We changed how we talk to people. Why? AI, echo chambers and neurodiverse thinking…

We speak to a lot of people in the average week. Everyone from C’Suite members, programme leadership teams, business process leads. They contact us for advice, guidance and help. You don’t even need to be a client - we will help regardless.

Personally, I am also a massive note taker - it is how I learn and remember things. For some reason writing triggers my memory more than typing.?

On a related tangent, I am also a massive fan of some of the work that Jeremy Connell-Waite is doing at IBM on storytelling. Go and check him out if you haven’t already. Recently Jeremy did a clever piece of work using AI to analyse famous talks and speeches… which got me intrigued…

….So I decided to do the same.?

I uploaded an entire notebook of notes (clearly removing all of the client details) and asked AI to summarise and draw comparisons across industries, solutions and problems.?

The results blew me away.

There were some obvious and some not so obvious outcomes. It has given me an incredible set of data to work with - which I will share in another post, but most importantly it pointed out a weakness…

If we were speaking with a retailer, we would ensure we had retail experts on the call. Manufacturing, we would have manufacturing experts etc etc. That sounds logical - right? Bringing industry expertise along can only help…

WRONG

AI told me we had created an echo chamber.

What is an echo chamber?

“An echo chamber is a metaphorical term that describes an environment where a person is only exposed to information, ideas, or opinions that reinforce their existing beliefs.”

They are bad because they: -?

1. Reinforce Existing Beliefs: - In an echo chamber, the same ideas and opinions are repeated, which reinforces the belief system of the participants.?
2. Lack Critical Thinking: - Echo chambers discourage critical thinking because they do not challenge the participants to question or critically evaluate the information they receive.
3. Cause Confirmation Bias: - Echo chambers thrive on confirmation bias, the tendency to seek out and favour information that confirms one's preexisting beliefs.?
4. Force Homogeneity of Thought: - When everyone in an echo chamber shares the same or similar views, the diversity of thought is lost.?
5. Amplify Extremities: - Echo chambers can also amplify extreme views, as the lack of opposition allows radical ideas to grow unchecked. This can lead to polarisation.

My notes showed that we were giving fairly consistent advice within industry - but yet the industries, and the components prevalent in that industry (eg. a warehouse) featured in many different industries.?

Clearly this is limiting. Innovations in the chemical industry might be relevant in the retail industry - BUT we need to expose the retailer to it, to give them awareness, to ascertain value.?

We needed a new communications approach... I went down a rabbit hole for a few hours and found this from the healthcare sector (which illustrates the point entirely)

Neurodivergent Thinking

There is a concept called “neurodivergent thinking” - it recognises and respects the wide range of neurological differences that exist in the human population. It challenges the traditional view that certain neurological conditions, such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and others, are "disorders" that need to be cured or fixed. Instead, neurodiversity emphasises that these variations are natural and should be valued as an integral part of human diversity, similar to differences in race, gender, or sexual orientation.

It focuses on -?

1. Variation, Not Deficit: Neurological differences are seen as variations rather than deficits or dysfunctions.?
2. Inclusive Culture: Neurodiversity advocates for the inclusion of all individuals, regardless of their background.
3. Strength-Based Approach: It focuses on leveraging the strengths and unique perspectives of individuals.

So what are we doing differently as a result?

Well, next time you book a call with us, we are not going to bring industry specialists to the table. We will bring everyone that can add value. Even if it might not seem obvious as to why…

In fact, AI told us exactly WHO to bring to the table. Mind blowing...

Is that cost effective? For Limelight Consulting , probably not, but for you and your problem - it is worth its weight in gold.?

Grab a call and let’s see where we can take you.

https://www.limelight.consulting/contact-us