I’m struck how books fall into my life sometimes. Fate? Sure. Luck? Yes. Ever have a book fall into your lap that seemingly comes out from nowhere? I don’t plan to do a ton of book reviews on this blog. Not my preferred gig. But Orbiting the Giant Hairball by Gordon MacKenzie, deserves mention because its potential impact it can have on you…how you work and ultimately what you design.

1–The title of this book is one the best suck-you-in-magnets I’ve seen lately. I dare you not to open this book to find out what the heck Gordon is trying to say. But then again, if you’re part of a hairball right now, you’ll pass this by, be confused or perhaps be distracted by the term and let life pull you back from the brink of opening it.

2–If you’re a linear-thinker, highly “appropriate”, structured, process-driven, dots-need-to-connect-immediately-or-I’m-lost-kind-of-person, this isn’t your read. Too bad. You, of all people really need to read this book.  If you’re open and you make it to the Table of Contents (it’s a collage of pictures that at first glance appear to be random doodles) don’t be detered.  Look again.

3–If you’re a manager particularly managing creatives or innovative departments. Get a copy immediately. Gordon’s 30-year insights about managing, managing creatives, unlocking innovative thinking and surviving corporate cultures are insightful, practical and useful.

4–If your a designer, creative or any other type of individual contributer, you’ll be consoled, reassured and belly-laugh at how the scenarios will seem so similar to your experiences. It’s a read guaranteed to give you some new perspectives.

5–The book is a quick read that has sparkly, jewels of insights jam packed throughout its 25 chapters. I won’t do this book justice if I try to encapsulate it’s many layers into quick sound bytes. What I will do is highlight a scenario he shares found in the chapter titled: “First There’s Grope, Then There’s Rote. Gordon, our hero, is asked to create training for managers while at Hallmark. Since Gordon forged a reputation for being a creative AND being a successful supervisor, he was asked to create an innovative workshop that would culminate a corporate training that included: how to conduct effective meetings, create business plans, and follow corporate vision. It was essentially a Manager 101 course for new managers. After Gordon reviewed materials, he determined the course to be dull and disconnected with the real-world of managing. He opted to create an experiential training that placed the managers in deep ambiguity, “unlinearity” and sold it to his colleagues like this:

“Now wait. Hear me out please. I think a manager’s world is not black and white. It’s a world filled with uncertainties and dilemma’s. The sort of thinking that would leave any neophyte moaning, “What the hell is this?” So I think it would be useful if we could offer your new managers what you might call a “what-the-hell-is-this” experience in the safety of a workshop environment before they’re hurled, unbaptized, into the real thing. What I’m proposing is a workshop called “Grope.” The object would be to expose the participants to a three-hour bombardment of non-rational experiences that would leave them wondering, “What the hell was that all about?”

It worked and the training was a success.

So…what company hairball (bureaucracy) are you a part of and how is it influencing your innovative drive? Your design? How do you survive with grace?