The document provides information on creative thinking techniques. It discusses 4 techniques: 1) Clever Copying which involves finding solutions to similar problems in other fields, 2) Defying Assumptions which challenges assumptions that may be limiting solutions, 3) Using the Context which looks for solutions already present in the situation, and 4) Changing Parameters which plays with changing elements like reducing, combining, or changing aspects in place or time. Examples are given for each technique to illustrate how it can be applied to solve challenges.

1. WELKOM
WILLKOMMEN
WELCOME
BIENVENUE

2. N TIEF DE
E A F IN
V FTIE VE
O IE I EN
T EA
A R T D
G NK
C KI N E
V IN D EN
H IE F K
T T
N A E N IN
V

3. Before we actually start!
How many years do you think there are
between the introduction of the can and
the introduction of the can-opener?

5. An idea can turn to dust or magic,
depending on the talent that rubs
against it.

6. A few cases…….

7. Case 1

8. Case 2
Why? Creativity for Change
To find opportunities & to quickly adapt to alterations

9. Case 3

12. Applied Creative Thinking
Definition
The process in which knowledge, thoughts
and inspiration are translated into new
insights, solutions, ideas and concepts,
which have an actual added value for
the
context they're developed for.

13. A challenge!
How many squares do you see?

14. I V
IN E T H T I
K IV
N T A !T
A CR L
E G E T
I N F F IC U
K I
N D C R
G IN
IN H
K

15. The creative process is almost
exclusively done in our minds!

16. 5
Senses
11.200.000
bits/sec

17. 60 bits/sec
Consciously
factor 200.000

18. Our brain is a
network of neurons
100 Billion
More than 3000 years!

19. Patterns…
Our automatic thinking system prevents creative thinking
Millions of bits of information reach our senses per second
The brain is lazy (efficient)
Incoming stimuli follow the paths, proven most successful
The brain sorts data automatically in existing patterns (archive)

20. Aoccdrnig !? rscheearch at an Elingsh
Patronen to
unervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the
ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng
is taht the frist and lsat ltteer is at the rghit
pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you
can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm.
Tihs is bcuseae we do not raed
ervey lteter by itslef
but the wrod as a wlohe.

21. Sum
mer
2009
, La
douc
e Fra
nce

22. Why is creative thinking difficult?
The human brain is
a talented pattern maker, and
an excellent pattern recognizer
Unfortunately...
.
a poor pattern breaker.

23. Cerebral hemispheres
Left Right
Logical Creativity in a Images
Serial processing
Reasoning
business-context Parallel
processing
Analysis is about the use of Overview
Abstraction Emotion
Numbers both brain sides: Geometry
Language
“whole brain Music
Art
thinking”

24. Try it for yourself!
1-2-3

25. Who is the president of the USA?
What year is it?
WRONG What color is my car?
Who was Ghandi?
Where are we now?

26. Thoughts in our mind always flow
in a path of least resistance.

27. Active diversion is the key
to creative thinking

28. Logical Thinking vs. Creative Thinking

29. Logical Thinking vs. Creative Thinking

30. Logical Thinking vs. Creative Thinking

31. Logical Thinking vs. Creative Thinking

32. Logical Thinking vs. Creative Thinking

33. But there are some persistent myths?

34. Me? I’m not creative!

35. More ideas, better ideas!

36. The crazier, the better!

37. How can you make a difference?
Perso Press s
n ces
Pro

39. Mental Locks!
Follow the rules That’s not my area
The right answer Avoid ambiguity
That’s not logical Don’t be foolish
Be practical To err is wrong
Play is frivolous I’m not creative

40. Playfulness -
Humor
Challenge Conflict
Dynamism
Risk
Idea Support
taking
Trust –
Idea time Openness
Debate
Freedom

41. Red Bull London

42. Disney Store Headquarters

43. Box Thinking!

44. What is the Box?

45. Step 1: Explore in- and outside the box

46. Explore

47. Explore

48. Step 2: Generate ideas through the box

49. Generate
A: Purge
B: Thinking Techniques

50. Step 3: Adjust the box

51. “If I’d asked my customers
what they wanted, they’d said a
faster horse”

52. Step 4: Fit ideas into the box

53. Nokia: making mobile technology
accessible for the elderly
It’s like simple math: + - / *

54. Stap 5: Play with ideas in the box

55. Prototype

56. Step 6: Rank ideas in the box

57. Step 6: Rank ideas in the box
Nobody ever achieved
greatness by playing
it safe!
Have the guts!

58. Step 7: Enhance ideas in the box

59. Creativity is
1 % inspiration and
99% perspiration

60. Step 8: Sell ideas from the box

61. Step 8: Sell ideas from the box
37 grams of
saturated fat
Does this stick?

62. Step 8: Sell ideas from the box
Does this stick?

63. Preparation
Space
Time
Mindset
Challenge &
Constraints

64. If the only Principle 1 a hammer, you
tool you have is
tend to see every problem as a nail!
Springboards

65. N ETH
G THI V
IN E
K IV TI ES
A U
AT CRE I Q
G CHN INKIN
IN TE H I NK
T H
4 IVE T
N T E EAT I
A TIV R
E A C I
R E G IN K

66. 4 Thinking Techniques
Clever Copying
Defy Assumptions
Use the Context
Change Parameters

67. !
Technique 1 - Clever Copying
STRY!
NATURE !
TY!
CIE
It is worth the trouble looking whether a
INDU
similar challenge has already been solved in
SO
an other field.
This is not about direct copying, but making
smart use of already proven solution
! directions.
This thinking principle is based on abstraction
of your challenge to enlarge the area in which
you can find useful solution directions.
Step 1 Formulate your challenge and make sure it is clear and concrete
CHALLENGE
E.g.: How can we make a new and safer American football helmet?
Step 2 What is the essence of your challenge? What problem do you actually need to solve? In other words:
what do you need to be creative about?
E.g.: How can we minimize the impact from direct hits on the head and brains?
Step 3 Elevate the essence of your challenge to a higher abstraction level
E.g.: How can you protect something fragile in a bumpy environment?
Step 4 In what other fields is this essential question already solved?
E.g.: The packaging industry (bubble wraps, polystyrene, air cushions)
The car industry (air bags, crumple zone) .
Nature (bump on head of mail goats, woodpecker)
Step 5 Translate the found solution to your own challenge in a clever way
E.g.: Some construction elements of the football helmet are derived from the way the skull of a woodpecker is
constructed, like the flexible air cushions that are cleverly copied from the sponge like mass within the
woodpecker’s skull to absorb the impact of a blow to the head.

68. Silkscreening Butter
Introducing ‘Daily Fresh Sandwiches’ in their own
stores was an obvious opportunity for Marks &
Spencer, but how the company drove efficiencies into
the sandwich business was anything but obvious.
Listen to Martin van Zwanenberg, former division
director for food technology: “At the time we entered
the sandwich business I was responsible for home
services technology and food technology. When I
studied the sandwich business, I saw that one of the
things we did was to butter the bread by hand. If we
wanted to expand, this was unacceptable. We’d have
to have everyone in the company buttering bread. A
few days later I was visiting a supplier who makes bed
sheets for Marks & Spencer. The supplier was using a
silk-screen process to print patterns on the sheets. I
asked the supplier whether we might borrow their
equipment. A couple of weeks later, we filled up one of
the ink vats with butter and screen printed butter onto
cotton. Now we silk-screen butter onto bread.

69. Assignment 1
Ge nerate
ns f or
olutio ing
S
the gr ow
m of
proble
a ffi c j ams.
tr

70. Technique 2 - Defy assumptions
Everybody, creative or not, makes assumptions. Whether they are
created from earlier experiences or because someone told us so,
they sometimes prevent us from thinking of the most powerful,
yet simple solutions.
Which assumptions are imposed by the context, someone else or
yourself?
Which assumptions can you challenge to open up completely
new solution directions, that were there already all the time?
Step 1 Formulate your challenge and make sure it is clear and concrete
E.g.: How can we shorten the cue for counters in the supermarket?
Step 2 Try to come up with several solutions for your challenge. .
E.g.: We create more pay desks in order to help more people at the same time, we help people pick the shortest
row to prevent irritation, we make sure the cashiers work faster to help more people at the same time to shorten the
waiting time.
Step 3 Look at the solutions you came up with up and spot the things they have in common
E.g.: The cues are formed before a fixed counter and it’s important to pick the shortest line, we help people
one after the other and people do nothing while waiting.
Step 4 What would happen if we ignore one or more of the assumptions?
E.g.: People are not helped one after another at a fixed location, leads to: it doesn’t matter where you are in the
shop to pay and you don’t cue before a fixed desk, as long as you have paid before you leave the store, leads to: RFID
chips track your shopping's wireless and you can pay at one of the paying machines
with your credit card.

71. Millennium Bridge Newcastle
The Gateshead Millennium Bridge is a pedestrian and
cyclist tilt bridge spanning the River Tyne in England
between Gateshead's Quays arts quarter on the south
bank, and the Quayside of Newcastle upon Tyne on
the north bank. The award-winning structure was
conceived and designed by architects Wilkinson Eyre
and structural engineers Gifford.The bridge is
sometimes referred to as the 'Blinking Eye Bridge’ or
the 'Winking Eye Bridge’ due to its shape and its tilting
method.
The bridge’s design is due to one of the constraints in
the design brief. The bridge had to open and close for
a minimum amount of energy.
The architect could not solve the problem with the
conventional solutions. During the design process they
chose to defy one of the largest assumptions of all. A
bridge should go from A to B in a straight line.
Until today it is the only bridge on earth that has this
unique and innovative design and solution.

72. Assignment 2
Design a innovative table

73. Sharing Space
Roof tiles are so heavy, when transported, the truck
has only a pile of about 50 cm of them in the back.
Stack them any higher and the maximum amount of
weight is reached.
An owner of a company in the Netherlands who
produced roofing tiles always found this to be an
irritation, because he transported also a lot of air.
One day he drove by a company, also in the
Netherlands, that produces roofs made out of
Styrofoam. Thinking about how much Styrofoam
weighs, he got an epiphany.
He called the owner of the roofing company and asked
him if his company exported to the countries he
exported his roof tiles to. After hearing that this was
not the case he convinced the owner to do so and
share the transporting costs. (Styrofoam does not
weigh anything so the air in the trucks was filled with
Styrofoam)

74. Technique 3 – Use the Context
There are some challenges in which the context of the challenge
can help us in solving our challenge by using things that are
already there or actions that already taking place.
What things are already there in your context or what actions do
already happen in your context.
How can we use these elements and solutions in a solution for
our challenge?
Step 1 Formulate your challenge and make sure it is clear and concrete
E.g.: How can I get 40 crates of beer to my apartment on the third floor for my party tonight?
Step 2 Make a list of things already there in the context.
E.g.: Stairs, myself, roommates, guests, bike, neighbors, boxes, elevator etc.
Step 3 Make a list of al actions taken place in your context
E.g.: Elevator moving up and down the whole day. Guests arriving, Dancing at party, Neighbors arriving and leaving,
Roommates arriving and leaving. Phone ringing etc.
Step 4 Find a solution by using one or more things and actions from your list.
E.g.: Put a sign on the elevator door that asks all arriving guests to bring up one crate of beer per person.

75. Crowd Control
Everyone has at least once in his live stood behind a
temporary fence during a parade or a concert. These
fences are found all over the world.
These fences however have one big safety issue. If
the crowd behind it panics and wants to flee. The more
people pushing against these safety fences, the higher
the chance that it will topple over. When this happens
a lot of casualties will come from falling over these
metal fences. Broken and bruised legs is a common
injury in these cases.
When redesigning these fences, after another tragedy,
the designer came up with a very smart idea. He
realized that the crowd has besides a horizontal force
that topples the fences, also has a vertical force in its
weight.
He designed a fence with a horizontal piece mounted
to the vertical part of the fence. This way the whole
system strengthens when more people are pushing
against the fence.

76. Assignment 3
Find a solution for spraying water on the
windshield, without using an electromotor.

77. Technique 4 - Change parameters
When solving a problem, in most cases, we
add something new to our old situation to
Combine solve the problem.
Turn
upside By carefully analyzing our problem, finding
Reduce down the elements that make it what it is (the unique
Break
symmetry Change elements) and treat these elements differently
Increase in place by playing with functionality, we can find new
or time... solutions without adding new elements.
Step 1 Formulate your challenge and make sure it is clear and concrete
E.g.: How can we shorten the time to market of Benetton clothing, and still make sure the colors
of the season match with the fashion shows?
Step 2 Break down your challenge in the unique elements of the context.
E.g.: Benetton wrote down the process steps for bringing new garments to the market and
formulated what contextual elements define each step. The unique situation is that “ready to wear
manufacturers” have to wait for the “prêt a porter shows” to see what colors will be in fashion and then
can start the manufacturing process.
Step 3 Treat each element as if it were separate from the others and play with it. You can change the
parameters (literally or metaphorical) of the element by asking yourself: What if I reduce
this element? What if I turn it upside down? What if I combine or integrate two elements? What if I split
functionality of this element? What if I change this element in place or time? .
E.g.: Benetton changed the place of the process step of dying the white cotton cloth to the end of
the complete process, so that before the cloth was given a certain color, the shirts and trousers were
already sown. After it was clear which colors were “in fashion” the uncolored clothes first were colored and
brought to the market within weeks.

78. Find a solution for shooting clay pigeons,
without having to pick up the pieces.
Assignment 4

79. Ideas must work through the brains
and arms of the good men, or
they are no better than dreams

80. 10 Golden Rules

81. And remember to…….
Never think outside the
box again