can solve the toughest problems.
○ I derived this principle from a forecast discussion about the highest single-day close for
the exchange rate between the U.S. Dollar and the Ukrainian hryvnia. In this forecast
discussion, there were many different people, all with different backgrounds, that offered
their own opinions about what may happen to the exchange rate: if it will be less than 10,
between 10 and 13, or more than 13. Using a variety of resources and debating the
outcome, they initially determined it to be more than 13 as a collective. One of their
members came back with new information about the hryvnia that was contradictory to the
team’s initial thoughts. With an open-mind, the team accepted this new input and
changed their answer to between 10 and 13, which ended up being correct. This is an
important anecdote to keep in mind when faced with difficult problems or tough
questions because it demonstrates how keeping an open-mind and embracing
contradiction will improve one’s problem-solving process.

Chapter 11
● When in doubt, ask for more information.
○ I derived this principle from the Carter Racing case. Groups of students examine a case
about whether or not they should compete in the biggest race of the season, and are given
data of external temperatures and number of breaks in the head gasket of a race car.
Essentially, should they participate in a race that possibly risks their lives? Many kids
struggle, finding no correlation to the number of head gasket breaks and the external
temperature. Because they find no correlation, many groups will opt for participating in
 the race. What they lack is information they could have asked from the instructor: how
often head gaskets didn’t break within a given temperature. Using this newly acquired
information, it is revealed that the biggest race of the season is also one of the most
dangerous races of the season due to the record low temperatures that influence head
gaskets to break. Therefore, in a situation where a tough call must be made, it’s important
to gather as much information as possible to determine what the right call really is. New
information can shed light on problems that may not have been revealed yet.
● Overlearned behavior drives complacency.
○ I derived this principle from the tragedy of the Challenger and how NASA refused data
that couldn’t be quantified, which may have ultimately cost the lives of all seven people
onboard. Roger Boisjoly had picture evidence that demonstrated how much gas blow-by
occurred in different temperatures, with a light gray blow-by in 75-degree weather and a
larger, jet-black blow-by in 53-degree weather. This blow-by, caused by gas escaping
from the O-rings of a shuttle prior to the O-rings expanding and sealing a joint, was very
dangerous in that it can blow past the booster wall, enabling a possible explosion of the
shuttle. Because Boijoly couldn’t quantify his observations, NASA refused to accept his
data because they felt it was inconclusive on predicting O-ring blow-by. This poor
decision led to NASA continuing with the launch of the Challenger, which experienced a
catastrophic failure due to O-ring blow-by and cost the lives of all seven crew members.
NASA became complacent because since their conception, they always favored
quantitative data. “Reason without numbers was not accepted.” NASA became too
comfortable with their overlearned behaviors, which ultimately cost them the Challenger.
This is an important lesson to keep in mind because it demonstrates how the tried-and-
true method isn’t always the best approach. Sometimes, one has to take a leap of faith and
break away from what they know in order to succeed.