My friend David Staley discusses his concept of Universitas as a gathering of diverse minds to create and innovate. We get together each month (30-50 people) for dinner and discuss pertinent topics. In front of the group last night David mentioned a light bulb that turned on for him when he saw an ad for eHarmony, the dating site that attempts to match compatible personalities. David said what he’s interested in is the opposite of that for Universitas.

While listening to David, a new term came to mind. Contracompatible. Innovation benefits from diverse inputs. Seek them out.

In a group re-imagining schools there was an architect who builds schools, a psychologist, a former teacher, a doctoral candidate studying creativity education, a retired intellectual, and a graphic designer. The age and sex demographics also spanned the spectrum. I listened closely for the bias in each idea, including my own. How this group dealt with other group member’s bias was interesting. There were a number of combination ideas. The blended solutions were much stronger than what may have come from a group of school administrators working on the same problem. If this group was dating we would be considered contracompatible but for the purpose of innovation it was extremely valuable.

I have a dinner scheduled Saturday with the CEO of a multi-national company, a hospital administrator, a call center employee, and a retired sales executive. Some are staunch conservatives others deeply liberal. Age ranges from my age to 20 years older. Earlier in the day I’ll be with a former university hockey coach and a landscaper. I’m interested in what this brew may spark in my thinking. Who knows what will happen? That’s what contracompatibility is all about.

Photo credit: TriathleteFood

Tagged as: contracompatible, david staley, jim canterucci, Personal Brilliance, universitas