I often think that the balance between thinking and doing is so critical and yet is one we often get wrong. Too much of a focus on doing and we don't leave enough time for reflection, learning and application (like the reflection time that Joel at Pinterest talked about). Conversely over-thinking everything can lead to paralysis.
So before I leave talking about Learnfest (which left thick vapour trails in my head which are still dissipating), there was a straightforward way of framing this that came from another great talk by Steph Fastre of Google. She put up a gloriously simple chart to make a point about the need for both thinking and action (in the context of learning). She drew a parallel with her days at drama school. Acting without thinking or reflection can lead to foolishness, but over-thinking stuff can mean we become frozen in inaction. The people that did the best at drama school, she said, were those who could balance the two. The same, I'd say, is true of organisations.
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