Imagine Ideals explained

Once we have released assumptions and obtained a firm grasp of constraints that are real, we can more freely imagine possible futures. We can use constraints in a productive fashion to generate and shape ideas, and to compose future images. This runs counter to the myth that creativity is fostered by ignoring constraints. Rather, productive constraints are akin to the banks of a mountain stream guiding the water’s flow; the interplay of ideas (water) and constraints (banks) creates beauty. Here we open ourselves to possibilities and ask: What might be ideal?

This step is as disciplined as any other. Creativity is a skill that can be developed over years of practice. The methods are simply different from, say, science. Answering what might be involves playing with possibilities, sketching and modeling, drawing from the heart, being sensitive to our emotions, and giving dedicated time to generating ideas before critique. It does not involve decisions that are known to be wrong or right; it involves judgements that are revealed as wise or unwise by their consequences.

This step draws from the traditions of design. Sample triggering questions include:

What futures do the real constraints on our organization make possible?

What additional constraints—that we recognize to be artificial—help trigger our imagination?

Five years from now the organization is shockingly successful. What is happening?

What would lead organizational members to be even more thrilled to belong?

What new or redefined purposes, structures, policies, practices, and processes would better express our values?