Setting objectives can hinder achievement by overlooking counterintuitive stepping stones and serendipity.
Ambitious objectives often lead to dead ends and should be distinguished from modest ones.
Relying heavily on assessments can deceive progress and hinder true innovation in education.
Deep dives
The Problem with Setting Objectives
Setting objectives has some serious flaws as an approach to achievement; it overlooks the importance of counterintuitive stepping stones and the role of serendipity in discoveries.
The Difference between Modest and Ambitious Objectives
Modest objectives, which have been achieved before, are different from ambitious objectives that involve unknown paths and complexities; ambitious objectives often lead to a dead end.
The Deceptive Nature of Assessment and Metrics
Assessment and metrics can be deceptive, giving a false sense of progress; relying too heavily on assessments can lead to investing in a deceptive path and hinder true innovation.
The Accountability and Assessment Culture in Education and Innovation
Our education system's heavy reliance on assessment and standardized tests fails to improve student performance and stifles innovation; accountability should focus on recognizing and rewarding interesting and valuable stepping stones rather than achieving arbitrary metrics.
The Importance of Embracing Counterintuitive and Interesting Ideas
To foster innovation and make real progress, we must embrace counterintuitive and interesting ideas that may not initially make sense; being open to unconventional approaches and avoiding ideas that make too much sense can lead to groundbreaking discoveries.
Artificial intelligence researcher and author Kenneth Stanley has argued that “as soon as you create an objective, you ruin your ability to reach it.” So what should you consider when thinking about your objectives, and what will set you up for success? On this episode Stanley discusses how to set the right objectives for your life, why we’re too tied to accomplishments, what role accountability plays in our education system, the value of peer review, why transformative innovations are always counter intuitive, and so much more.
Stanley is the co–author of Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned: The Myth of the Objective, as well as the former Head of Core AI Research at Uber AI and the Open-Endedness Team Leader at OpenAI. He has also served as the Charles Millican Professor in Computer Science at University of Central Florida.
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