Product Description

Asking the old questions, according to authors Dick Whitney and Melissa Giovagnoli, means getting the same old answers. And that can be deadly for any group or company that wants to move ahead. Instead, they offer 75 outrageous, thought-provoking questions that clean out the corporate cobwebs and get workers’ minds working in new and productive directions. Drawing from their own experiences as top international business consultants, Whitney and Giovagnoli provide field-tested "cage-rattlers" that can help improve leadership, resolve on-the-job conflicts, stimulate innovation, facilitate better communication, and much more. Additionally, the guide benefits individuals as much as it does teams, small groups, small businesses, and larger corporations.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #239304 in Books
• Published on: 1997-05-01
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

From the Back Cover
WARNING: Contents of this package may shock any group into an unprecedented frenzy of creative thought and action. What happens to a group or organization when brainstorming becomes just another word for asking the same old questions? It continues to get the same old ansers--and that can be deadly if that group wants to move forward. Toss out those tired "problem-solving" approaches, say international business consultants Dick whiteney and Melissa Giovagnoli, and turn instead to 75 far-out but fully field-tested questions that clean out the corporate cobwebs and get your minds moving in new and productive directions. Whether it's wild ("What crazy idea could triple your sales in 3 years?") or wacky ("How would your mom run your department?) these imaginative thought-provokers will shake up employees and shake loose new action-oriented ideas. Packed with "war stories" detailing how whitney and giovagnoli have used these "cage-rattlers" to shatter the complacency of their own clients, this unique guide shows how 75 outrageous queries can: Improve leadership; Resolve conflicts on the job; Foster a growth mentality; Make innovation happen; Push people's motivational hot buttons; Facilitate better communication; Encourage better time management--and much more! As valuable to individuals as it is to teams, small groups, small businesses, and large corporations, 75 Cage-Rattling Questions to Change the Way You Work Opens meetings, opens eyes, and opens minds, sparking the kind of creative energy that breaks down barriers and paves the way to success for employees and their organizations. in

About the Author
Dick Whitney is a market development specialist with Mercer Management Consulting. His clients have ranged from start-ups to global leaders. Melissa Giovagnoli is the president of Service Showcase, Inc., an eleven year old consulting and training firm specializing in team building and retreat planning using the Cage Rattling Questioneering Process.

Customer Reviews

Well worth the price
I'm the author of "Thinkertoys: A Handbook of Creative Thinking Techniques" and pretty much read everything that is published in the creativity field. I find this book useful, entertaining and enlightening. Buy it. It's well worth the price.

Makes you fully aware of the pitfalls of patterning in our minds & to encourage you to constantly challenge your assumptions!
75 Cage Rattling Questions to Change the Way You Work: Shake-Em-Up Questions to Open Meetings, Ignite Discussion, and Spark Creativity
by Dick Whitney, Melissa Giovagnoli

This book has been around for almost a decade. I have found it to be a very good book as it teaches readers how to break the normal thinking patterns in the mind. To use a popular neuro-linguistic term, how to do a 'pattern interrupt'!

Patterning is one of three principal operating principles of the human mind. (The other two: selective recognition & self-organising.)

The good thing about patterning is that you don't have to relearn the same pattern if you are comfortable with it or it works for you, e.g. riding a bike or driving a car or using a piece of software. The bad thing about it is that you may get stuck with it, especially when the old pattern doesn't work any more. In the same vein, the patterning makes it hard for a new idea to get fair treatment in your mind.

Edward de Bono, the father of lateral thinking puts it very beautifully: "The mind is habitually uncreative - it is usually preoccupied with organising masses of incoming data into convenient patterns. Once the pattern is established, then the mind tends to rely upon that pattern in future situations, in order to facilitate decision making & action in an otherwise complex world."

Dr David Perkins, author of 'Outsmarting IQ: The Emerging Science of Learnable Intelligence', explains further: "...As we go through life, puzzle out problems, & gain experience, we store up patterns that work well for us. In meeting new situations, we automatically try to make a match to what we know & select a pattern from our storehouse that might apply. This matching process gets influenced not only by what patterns we have stored up, but also by our goals, prejudices & passions."

So, how does one break old patterns or get out of complacency? On workable method is to pose to ourselves challenging, thought-provoking questions. Better still, wild & crazy ones!

Why such questions?

Well, for one thing, they set off processional effects that have great impacts beyond your imagination. Questioning your limitations is what tears down the walls in life - in business, in relationships. I believe growth & progress are often preceded by new & challenging questions.

This book offers 75 outrageous, thought-provoking questions that can clean out the cobwebs in your minds & get you working in new & productive directions.

The essence of the book is not so much using the 75 field-tested "cage rattlers" to shatter the complacency. I feel that the primary objective of the two authors is to make you fully aware of the pitfalls & dangers of patterning in our minds & to encourage you to constantly challenge your assumptions!

This book has 75 short chapters, fully corresponding to the self-described 'cage rattling' questions. Each chapter opens with the question, provides you with some ways to use the question, shares a war story & gives you further tips for using the particular question.

Frankly, I would encourage readers to formulate your own list of 'cage rattling' questions to be used in your own different situation. Certainly, you can make use of the book's questions as a springboard.

Sometimes, the questions to be asked don't even have to be 'cage rattling'. All you need to do is to reframe the question. For example, in problem solving, I always like to ask myself, 'what else can I do?' instead of 'what can I do?'; 'what has not yet happened here?' instead of 'what has happend here?'...

Questions and More!
This book has 75 short chapters, one for each of the self-described "cage rattling questions." Each chapter opens with the question, provides you 3-5 ways to use the question, shares a "war story" and gives you some tips for using this particular question.

I have long been a proponent of, and encouraged people to build lists of questions they could use in different situations. This book would be a good place to start your list if you are a trainer, consultant, facilitator, or team leader. You will find many of these questions useful to spark conversations, trigger new ideas and build synergy.

Look at it this way... if you got only one great question that you use to great advantage it would be worth the cost of the book. I'm sure you will get at least several more than that