creative problem solving - six thinking hats and other tools by ctr

CREATIVE PROBLEM SOLVING

Six Thinking Hats and Other Tools by

Culture Transformation Resources, LLC

www.CTRConsultingServices.com

TRAINING OBJECTIVES

•  Provide you with new Tools, Tips and Techniques to improve your Problem Solving Skills.

•  Learn Six Thinking Hats Techniques. •  Revolutionize Group Problem-Solving. •  Bring Diverse Perspectives to Decision Making. •  Depersonalize Team-Dynamic Feedback. •  Save Time and Reach Decisions Quickly. •  Expand Your Thinking as a Leader. •  Facilitate Productive and Effective Meetings.

“ “ THERE ARE NO RULES HERE- WE ARE

TRYING TO CREATE SOMETHING.

- Thomas A. Edison

CHALLENGES BRAINSTORM

•  5 Minute Think Tank

•  Brainstorm as many team CHALLENGES as possible and list them on a flip chart or board.

•  Vote on the Top 1 or 2 challenges you will focus on during this session.

CHALLENGES THINK TANK

•  Mess-finding •  Data-finding •  Problem-finding •  Idea-finding •  Solution-finding •  Acceptance-finding

TRADITIONAL CPS

•  Brainstorming •  Mind Maps •  Free Association •  Free-Writing •  Incubation

COMMON IDEA-FINDING

BRAIN BASICS Left Right

Rational Pratical Logical

Linear Analytical

Mathematical

Emotional Creative

Immaginative

Intuitive Holistic

Expanded

CRITICAL VS. CREATIVE

Critical Thinking Creative Thinking

•  Analytical •  Judgmental •  Selective

•  Probability •  Left brain

•  Yes but…

•  Generative •  Non-judgmental •  Expansive

•  Possibility •  Right brain

•  Yes and…

The Thinking process is like a KAYAK with

Two Paddles: One is CREATIVE Thinking while

the other represents CRITICAL Thinking.

SIX THINKING HATS

www.CTRConsultingServices.com

An effective tool for decision making and problem solving that uses both

sides of your brain.

SIX THINKING HATS

•  Edward de Bono has written 70 books in 37 languages.

•  Rhodes Scholar to Oxford.

•  Originator of the term 'lateral thinking.’

•  Leading authority in the field of creative thinking, innovation and the direct teaching of thinking as a skill.

•  International Bestselling Author of Six Thinking Hats.

EDWARD DE BONO

SixThinkingHatsisaverysimple,effec8veparallelthinkingprocessthathelpsindividualsbemorefocused,produc8ve,andmindfullyinvolved.Apowerfultooltoaddtoyourleadershiptoolkitthat,oncelearned,canbeappliedimmediately!Youandyourteammemberscanlearnhowtoseparatethinkingintosixclearfunc8onsandrolesusing“thinkinghats.”Eachthinkingroleisiden8fiedwithacoloredsymbolicthinkinghat.Bymentallywearingandswitching"hats,"youcaneasilyfocusorredirectthoughts,conversa8ons,ormee8ngs.

SIX THINKING HATS

•  Six colors of hats for six types of thinking - Each hat identifies a type of thinking - Hats are directions of thinking

•  Hats help a group use parallel thinking - You can “put on” and “take off” a hat

SIX THINKING HATS

•  Critical, Analytical Thinking and Problem-Solving •  Strategic planning •  Running meetings •  Generating ideas •  Public Speaking •  Process Improvement •  Project Management •  Organizational Change •  and much more!

USES FOR HATS

General Hat issues

•  Direction, not description –  Set out to think in a certain direction –  Let’s have some black hat thinking…

•  Not categories of people –  Not:“He’s a black hat thinker.” –  Everyone can and should use all the hats

•  A constructive form of showing off –  Show off by being a better thinker –  Not destructive right vs. wrong argument

•  Use in whole or in part

GENERAL HAT ISSUES

General Hat issues

•  Provide a common language •  Maximize productive collaboration •  Diversity of thought while using more of our brains •  Consider issues, challenges, decisions and opportunities

systematically •  Remove ego (reduce confrontation) •  Save time •  Focus (one thing at a time) •  Think clearly and objectively •  Create, evaluate & implement action plans •  Achieve significant and meaningful results •  Make meetings more productive in less time

BENEFITS

SIX COLORS

White: neutral, objective

Red: emotional, angry

Black: serious, somber

Yellow: sunny, positive

Green: growth, fertility

Blue: cool, sky above

…AND SIX HATS

White: objective, facts & figures

Red: emotions & feelings

Black: cautious & careful

Yellow: benefits, positive & speculative

Green: creativity, ideas & lateral thinking

Blue: process, control & organization

Six Thinking Hats SIX THINKING HATS

FEELINGS

REFLECTIVE

INFORMATION

CREATIVE

BENEFITS

JUDGEMENT

Six Thinking Hats WHICH TWO HATS DO YOU USE?

FEELINGS

REFLECTIVE

INFORMATION

CREATIVE

BENEFITS

JUDGEMENT

TECHNIQUE: Choose the right hat or tool

TIME: Set limits and work within them

FOCUS: Decide on what you want to think about

:60 SECONDS

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Six Thinking Hats SIX HATS DEEP DIVE

The Blue Hat •  The control hat, organizing thinking

itself.

•  Sets the focus, calls for the use of other hats.

•  Monitors and reflects on the thinking processes used.

•  Blue is for planning.

“ “ PROBLEM SOLVING IS HUNTING.

IT IS A SAVAGE PLEASURE AND WE ARE BORN TO IT.

- Thomas Harris

THE BLUE HAT •  FACILITATOR ROLE

•  The role of the facilitator focuses and refocuses thinking

•  Makes calls for the group to make decisions

“ “ WHAT IS THE POINT OF HIRING

SMART PEOPLE IF WE DON’T EMPOWER THEM TO FIX WHAT’S BROKEN?

- Creativity, Inc.

BLUE HAT CASE STUDY

•  3 Minutes

•  Define Your Team Problem

BLUE HAT QUESTIONS

START: •  What is the main idea? •  What is the problem? •  How do we sequence the events? •  Explain? Summarize.

END: •  What is your conclusion? •  What next? Action plan? •  How was it solved?

“ “ WE BELIEVE IDEAS ONLY BECOME

GREAT WHEN THEY ARE CHALLENGED AND TESTED.

- Creativity, Inc.

THE WHITE HAT •  The information seeking hat.

•  What are the facts?

•  What information is available?

•  What is relevant? •  When wearing the white hat we are

neutral in our thinking.

“ “ IDENTIFY YOUR PROBLEMS BUT GIVE YOUR POWER AND ENERGY TO SOLUTIONS.

- Tony Robbins

THE WHITE HAT •  FACTS AND LOGIC

•  Separates fact from speculation

•  Specifies action needed to fill gaps

•  Assesses the relevance and accuracy of information

WHITE HAT CASE STUDY •  5 Minutes

•  Record as many facts about your Team Problem

WHITE HAT QUESTIONS •  Who, what, when, where? •  What do you know about? •  What are the facts about? •  What do you need or want to

know about? •  Where might you go to find out

about? •  What OPVs should we consider?

THE GREEN HAT •  This is the creative mode of

thinking.

•  Green represents growth and movement.

•  In green hat we look to new ideas and solutions.

•  Lateral thinking wears a green hat.

“ “ ALMOST ALWAYS, THE CREATIVE

DEDICATED MINORITY MADE THE WORLD BETTER.

- Martin Luther King, Jr.

THE GREEN HAT •  CREATIVITY AND IMAGINATION

•  Encourages search for new ideas

•  Seeks to modify and removes faults from existing ideas

•  Makes time for creative effort

“ “ YOU CAN’T USE UP CREATIVITY. THE MORE YOU USE, THE MORE YOU HAVE.

- Maya Angelou

THE THREE P’s •  Positive: every idea is potentially

valuable, record all

•  Prolific: the more ideas the better; build on ideas

•  Playful: it is easier to tame a wild idea than to make a boring idea interesting

OTHER USES FOR

•  Balloon Golf Tee ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ •  Toothbrush Paperclip ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________

OTHER USES FOR

Balloon Golf Tee Shower Cap Tooth Pick Traffic Sign Paper Holder Scarecrow Stake a Picnic Blanket Hot Air Balloon Center Piece Tile Spacers Decorative Lantern Replace a Lost Cap (Plug a Tube)

Toothbrush Paperclip

Brush Your Eyebrows Egg Dipper for Dying Eggs Silver Cleaner Popping Discs Paint Cleaner Jewelry Clasp Clean Fingernails Remove Hair from Brush Apply Hair Dye Unclog Bottle of Glue or Salt Shaker

Clean the Toilet Letter Opener

GREEN HAT CASE STUDY •  10 MINUTES

•  List as many ideas and solutions to your team problem.

GREEN HAT QUESTIONS •  What if? •  What is good about? •  What is the value of? •  How can we make this work? •  What are the alternatives? •  What else can we do? •  What is holding our team back?

“ “

CREATIVITY IS INVENTING, EXPERIMENTING, GROWING, TAKING RISKS, BREAKING RULES, MAKING MISTAKES AND HAVING FUN.

- Mary Lou Cook

THE RED HAT •  EMOTIONS AND FEELINGS

•  Gives permission to express feelings, hunches and intuitions

•  Help to make a decision

•  Does not require justification

•  Best expressed in a word or two

THE RED HAT •  What do you feel about the

suggestion?

•  What are your gut reactions?

•  What intuitions do you have?

•  Don’t think too long or too hard.

“ “ TO LIVE A CREATIVE LIFE,

WE MUST LOSE OUR FEAR OF BEING WRONG.

- Joseph Chilton Pearce

RED HAT CASE STUDY •  Quickly, < :30 Seconds

•  Discuss how everyone feels? (1-2 words)

RED HAT QUESTIONS •  What does your intuition tell you? •  Did your feelings change? How? •  What prejudices are present? •  What are you feeling now? •  What is your hunch about?

“ “ IF I HAD 60 MINUTES TO SOLVE A

PROBLEM, I’D SPEND 55 MINUTES DEFINING IT, AND 5 MINUTES SOLVING IT.

- Albert Einstein

THE YELLOW HAT •  The sunshine hat.

•  It is positive and constructive.

•  It is about effectiveness and getting a job done.

•  What are the benefits, the advantages?

“ “

MANAGERS OF CREATIVE COMPANIES MUST NEVER FORGET TO ASK THEMSELVES: ‘HOW DO WE TAP THE BRAINPOWER OF OUR PEOPLE?’

- Creativity, Inc.

THE YELLOW HAT •  LOGICAL POSITIVES

•  Explores Benefits of Ideas

•  Must give reasons why an idea is valuable and might work

•  Reinforces creative ideas and new directions

YELLOW HAT CASE STUDY •  5 MINUTES

•  Discuss the Benefits of Your Team’s Ideas and Solutions

YELLOW HAT QUESTIONS

•  What are the Benefits? •  What is good about? •  What are positive outcomes? •  What is the value? •  Can this be made to work? •  What did you like about?

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THE BLACK HAT •  The caution hat. Devil’s advocate.

•  In black hat the thinker points out errors or pit-falls.

•  What are the risks or dangers involved?

•  Identifies difficulties and problems.

“ “ I HAVE NOT FAILED. I’VE JUST FOUND 10,000 WAYS THAT WON’T WORK.

- Thomas Edison

THE BLACK HAT •  LOGICAL NEGATIVES

•  Explores why an idea may not work

•  Must give logical reasons for concerns

•  Points out difficulties and weaknesses

BLACK HAT CASE STUDY •  5 MINUTES

•  What are all of the negatives and pitfalls of your team’s ideas and solutions?

BLACK HAT QUESTIONS

•  What should you be cautious about?

•  What are the consequences? •  What are the pitfalls? •  Why won’t/didn’t this work? •  What weaknesses exist? •  What are the risks?

THE BLACK HAT •  Is there someone you work with

who tends to overuse black hat thinking?

•  What is the impact?

“ “

THE CREATIVE CULTURE IS THAT ITS PEOPLE FEEL FREE TO SHARE IDEAS, OPINIONS, AND CRITICISMS. LACK OF CANDOR, IF UNCHECKED, ULTIMATELY LEADS TO DYSFUNCTIONAL ENVIRONMENTS.

- Creativity, Inc.

THE RED HAT CHECK •  How does everyone feel now?

(1-2 words)

BLUE HAT WRAP UP

•  Conclusions •  What next? •  Action Plans

Blue Hat Managing The Thinking

Setting The Focus Making Summaries

Overviews • Conclusions Action Plans

Green Hat Creative Thinking

Possibilities • Alternatives New Ideas • New Concepts

Overcome Black Hat Problems & Reinforce Yellow Hat Values

Black Hat Why It May Not Work Cautions • Dangers Problems • Faults Logical Reasons Must Be Given

Yellow Hat Why It May Work Values & Benefits

(Both Known & Potential) The Good In It

Logical Reasons Must Be Given

Red Hat Feelings & Intuition

Emotions Or Hunches “At This Point”

No Reasons or Justification Keep It Short

Information & Data Neutral & Objective

Checked & Believed Facts Missing Information & Where To Source It

FOCUS

General Hat issues SUMMARY OF SIX HATS

SIX HATS

General Hat issues HATS REMINDERS

•  Use any hat, as often as needed •  Sequence can be preset or evolving •  Not necessary to use every hat •  Allow specific time for each hat (generally, short) •  Requires discipline from each person

– Stay in the idiom •  Adds an element of play, play along •  Can be used by individuals and groups

General Hat issues HAT QUIZ

1.  “Retooling will take a minimum of six months.”

2.  “I am unhappy with the merger.”

3.  “Our product is the most expensive on market?”

4.  “It will increase our profile in the community?”

5.  “Low staff morale is causing high attrition.”

6.  “The meeting seems to be drifting.”

General Hat issues HAT QUIZ (CONT’D)

7.  “Joe told me he was worried about a staff issue.”

8.  “We tried that and staff are not supportive.”

9.  “It would be easy to implement a new logo.”

10.  “We could offer two for the price of one.”

11.  “I am concerned about staff morale.”

12.  “Are we ready to commit to a decision?”

13.  “What if we gave everyone an additional day off?”

TECHNIQUE: TRY ON EVERY HAT

PLANS

FACTS

CREATIVE

FEELINGS

BENEFITS

JUDGE

FEELINGS

DECISION

Process,Agenda

Informa8on,Data

Ideas,Solu8ons

GutIns8nct,Intui8on

Values,Posi8ves

PiZalls,Problems

GutIns8nct,Intui8on

NextSteps,Ac8onPlans

Whatdowewanttoaccomplish?

Whatisthecurrentinforma8onandfactsontheissueorproblem?

Whatarenewcrea8veideasoralterna8vesinsolvingtheproblem?

Howdoeseveryonefeelaboutthecurrentsitua8on,issueorproblem?

Whataretheposi8veaspectsofthecurrentsitua8on,issueorproblem?

Whatarethenega8veaspectsorpiZalls?

Howdoeseveryonefeelnowthatwehaveworkedontheissue?

Whatconclusions,decisionsorsummariescanwemakeinmovingforward?

MY LEADERSHIP ACTION ITEMS

CREATIVE PROBLEM SOLVING

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