John Kurivilla delivers lecture on natural techniques and thinking out of the box at IIT Jammu
JAMMU, SEPTEMBER 18: In one of the most engaging, captivating, and inspiring talks at MESH, John Kuruvilla, with his professional journey of over three decades of inter spread with corporate and entrepreneurial adventures, took the audience through a journey of disruptive thinking.
He even tried to dig into the sources to generate such ideas. The beginning of the voyage was a paradoxical statement of “Thinking outside the box” when our whole lives have been weaved around and moulded into different boxes, beginning from a cradle at birth to homes, cubicles, and finally, a coffin.
Kuruvilla’s advice through his great personal adventure was to break the box itself. After recovering from the deadly Steven Johnson Syndrome, he went on an expedition about 250 kilometres deep into the Amazon rainforest. The deep, dark, scary, tranquil, and all-encompassing jungle was not just a simple metaphor for life but also how the disruptive thought process helps people adapt to the harshness of life.
The mornings began in ethereal silence, and the nights were deafeningly loud, with danger lurking in every direction, from malaria-causing mosquitos and poisonous tarantulas to downright destructive Piranhas and Caiman (deadly alligators). But survival techniques in such a harsh environment were key to unlocking creative and disruptive innovation.
Trees like Benguet, the methanol tree, Tapiba, the mosquito repellent tree, and Sapopema, the telephone tree, were some of the critical tools. They also offered vital life lessons, including the importance of reaching out, communicating and seeking creative problem-solving.
Kuruvilla also talked about the rivers of life, the uncertainties, and the mistakes that stem from being uncertain or overexcited. The valuable takeaways included being calm throughout the tumultuous time and not losing one’s head in the excitement or uncertainty.
Kuruvilla imparted the message of disruptive thinking through an exciting activity, where two teams of 10 participants each were challenged to cross each other’s positions with all of their feet touching and not lift their feet from the ground in the process. The first team burst into action instantly, and the second talked about the process and then tried to do the task, but both teams failed.
The two crucial points came to light after Kuruvilla explained that none of the teams asked him any questions that could make their lives easier, and none of them tried to think outside of the box, as the teams failed to conclude that the traditional method wouldn’t work out. The solution was simple when explained, but it was not the one people would think of if they followed the conventional techniques because it involved sitting down with their feet stretched. Everyone would sit, with their feet in the center, rotating in a circle with the midpoint where their feet touched.
Kuruvilla’s numerous attempts through various prestigious universities had not occurred to any of the teams he tasked with the solution of sitting to cross each other’s position.
The final discourse included natural techniques, where weaker trees adapted to survive while their stronger counterparts died. It was a lesson that adaptability and disruptive thinking superseded innate strength.
It was pretty enlightening how many lessons we could gather from our surroundings if we could keep our minds open and try to come up with creative solutions and think out of the box. Kuruvilla concluded his inspiring talk with some of his personal attempts and successful ideas, which became hugely successful with minimal resources.
He also stressed the importance of data analysis and reading between the lines in those numbers because disruptive solutions are sometimes quite simple and just need observation and out-of-the-box thinking. This session was organised by MESH, with convenor Lakshya Devani and co-convenor Premveer Singh.
