Challenge popular wisdom to break free from groupthink

Early in his career, John noticed that every colleague praised late-night work sessions. Meetings ran until midnight, and a “hustle harder” mantra reigned. But he was an early bird and felt groggy at 11pm. One afternoon, after weeks of dragging, he quietly shifted to morning brainstorming—at 6am, with just a cup of tea and a whiteboard.

At first, people raised eyebrows. Yet by the third week, his early-bird sessions produced clearer outlines and faster decisions. His teammates—even the night-owls—began showing up on time, curious about the fresh energy. The team quietly adopted a hybrid schedule: late meetings moved earlier, and productivity improved.

John realized that popular conventions often go unchallenged, even when they hurt performance. By testing an alternative and sharing the data, he helped rewrite the team’s rhythms. Sometimes, the smartest move is simply to ask, “What if everyone else is wrong?”

You start by identifying two widely held assumptions in your world, then research one contrarian viewpoint for each. Test one alternative method for a week, collecting simple data on how it performs. Finally, compare your results to the status quo and decide whether to keep experimenting. Honest experiments can reveal shortcuts that consensus thinking misses. Give it a try this week.