Deliberate Thinking Techniques

Edward de Bono (lateral thinking/parallel thinking)

Tony Buzan (mind mapping)

Edward De Bono – Lateral Thinking

Edward De Bono – Lateral Thinking

De Bono invented the term lateral thinking and wrote up his ideas in a book The Uses of Lateral Thinking (1967). These details are taken from his website: http://www.edwdebono.com 1. "You cannot dig a hole in a different place by digging the same hole deeper" This means that trying harder in the same direction may not be as useful as changing direction. Effort in the same direction (approach) will not necessarily succeed.

Edward De Bono

2. "Lateral Thinking is for changing concepts and perceptions” (the opposite of the the classic method for problem solving: working out the solution step-by-step from the given data) “With logic you start out with certain ingredients just as in playing chess you start out with given pieces. But what are those pieces? In most real life situations the pieces are not given, we just assume they are there.”

Edward De Bono “We assume certain perceptions, certain concepts and certain boundaries. Lateral thinking is concerned not with playing with the existing pieces but with seeking to change those very pieces… A healthy human brain does not want to always be creative, it is designed to figure out how to do things or how to think about things and then ‘locks’ that automatic response or behaviour into a subconscious process so that your conscious brain can focus on other matters.

Example In March 2018 Lidl launched a futuristic new umbrella with an ingenious way of staying dry – and it costs just £10. The revolutionary umbrella folds upwards, stopping you from being splashed when putting it down

Alternatives Use concepts as a breeding ground for new ideas. Concepts are general theories or ways of doing things. By thinking of a variety of ways to implement a concept is one way to generate ideas. Focus When and how to change your focus to improve your creative efforts. You can learn to focus on areas that other people have not bothered to think about. Doing so may lead you to a breakthrough idea simply because you are the first person to pay any attention to that area. Challenge Break free from the limits of traditional thinking and the accepted ways of doing things. It is based on the assumption that there may be a different and better way to do something even if there is no apparent problem with the current way.

Lateral Thinking Techniques Explained

Random Entry Use unconnected input to open up new lines of thinking. This technique draws on your mind to find connections between seemingly unrelated things. Use a randomly chosen word, picture, sound, or other stimulus to open new lines of thinking. Provocation and Movement Generate provoking thoughts and use them to build new ideas. It is a process that enables you to think outside the box in order to get a compelling list of innovative ideas to consider. Harvesting Select specific ideas that have the most value then reshape them into practical solutions. Turn starter ideas into workable ideas. This technique is done toward the end of a thinking session in order to select ideas that may prove to be valuable in the current situation or in the future. Treatment of Ideas Shape and strengthen ideas so they best fit a given organization or situation. Work with starter ideas and make them more specific to a given situation.

“There is no doubt that creativity is the most important human resource

of all. Without creativity, there would be no progress, and we would be forever repeating the

same patterns.”

Edward de Bono

Edward De Bono – Parallel Thinking

Edward De Bono - Parallel Thinking Traditional argument is totally useless approach for concept generation. Parallel Thinking, is where each thinker puts forward suggestions in parallel with the thoughts of others - not attacking the others ideas. At every moment each thinker is thinking in parallel with all the other thinkers. There does not have to be agreement. Statements or thoughts which are indeed contradictory are not argued out but laid down in parallel. In the final stage the way forward is 'designed' from the parallel thoughts that have been laid out..”

Edward De Bono

Parallel Thinking “A simple and practical way of carrying out 'parallel thinking' is the Six HatsTM method which is now being used widely around the world both because it speeds up thinking and also because it is so much more constructive then traditional argument thinking.”

Edward De Bono

Edward De Bono Parallel Thinking – The Six Thinking Hats

Edward De Bono – The concept Fan

Edward De Bono

The Concept Fan The key is the ability to recognise high level and low level concepts

Step 1 Draw a shape on a piece of paper, just right of centre. Write the problem you are trying to solve into it. To the right of it radiate lines representing possible solutions to the problem.

Step 2 If the first ideas generated are impractical, unremarkable, or do not really solve the problem take a ‘step back’ for a broader view of the problem. Draw a shape to the left of the first circle, and write the broader definition into this new shape. Link it with an arrow to show that it comes from the first circle.

Step 3 Use this as the starting point to radiate out new ideas.

Step 4 If this does not give you the idea you are looking for then repeat the process and take another step back. Keep on expanding and redefining the problem until you have a useful solution.

Tony Burzan– Mind Mapping

Tony Buzan – Mind Mapping

They help us progress from “linear” (one-dimensional) through “lateral” (two-dimensional) to “radiant” (multi-dimensional) thinking.

Tony Buzan – Mind Mapping

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlabrWv25qQ&feature=player_embedded#!

Idea generation:

preparation > incubation > illumination > verification