16. Lateral Thinking:
Abandoning an idea entirely
and beginning a completely
new and different thought…
as opposed to modifying an
existing train of thought.
20. I've missed more than 9000 shots in
my career.
I've lost almost 300 games.
26 times, I've been trusted to take
the game winning shot and missed.
I've failed over and over and over
again in my life.
And that is why I succeed.
-Michael Jordan
23. The rules:
✴ All things are possible
✴ No boundaries exist
✴ No ideas are bad
✴ No negative comments
✴ Do not withhold ideas
✴ Humor and outrageous thought
encouraged
26. Brain
Showering
Requires a high level of energy,
and usually works because there
is little time to violate the rules
of Brainstorming.
✴ All brainstorming rules apply.
✴ Spend five minutes explaining the
problem and parameters.
✴ Spend five minutes on rapid-fire divergent
thinking.
✴ Spend five minutes on convergent
thinking based on divergent thinking
ideas
✴ Spend final five minutes deciding who will
do what with which ideas
27. Affinity
Diagrams
Organizing ideas into
common themes.
Can be used to:
✴ Draw out common themes from a large
amount of information.
✴ Discover previously unseen connections
between various ideas or information.
✴ Brainstorm root causes and solutions to a
problem.
28. Mind
Mapping
The art of tornado notes. Great
by yourself or with a group.
✴ Start with a blank sheet of paper.
✴ In the middle of the paper, write the
problem.
✴ Encircling the problem, write down
everything that occurs to you - do not limit,
edit or censor yourself.
✴ Work quickly without stopping.
✴ Finish when you’ve “run dry”, usually takes
10 to 15 minutes
✴ Take a break and come back later.
29. Chair
Jousting
Need at least two people
“jousting” and one person
taking notes. Works well with
larger groups.
✴ State the problem.
✴ Take turns and be fearless.
✴ Work quickly without stopping.
✴ Build on ideas or use lateral thinking.
✴ Use notes to conduct convergent thinking.
✴ Take a break and come back later.
30. SCAMPER
A checklist for either direct
suggestions or as starting points
for lateral thinking.
S: Substitute - components, materials, people
C: Combine - mix, combine with other
assemblies or services, integrate
A: Adapt - alter, change function, use part of
another element
M: Modify - increase or reduce in scale,
change shape, modify attributes (e.g. color)
P: Put to another use
E: Eliminate - remove elements, simplify,
reduce to core functionality
R: Reverse - turn inside out or upside down
31. Ask A Child
See the world through
fresh eyes.
✴ Why is the sky blue?
✴ Where does wind come from?
✴ How can we sell more widgets?
✴ The work of Jean Piaget
34. More…
Idea Generating Techniques
✴ Imitation
✴ Musicians, artists, athletes do it.
✴ Inspiration
✴ Go to a museum. Read magazines. Go the
movies. Put creative apps on your phone.
Go to the library. Attend a play.
✴ Elimination
✴ Throw out the first idea
✴ Accidental Revelation
✴ Visualization
✴ Repeated Examination
35.
36. …Still More
Idea Generating Techniques
✴ Google
✴ FFFFound
✴ http://ffffound.com/
✴ Visual Thesaurus
✴ http://www.visualthesaurus.com/
✴ Wordoid
✴ http://wordoid.com/
✴ Tagline Generator
✴ http://taglinegenerator.com/
✴ YouTube
✴ http://youtube.com/
37. Regular breaks enhance problem-
solving skills significantly, in part
by making it easier for workers to
sift through their memories in
search of relevant clues.
Creativity and the Mind: Discovering the Genius Within
Thomas B. Ward, Ronald A. Finke, Steven M. Smith