5 Ways to Improve Productivity You Should Learn from Children

1. Always try to learn new things

Young children instinctively seek knowledge. It is an integral part of their nature. They actively move, observe what is happening around, remember their impressions. In the process, they begin to form theories about the structure of the world.

In early childhood, they are associated with notions of relatives and the consequences of various actions (for example, what happens if you throw a sippy cup on the floor over and over again). As they get older, these theories become more complex, and children come up with amazing (and sometimes hilarious) ideas. For example, that the wind appears when trees move their leaves.

Adults, on the other hand, usually think not about how to learn something new or understand a certain phenomenon, but about how to complete tasks. And they become like a child who has been told what to do with a toy and no longer needs to use his own imagination. In such a state, you cannot think of something interesting.

Therefore, remind yourself that there is still a lot of unknown. Be inspired by a child's desire to seek new explanations for familiar things.

2. Explore

In 1933, nurse Harriet Johnson described how children handle blocks. Regardless of age, they first turn them around in their hands, examine the texture and weight. And then they do not immediately begin to fold into complex structures, but simply carry them with them. And only when they have some experience, they try to build something similar to houses.

From this we can draw a simple conclusion: it is quite natural and even useful to study the problem in more detail before choosing a way to solve it.

In children, this happens automatically, but adults are better off deliberately planning such studies. Give yourself time to ponder different solutions and ask questions that at first glance seem to be outsiders. Be open to the unexpected and then you will find unconventional approaches to business.

3. Start from scratch

Recently, many master classes start with some kind of engineering problem. For example, you need to build a tower of pasta and duct tape, or send a feather flying with straws and paper cups. Design and Teamworker Tom Wujec regularly runs a similar exercise with marshmallows.

In eighteen minutes, each team needs to build a stable tower of spaghetti to keep the marshmallows on top. The taller the tower, the better. According to Wujetz, it is not adults who do the best, but preschool children.

The reason is in different approaches to business. Adults usually choose a leader, discuss plans, and delegate responsibilities. In general, build on past experience in problem solving. Or they are reconstructing existing objects (the most common option is the Eiffel Tower). This is a good approach when dealing with a typical task. But the macaroni-marshmallow tower is a completely non-standard business, so it's better to forget about the baggage of knowledge.

Children still have little experience, most situations are new and unusual for them. They do not limit themselves to repeating the towers they have seen. Lacking standard proven solutions in stock, they come up with incredible buildings that do not occur to adults. Remind yourself of this when faced with something unusual. And instead of immediately acting the same way, start from scratch.

4. Connect your imagination

Children not only use existing objects in an unusual way, but also come up with something in the process of playing. For example, they see a telephone in any rectangular object and use it for fun. Or they turn into some kind of animal for a while. At first glance, there is nothing particularly impressive about this. But this heightened creativity has important functions.

It leads to innovation, through which children achieve the goals of the game despite limited resources.

Adults, when faced with a task, often become obsessed with obstacles. We know that one solution cannot be applied due to reason A, another due to factor B. Of course, there is no point in wasting energy on something obviously impossible. But still, sometimes try to think like children who think that everything will work out. Try to balance the realistic approach with the imagination.

5. Don't give up uninvited help

Already at an early age, toddlers change their behavior in order to better achieve goals while playing. Including react to unexpected help from educators. The researchers noticed this after observing the children in kindergarten. Most often, the child used the advice received to solve the difficulties that arose and quickly returned to his game, learning something new in the process.

This is consistent with Lev Vygotsky's learning theory. In the early 1930s, he introduced the concept of "zone of proximal development" in relation to children, but this concept applies to adults as well. Each person can complete a task using one of two levels of development - actual or potential.

Relevant corresponds to what we can do on our own - for example, do our typical job. Potential - what we can do with a little help when we are not given a ready-made answer, but pushed in the right direction. Between these two levels there is a zone of potential development.

Imagine a child looking for a lost toy. If you don't even know where she is, you can still help with the search. For example, suggest looking under the couch or in the next room. According to Vygotsky, learning occurs precisely at this moment, when a more experienced person helps to achieve more than we would have mastered alone.

By responding to advice, we gain knowledge and memorize new strategies. As a result, the current level of development rises.

At work, we are also constantly faced with informal tasks and ideas, but usually we approach them with our current level of development. It seems to us that we do not need help, and unsolicited advice is rather annoying. But it is this kind of advice from colleagues or leaders that can raise our level of development and make us more productive. So do not rush to dismiss them.