The Necessity of Strangers : The Intriguing Truth About Insight, Innovation, and Success

We live in a world filled with strangers, and most of us are conditioned to fear or at least avoid people we dont know or understand, who might pose a threat, force us out of our comfort zones, or challenge us to question the beliefs and habits we hold dear. Most of us assume that strangers are a problem rather than an opportunity to learn, grow, and reach our full potential, and this view translates to our belief that the people we know best are the real keys to our success. But what if this isnt the case? What if strangers are actually more important than friends, and what if in order to succeed in anything worth doing, we must engage, learn from, and collaborate with strangers in new and compelling ways? THE NECESSITY OF STRANGERS makes the case for the simple, profound and counter-intuitive idea that strangers are a necessity for both our personal success and the success of our organizations, precisely because of strangers' differences and their ability to challenge us to think differently about ourselves, the problems we face and the very nature of what is possible. Engaging the right strangers makes us--and our organizations--more complete, compelling, innovative, and successful. Any organization striving to innovate and grow can unlock a key competitive advantage--and provide greater value for customers--by developing a clear understanding of strangers and their perspectives. The book does not focus only on people from other cultures, countries, races, or religions, but also our coworkers and people we already work with, whose training, expertise, and outlook are different from our own. Crucially, the book includes a framework for maximizing encounters with strangers, as well as 7 key principles for developing a "stranger-centric" mindset. The book then goes on to explain how to apply those priniciples to engaging strangers in 5 key areas where strangers are vital to success: Driving greater innovation Building more collaborative and capable enterprises and initiatives Finding and getting the best out of people Developing new markets and customer relationships Unlocking the real potential of mergers, acquisitions and partnerships Ultimately, THE NECESSITY OF STRANGERS is about the future of innovation and personal and business success, in a world in which all of us and all of our companies and organizations can--and must--access more new ideas, insights, perspectives and relationships than ever before. The Necessity of Strangers: The Intriguing Truth About Insight, Innovation, and Success......Page 1 Contents......Page 9 Preface......Page 13 Part One: Frameworks......Page 19 1: Necessity......Page 21 THE NECESSITY OF STRANGERS......Page 23 WHERE STRANGERS MATTER......Page 25 THE VALUE AND LIMITS OF FRIENDS......Page 28 The Numbers Limit......Page 29 The Similarity Limit......Page 31 THE LIMITS OF BUSINESS AS USUAL......Page 33 2: Aversion......Page 36 THE RACE TO THE SOUTH POLE......Page 38 Triumph and Tragedy......Page 40 The Critical Difference......Page 43 Missing the Obvious......Page 46 Getting Beyond Business as Usual......Page 47 WHAT SCIENCE TELLS US......Page 48 Stereotyping and Prejudice......Page 49 Conformity and Groupthinking......Page 51 Attachment Theory......Page 54 Believing We Know Best......Page 55 Invisible Gorillas......Page 56 3: Mindset......Page 58 THE IMPORTANCE OF MINDSET......Page 61 CLOSED AND OPEN MINDSETS......Page 62 TESTING YOUR MINDSET......Page 65 FROM MINDSET TO GUIDING PRINCIPLES......Page 69 Humility......Page 70 Curiosity......Page 71 Respect......Page 72 Purpose......Page 73 CHANGING OUR BEHAVIOR......Page 74 Part Two: Practice......Page 77 4: Innovation......Page 79 HELICOPTERS, HAIRSTYLES, AND CARS THAT WON'T COLLIDE......Page 82 Reinventing Style......Page 86 Learning from a Different Kind of School......Page 88 Building on Several Inspirations......Page 90 Making Room for Serendipity......Page 91 An Invitation to Collaborate......Page 94 Bringing Old and New Technology Together......Page 95 FINDING THE RIGHT STRANGERS......Page 96 5: People......Page 103 BRILLIANCE IN OUR MIDST......Page 105 RECOGNIZING THE GENIUS IN EVERYONE......Page 107 THE WONDER OF NEW HIRES......Page 111 Discovering Their Value at the Start......Page 112 Breaking Out of Business as Usual......Page 113 RETHINKING EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT......Page 114 Setting the Stage......Page 115 Rethinking Motivation......Page 116 Do the Same Shoes Really Fit?......Page 118 The Potential of a Promotion......Page 120 STRANGERS IN THE WORKPLACE......Page 121 EVERYONE MATTERS......Page 123 6: Collaboration......Page 125 WHY COLLABORATE?......Page 128 The Power of Ten Things......Page 131 The Magic of a Brief Encounter......Page 134 SIZE MATTERS-BUT IT DOESN'T HAVE TO......Page 136 CUBICLES, QUESTIONS, AND NICKNAMES......Page 138 Asking the Right Questions......Page 140 The Value of a Name......Page 144 REIMAGINING MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS......Page 145 THE NEW WORLD OF CUSTOMERS......Page 149 ON THE FRONT LINE WITH STRANGERS......Page 152 Customizing Care......Page 154 Being Stranger-Centric......Page 155 UNDERSTANDING AND EMPOWERING STRANGERS......Page 156 Connecting with Customers......Page 158 Expanding Our Capabilities......Page 159 STRANGERS PROVIDE GUIDANCE......Page 161 The Power of the Crowd......Page 162 Understanding the Stranger......Page 163 STRANGERS MAKE OFFERINGS POSSIBLE......Page 165 Expanding Offerings......Page 166 Reaching Around the Globe......Page 168 THE PROMISE OF STRANGERS......Page 170 TWO ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS......Page 173 CHANGING THE GAME......Page 176 The Danger of ``Yes ́ ́......Page 177 Striving for Perfection......Page 180 FOSTERING CULTURES OF CONVERSATION AND ENGAGEMENT......Page 181 A FEW NOTES ABOUT LEARNING......Page 184 Part Three: Possibilities......Page 187 9: The Power of Travel......Page 189 GETTING PAST THE FIRST BITE......Page 192 THE QUIET CAR......Page 194 DARING TO EXPLORE......Page 196 Epilogue: Taking the First Step......Page 198 Toolkit......Page 201 Additional Resources......Page 220 Notes......Page 225 Acknowledgments......Page 229 About the Author......Page 232 Index......Page 233

A counterintuitive approach to fostering greater innovation, collaboration, and engagement

Most of us assume our success relies on a network of friends and close contacts. But innovative thinking requires a steady stream of fresh ideas and new possibilities, which strangers are more likely to introduce. Our survival instincts naturally cause us to look upon strangers with suspicion and distrust, but in The Necessity of Strangers, Alan Gregerman offers the provocative idea that engaging with strangers is an opportunity, not a threat, and that engaging with the right strangers is essential to unlocking our real potential. The Necessity of Strangers reveals how strangers challenge us to think differently about ourselves and the problems we face.

• Shows how strangers can help us innovate better, get the most out of each other, and achieve genuine collaboration
• Presents principles for developing a "stranger-centric" mindset to develop new markets and stronger customer relationships, leverage the full potential of partnerships, and become more effective leaders
• Includes practical guidance and a toolkit for being more open, creating new ideas that matter, finding the right strangers in all walks of life, and tapping the real brilliance in yourself

To stay competitive, you and your business need access to more new ideas, insights, and perspectives than ever before. The Necessity of Strangers offers an essential guide to discovering the most exciting opportunities you haven't met yet.

A counterintuitive approach to fostering greater innovation, collaboration, and engagement Most of us assume our success relies on a network of friends and close contacts. But innovative thinking requires a steady stream of fresh ideas and new possibilities, which strangers are more likely to introduce. Our survival instincts naturally cause us to look upon strangers with suspicion and distrust, but in The Necessity of Strangers , Alan Gregerman offers the provocative idea that engaging with strangers is an opportunity, not a threat, and that engaging with the right strangers is essential to unlocking our real potential. The Necessity of Strangers reveals how strangers challenge us to think differently about ourselves and the problems we face. Shows how strangers can help us innovate better, get the most out of each other, and achieve genuine collaboration Presents principles for developing a "stranger-centric" mindset to develop new markets and stronger customer relationships, leverage the full potential of partnerships, and become more effective leaders Includes practical guidance and a toolkit for being more open, creating new ideas that matter, finding the right strangers in all walks of life, and tapping the real brilliance in yourself To stay competitive, you and your business need access to more new ideas, insights, and perspectives than ever before. The Necessity of Strangers offers an essential guide to discovering the most exciting opportunities you haven't met yet. "A counterintuitive approach to fostering greater creativity and innovation. Most of us assume our success relies on a network of friends and close contacts, but innovative thinking requires a steady stream of fresh ideas and new possibilities, which strangers are more likely to introduce. Our survival instincts naturally cause us to look upon strangers with suspicion and distrust, but in The Necessity of Strangers, Alan Gregerman offers the provocative idea that engaging with strangers is an opportunity, not a threat, and that engaging with the right strangers is essential to unlocking our real potential. The Necessity of Strangers reveals how strangers challenge us to think differently about ourselves and the problems we face. Shows how strangers can help us innovate better, get the most out of each other, and achieve genuine collaboration. Presents principles for developing a "stranger-centric" mindset to develop new markets and stronger customer relationships, leverage the full potential of partnerships, and become more effective leaders. Includes practical guidance and a toolkit for being more open, creating new ideas that matter, finding the right strangers in all walks of life, and tapping the real brilliance in yourself. To stay competitive, you and your business need access to more new ideas, insights, and perspectives than ever before. The Necessity of Strangers offers an essential guide to discovering the most exciting opportunities you haven't met yet"-- Provided by publisher Teach Like a Champion 2.0 is a complete update to the international bestseller. This teaching guide is a must-have for new and experienced teachers alike. Over 700,000 teachers around the world already know how the techniques in this book turn educators into classroom champions. With ideas for everything from classroom management to inspiring student engagement, you will be able to perfect your teaching practice right away.