Update/Context: There are still humans, therefore there are still problems to solve, just as in this article last published in January, 2019. Today, Artificial Intelligence (AI) will add the disruption in the work place already being affected by automation in 2019. References have been changed to a couple of new concepts on the drawing board, "Life Skills Academy" and "Applied Entrepreneurial Mindset." You can see more information at correllcoaching.com.
Today’s vast bodies of knowledge, available at our fingertips, along with stunning new technologies give us greater-than-ever potential to solve our problems; personal, commercial and societal. Humans aren’t perfect and as long as humans are in the mix, things won’t work right, things will break, products and services will be lack-luster. No matter what happens with new technology and greater knowledge, there will always be problems. We need people that are better at recognizing problems as opportunities and finding creative solutions for them.
Whether we know it or not, we’re all in the business of solving problems. In our work lives, whether we’re working for others of working for our customers, we’re supposed to be solving problems. In our personal and student lives, there are problems too. Better problem-solving skills make us better in our professional lives and happier in our personal lives. As we become better problem solvers, we become better decision makers, realizing that the successful outcome of our lives depends on our choices, not our circumstances. The psychologists call this special kind of self-confidence “self-efficacy” and increased self-efficacy is the primary objective of Life Skills Academy and our Applied Entrepreneurial Mindset Training Program.
Successful entrepreneurs—the ones that have identified problems, found creative solutions and offer those solutions to customers—have this special kind of problem-solving ability and outlook on life. We could all benefit from looking at the world and the problems of the world the way entrepreneurs do. Studying entrepreneurs has been a challenge. Ask them to explain how they think, they can’t, let alone write it down. Most know they think differently, but often don’t realize they have a better way of looking at things. Indeed, many have felt isolated as their differences in thinking have not fit in with society’s thinking.
We found a method a few years ago that makes studying successful entrepreneurs not only possible, but interesting, inspiring and fun. Best of all, it doesn’t require reading any long, dull text books or writing research papers. “Entrepreneurial Mindset”, a class different than any other, is generally offered a couple of times each year.
At the same time, we recognize that employers are looking for people with critical thinking and problem-solving skills that go far beyond just knowing how to do one kind of work. The most competitive companies and organizations need to be staffed by entrepreneurial thinkers, using innovative and design thinking to help solve the problems of these organizations and those they serve. As technologies come and go, we believe workforce training should involve introductory training in a variety of technologies and disciplines all centered around entrepreneurial thinking. Our Applied Entrepreneurial Mindset program provides a buffet of technology introductions coupled with Entrepreneurial Mindset. All the training includes healthy doses of experiential, project-based learning. We are working to offer our participants a digital portfolio. This can include images, still and video, of projects and collaborations. An prospective employer can look into the insights of job applicants as they show off their projects in the digital portfolios, demonstrating how they overcame project-related challenges and the knowledge gained by solving the problems in completing the projects.
This kind of learning, using entrepreneurial mindset and design thinking to solve problems in an experiential, project-based learning environment will unleash hidden talents and abilities of many people who have not done well with the traditional teaching methods we’ve used in the United States for the last 100 years. We like to say about Applied Entrepreneurial Mindset, “Work force training for the rest of us.”
To remain competitive in a global economy, heading for massive disruption as new technologies and automation take over the factory floor, companies and organizations will need everyone to be engaged in solving the problems that will continue to come up in spite of or because of this disruption.
