--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only way to maximize group…" description: "\"The only way to maximize group creativity—to make the whole more than the sum of its parts—is to encourage a candid discussion of mistakes. In part, th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d41/jonah-lehrer-9286_acceptance_the-only-way-to-maximize-group-creativit_828942.jpg" --- # The only way to maximize group creativity—to make the… ![“The only way to maximize group creativity—to make the whole more than the sum of its parts—is to encourage a candid discussion of mistakes. In part, this is because the acceptance of error reduces cost. When you believe your flaws will be quickly corrected by the group, you're less worried about…” quote by Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d41/jonah-lehrer-9286_acceptance_the-only-way-to-maximize-group-creativit_828942.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d41/jonah-lehrer-9286_acceptance_the-only-way-to-maximize-group-creativit_828942.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d41/jonah-lehrer-9286_acceptance_the-only-way-to-maximize-group-creativit_828942.jpg) > “The only way to maximize group creativity—to make the whole more than the sum of its parts—is to encourage a candid discussion of mistakes. In part, this is because the acceptance of error reduces cost. When you believe your flaws will be quickly corrected by the group, you're less worried about perfecting your contribution, which leads to a more candid conversation. We can only get it right when we talk about what we got wrong.” [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Group creativity thrives when mistakes are openly discussed, lowering fear and encouraging honest contribution. **In simple terms:** Openly discuss errors to boost teamwork. Key Takeaway Talk about mistakes. Themes creativity teamwork learning Mood analytical encouraging Type strategic inspirational When to use this quote - business meetings - design sprints - research labs Key Concepts psychology of error collective intelligence Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance error discussion with confidence? - What structures support constructive critique? A Different Perspective Risk of over‑emphasizing errors, stifling confidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acceptance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptance/) [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Believe Flaws](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe-flaws-541528/) [Candid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/candid/) [Contribution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contribution/) [Conversation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation/) [Corrected Group](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corrected-group-541529/) [Cost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cost/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Discussion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discussion/) [Discussion Mistakes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discussion-mistakes-541525/) [Errors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/errors/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Flaws](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flaws/) [Group Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/group-creativity-541526/) [Groups](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/groups/) [Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake/) [Mistakes Acceptance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistakes-acceptance-541527/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Worried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worried/) ## Related quotes > [We focused attention on what some believe are the flaws in the process leading to Senate consideration of the bill and the flaws of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-reid/we-focused-attention-on-what-some-believe-are-the-flaws-in-the/) [Harry Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-reid/) > [There is no such thing as group originality, group creativity or group perspicacity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-land/there-is-no-such-thing-as-group-originality-group-creativity-or-group/) [Edwin Land](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-land/) > [...candid still photography had taken over... What was interesting was that the photographs came without any intention of instructing you... You're like a cat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-pennebaker/candid-still-photography-had-taken-over-what-was-interesting-was-that/) [D. A. Pennebaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-pennebaker/) > [To be totally candid, it was really born out of a panic attack the summer between my sophomore and junior years, when I realized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/to-be-totally-candid-it-was-really-born-out-of-a-panic-attack-the/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [If I were to make public these tapes, containing blunt and candid remarks on many different subjects, the confidentiality of the office of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-nixon/if-i-were-to-make-public-these-tapes-containing-blunt-and-candid/) [Richard M. 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And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/what-does-it-really-mean-to-be-a-leftist-in-the-early-part-of-the/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [When they finally did dare it, at first with stolen glances and then candid ones, they had to smile. They were uncommonly proud. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-s-skind/when-they-finally-did-dare-it-at-first-with-stolen-glances-and-then/) [Patrick Süskind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-s-skind/) > [Let me just be candid: My party is full of racists. And the real reason a considerable portion of my party wants President Obama…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/let-me-just-be-candid-my-party-is-full-of-racists-and-the-real-reason/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [Smile and others will smile back. Smile to show how transparent, how candid you are. Smile if you have nothing to say. Most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baudrillard/smile-and-others-will-smile-back-smile-to-show-how-transparent-how/) [Jean Baudrillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baudrillard/) > [Yet if strict criticism should till frown on our method, let candor and good humor forgive what is done to the best of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-fielding/yet-if-strict-criticism-should-till-frown-on-our-method-let-candor/) [Sarah Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-fielding/) > [A full and candid admission of one's mistakes should make proof against its repetition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/a-full-and-candid-admission-of-one-s-mistakes-should-make-proof/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [People are afraid because I'm candid. They're always worried I'm going to get into trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-madden/people-are-afraid-because-i-m-candid-they-re-always-worried-i-m-going/) [Steve Madden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-madden/) > [Combining the experience of a seasoned university president with the analysis of a respected legal scholar, Derek Bok explores what he concludes are 'signs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-h-t-rhodes/combining-the-experience-of-a-seasoned-university-president-with-the/) [Frank H. T. Rhodes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-h-t-rhodes/) ## More by Jonah Lehrer > [It's a hard thing to describe. It's just this sense that you got something to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/it-s-a-hard-thing-to-describe-it-s-just-this-sense-that-you-got/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [“When the mind is denied the emotional sting of losing , it never figures out how to win.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/when-the-mind-is-denied-the-emotional-sting-of-losing-it-never/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [“Insights, after all, come from the overlap between seemingly unrelated thoughts. They emerge when concepts are transposed, when the rules of one place are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/insights-after-all-come-from-the-overlap-between-seemingly-unrelated/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [“Every brilliant experiment, like every great work of art, starts with an act of imagination. Unfortunately, our current culture subscribes to a very narrow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/every-brilliant-experiment-like-every-great-work-of-art-starts-with/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [“You break out of the box by stepping into shackles. From Imagine: How Creativity Works pg 23 (hardcover)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/you-break-out-of-the-box-by-stepping-into-shackles-from-imagine-how/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [So let's not pretend that travel is always fun. We don't spend 10 hours lost in the Louvre because we like it, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/so-let-s-not-pretend-that-travel-is-always-fun-we-don-t-spend-10/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [“In fact, most of us see perseverance as a distinctly uncreative approach, the sort of strategy that people with mediocre ideas are forced to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/in-fact-most-of-us-see-perseverance-as-a-distinctly-uncreative/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [Grit is the stubborn refusal to quit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/grit-is-the-stubborn-refusal-to-quit/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [“Even when alternative views are clearly wrong, being exposed to them still expands our creative potential. In a way, the power of dissent is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/even-when-alternative-views-are-clearly-wrong-being-exposed-to-them/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [Cities force us to interact with strangers and with the strange. They pry the mind open. And that is why they are the idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/cities-force-us-to-interact-with-strangers-and-with-the-strange-they/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [Distance and difference are the secret tonic of creativity. When we get home, home is still the same. But something in our mind has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/distance-and-difference-are-the-secret-tonic-of-creativity-when-we/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [In fact, the only way to remain creative over time--to not be undone by our expertise--is to experiment with ignorance, to stare at things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/in-fact-the-only-way-to-remain-creative-over-time-to-not-be-undone-by/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [“Science has discovered that, like any work of literature, the human genome is a text in need of commentary, for what Eliot said of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/science-has-discovered-that-like-any-work-of-literature-the-human/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [...new ideas are merely several old thoughts that occur at the exact same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/new-ideas-are-merely-several-old-thoughts-that-occur-at-the-exact/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [Like a work of art, we exceed our materials. Science needs art to frame the mystery, but art needs science so that not everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/like-a-work-of-art-we-exceed-our-materials-science-needs-art-to-frame/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) [Explore all 74 Jonah Lehrer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) ## More Acceptance quotes > [We only enter into the full life if our faith gives thanks. Because how else do we accept His free gift of salvation if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/we-only-enter-into-the-full-life-if-our-faith-gives-thanks-because/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Losing someone is easy, but accepting it is hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/losing-someone-is-easy-but-accepting-it-is-hard/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When one fib becomes due as it were, you must forge another to take up the old acceptance; and so the stock of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/when-one-fib-becomes-due-as-it-were-you-must-forge-another-to-take-up/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) > [Acceptance of death when it arrives is one thing, but to allow it to upstage the joys of living is ingratitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-blythe/acceptance-of-death-when-it-arrives-is-one-thing-but-to-allow-it-to/) [Ronald Blythe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-blythe/) > [“Loving someone who does not love you back hurts, alot, i know. It is liking seeing these pair of shoes at the retail store…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nomthandazo-tsembeni/loving-someone-who-does-not-love-you-back-hurts-alot-i-know-it-is/) [Nomthandazo Tsembeni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nomthandazo-tsembeni/) > [Take responsibily for your past, the bad memories of poor decisions you took were your choices once, and you liked them for the moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aruho-marvin/take-responsibily-for-your-past-the-bad-memories-of-poor-decisions/) [Aruho Marvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aruho-marvin/) > [Let us learn to accept and appreciate things now, and we'll find more happiness in every moment we live. Happiness comes when we stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-rambharack/let-us-learn-to-accept-and-appreciate-things-now-and-we-ll-find-more/) [Glen Rambharack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-rambharack/) > [“Love first; ask questions later.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-courtney/love-first-ask-questions-later/) [Jeremy Courtney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-courtney/) > [“There was beauty in chaos, she'd just never known it before.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-linsmeier/there-was-beauty-in-chaos-she-d-just-never-known-it-before/) [Amanda Linsmeier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-linsmeier/) > [Accepting the challenges in life makes it interesting and overcoming them makes it eloquent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/accepting-the-challenges-in-life-makes-it-interesting-and-overcoming/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Acceptance is the only thing you should teach. Be it Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Dalit, you must inculcate acceptance, not tolerance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamal-haasan/acceptance-is-the-only-thing-you-should-teach-be-it-christian-muslim/) [Kamal Haasan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamal-haasan/) > [There just seems to be more acceptance now of other kinds of British films, than the picture-postcard ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-roth/there-just-seems-to-be-more-acceptance-now-of-other-kinds-of-british/) [Tim Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-roth/) > [You should never hate anyone, even your worst enemies. Everyone has something good about them. You have to find the redeeming quality and love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeannette-walls/you-should-never-hate-anyone-even-your-worst-enemies-everyone-has/) [Jeannette Walls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeannette-walls/) > [The sense that in this universe we are treated as strangers, the longing to be acknowledged, to meet with some response, to bridge some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-sense-that-in-this-universe-we-are-treated-as-strangers-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 3,960 Acceptance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The only way to maximize group creativity—to make the whole more than the sum of its parts—is to encourage a candid discussion of mistakes. In part, this is because the acceptance of error reduces cost. 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