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Title: Mystic%20Journey


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C R E A T I V I T Y
Problems cannot be solved by the same level of
thinking that created them
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content
  • Creativity
  • Creativity techniques

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"God invented the giraffe, the elephant, the cat.
He has no real style. He just goes on trying
things. P. Picasso
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creativity
  • noun
  • The power or ability to invent creativeness,
    ingeniousness, ingenuity, invention,
    inventiveness, originality.
  • Creativity is a human mental phenomenon based
    around the deployment of mental skills and/or
    conceptual tools, which, in turn, originate and
    develop innovation, inspiration, or insight.

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Creativity techniques
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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Inventing is the oldest human activity and the
    humanization of creativity procedures or
    techniques begins with the invention of the first
    tools.
  • Below are listed a number of creativity
    techniques to help with creative thinking.
  • There are at least 200 different creativity
    techniques and tools available, listed below are
    some of these.

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Alternative Scenarios
  • Analogies
  • Analysis of Interactive Decision Areas (AIDA)
  • Anonymous voting
  • Assumption surfacing
  • Attribute listing (and variants)

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Backward Forward Planning
  • Boundary examination
  • Boundary relaxation
  • Brainstorming
  • Brain sketching
  • Brain WritingBrain writing 6-3-5
  • Brain writing game
  • Brain writing pool
  • Browsing
  • Brutethink
  • Bug listing
  • Bullet proofing
  • Bunches of bananas

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Card story boards
  • Cartoon story board
  • CATWOE
  • Causal mapping
  • Charrette
  • Cherry SplitCircle of Opportunity
  • Clarification
  • Classic Brainstorming
  • Collective notebook (CNB)
  • Comparison tables
  • Component detailing
  • Concept Fan
  • Consensus mapping
  • Constrained brain writing
  • Contradiction Analysis
  • Controlling imagery
  • Crawford slip writing
  • Creative problem solving (CPS)
  • Criteria for idea-finding potential
  • Critical path diagrams (CPD)

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Decision seminar
  • Delphi
  • DO IT
  • Dialectical approaches
  • Dimensional analysis
  • Drawing
  • Essay writing
  • Estimate-discuss estimate
  • Exaggeration (magnify or minify)
  • Excursions

14
Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Factors in 'selling' ideas
  • False Faces
  • Fishbone diagram
  • Five W's and H
  • Flow charts for action planning
  • Focus groups
  • Focusing
  • Force-field analysis
  • Force-fit game
  • Free association'
  • Fresh eye' and networking

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Gallery method
  • Gap analysis
  • Goal orientation
  • Greetings cards
  • Help, hinder
  • Heuristic ideation technique (HIT)
  • Highlighting

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Idea advocate
  • Imagery for answering questions
  • Imagery manipulation
  • Imaginary Brainstorming
  • Implementation checklists
  • Improved nominal group technique
  • Interpretive structural modeling
  • Keeping a dream diary
  • Kepner and Tregoe's method
  • KJ-method

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Laddering
  • Lateral Thinking
  • Listing
  • Listing pros and cons
  • Metaplan information market
  • Mind mapping
  • Morphological analysis
  • Morphological Forced Connections
  • Multiple redefinition

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Negative brainstorming
  • Nominal group technique (NGT)
  • Nominal-interacting technique
  • Notebook
  • Observer and merged viewpoints
  • Osborn's checklist
  • Other people's definitions
  • Other people's viewpoints

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Paired comparison
  • Panel consensus
  • Paraphrasing key words
  • Personal balance-sheet
  • Phases of integrated problem solving (PIPS)
  • Pictures as idea triggers
  • Pin cardsPMI (Plus, Minus, Interaction)
  • Plan Do Check Act (PDCA)
  • Plusses, potentials and concerns
  • Potential-problem analysis (PPA)
  • Preliminary questions
  • Problem-centred leadership (PCL)
  • Problem inventory analysis (PIA)
  • Problem Reversal
  • Progressive hurdles
  • Progressive revelation
  • Provocation

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Q-sort
  • Quality circles
  • Random stimuli of various kinds
  • Rawlinson Brainstorming
  • Receptivity to ideas
  • Reframing values
  • Relational words
  • Relaxation
  • Reversals
  • Role storming

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • 7-Step Model
  • SCAMMPERRSCAMPER
  • Sculptures
  • Search conference
  • Sequential-attributes matrix
  • Similarities and Differences
  • Simple rating methods
  • Simplex
  • Six Thinking Hats
  • Slice and Dice
  • Snowball technique
  • Soft systems method
  • Stakeholder analysis
  • Sticking dots
  • Stimulus analysis
  • Story writing
  • Strategic assumption testing
  • Strategic choice approach
  • Strategic management process
  • Strategic Options Development and Analysis (SODA)
  • Successive element integration
  • Super Group
  • Super heroes
  • SWOT Analysis
  • Synectics
  • Systematized Direct Induction (SDI)

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Technology Monitoring
  • Think Tank
  • TILMAG
  • Transactional planning
  • Trigger Sessions
  • Trigger method
  • TRIZ
  • Using 'crazy' ideas
  • Using experts

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Creativity techniques
  • Creativity Techniques
  • Value brainstorming
  • Value engineering
  • Visual brainstorming
  • Visualising a goal
  • Who are you?'
  • Why?' etc. - repeatable questions
  • Wishing
  • Working with dreams and images

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Creativity techniques
  • Alternative Scenarios
  • Scenarios are qualitatively different
    descriptions of plausible futures. They can give
    you a deeper understanding of potential
    environments in which you might have to operate
    and what you may need to do in the present.
    Scenario analysis helps you to identify what
    environmental factors to monitor over time, so
    that when the environment shifts, you can
    recognize where it is shifting to.

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Creativity techniques
  • Analogies
  • You use an analogy when you say that something is
    like something else (in some respects but not in
    others). For example a jumbo jet is like an
    albatross in that they both fly, they both have
    wings, they can both travel for a long way
    without landing, and both can sense where they
    are going but they are unlike in that they have
    different means of propulsion, are made of
    different materials, etc.
  • Analogies are a key feature of many approaches to
    creativity. For instance, they were central to
    the earlier forms of Synectics and they are an
    important element in various types of Excursion.

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Creativity techniques
  • Analysis of Interactive Decision Ares (AIDA)
  • AIDA (Analysis of Interactive Decision Areas -
    Luckman, Operational Research Quarterly, 1967
    Friend and Hickling, Planning under pressure The
    strategic choice approach. Pergamon Press
    Oxford, 1987) is used when you have several
    inter-connected problems where the solution
    choices for one will affect the solution choices
    for another. You therefore need to evaluate the
    solutions as a group, but the number of
    theoretically possible group combinations may be
    large. AIDA identifies combinations that cannot
    coexist and can therefore be eliminated, hence
    substantially reducing the number of combinations
    you need to compare.

27
Creativity techniques
  • Anonymous voting
  • The reason for using anonymity in a creativity
    method is to encourage participants to feel safe
    enough to take creative risks. It is useful for
    groups that have significant pressures or
    anxieties between participants. It is a basic
    feature of all nominal group methods and is an
    excellent way of protecting people against
    accidental or unintentional inter-personal
    pressures, in climates where there is basic
    goodwill towards differences of viewpoint, and a
    commitment to respecting them.
  • Methods such as Anonymous Voting cannot offer a
    particularly robust form of anonymity, and in
    climates where there is a serious risk of
    bullying or significant levels of paranoid
    anxiety, this method could lead naive
    participants to exposing themselves to
    unacceptable risks, particularly when they return
    to the outside world. Facilitators need to be
    clear that the levels of risk they are asking
    participants to take are realistic. (There are
    software systems such as "Group Works" which
    offer much better anonymity.)

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Creativity techniques
  • Assumption surfacing
  • The aim of this technique is to make underlying
    assumptions more visible.
  • 1. Identify a particular choice you have made,
    and ask yourself why you feel it is the best
    choice i.e. what assumptions guide this choice.
  • 2. List the assumptions, and beside each write a
    counter-assumption - not necessarily its
    negation, but the opposite to the issue it
    represents.
  • 3. Work down the list and delete ineffective
    assumption/counter-assumption pairs i.e. where it
    would make little difference to your choice
    whether the assumption or the counter-assumption
    were actually the case.
  • 4.  Assess each of the remaining assumptions in
    terms of high or low potential impact (how
    critical is its truth to justifying your pattern
    of behaviour?) and high or low plausibility (how
    confident are you that it is, in fact, true?).
  • 5.  Plot the assumptions on a 2x2 matrix
    (high/low impact on one axis, high/low
    plausibility on the other).

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Creativity techniques
  • Attribute listing (and variants)
  • Attribute listing is a technique from the early
    1930's which
  • takes an existing product or system,
  • breaks it into parts,
  • identifies various ways of achieving each part,
    and then
  • recombines these to identify new forms of the
    product or system.
  • It has many variants, and is an important
    precursor to techniques such as Morphological
    Analysis and Value Engineering

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Creativity techniques
  • Backward forward planning
  • Backward forward planning is a process to help
    you define the problem, and make sure you are not
    in tunnel vision where you can't see the real
    problem because of the close problem you think is
    biting you. The process has three stages.
  • 1.  Write down the short version of the problem,
    preferably starting with "How to
  • 2.  If you were to solve the problem in statement
    1, what higher level problem would it also solve?
    Write this down. Continue asking what higher
    level problem it solves and writing them down.
    Try to obtain at least 3 statements.
  • 3. Going back to statement 1, ask what other
    benefits would flow from it, if it were a
    solution. Make sure these are different from
    those in stage 2.

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Creativity techniques
  • Boundary examination
  • Boundary examination offers a refinement of
    problem definition. It is similar to paraphrasing
    key words and Boundary Relaxation. Defining a
    problem gives a clear task to focus on. The
    definition highlights some features of the
    situation as being particularly relevant, and
    plays down others as largely irrelevant. The
    problem boundary is the notional 'container',
    which separates highly relevant features (inside
    the boundary) from less relevant ones (outside
    the boundary).

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Creativity techniques
  • Boundary relaxation
  • The problem boundary is defined here as the
    imaginary line between what a problem is, must
    be, should be, or could be, and what it isnt,
    mustnt be, shouldnt be, or couldnt be. This
    approach works in two stages first, by
    identifying the elements of the boundary then
    seeing how far they can be loosened.

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Creativity techniques
  • Brainstorming
  • The term Brainstorming has become a commonly used
    word in the English language as a generic term
    for creative thinking. The basis of Brainstorming
    is a generating ideas in a group situation based
    on the principle of suspending judgment - a
    principle which scientific research has proved to
    be highly productive in individual effort as well
    as group effort. The generation phase is separate
    from the judgment phase of thinking.

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Creativity techniques
  • Brain sketching
  • This technique (VanGundy, Techniques of
    Structured Problem Solving, 1988) is a
    BrainWriting technique and a variant on Pin
    Cards, but you pass evolving sketches rather than
    growing written lists of ideas around the group.
    As usual with most brain-writing techniques, only
    limited facilitation skill is needed.

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Creativity techniques
  • BrainWriting
  • BrainWriting is a technique similar to
    brainstorming and trigger sessions. There are
    many varieties, but the general process is that
    all ideas are recorded by the individual who
    though of them. They are then passed on to the
    next person who uses them as a trigger for their
    own ideas. Examples of this include
  • BrainWriting pool
  • BrainWriting 6-3-5
  • Idea Card Model
  • BrainWriting Game
  • Constrained BrainWriting
  • Varying level of constraint

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Creativity techniques
  • Browsing
  • This item is about creative browsing in a library
    context. However see "Using Experts" for a very
    different approach to information acquisition.
  • Types of browsing
  • The creative use of literature very often amounts
    to browsing. Although the importance of browsing
    is generally recognised, its nature appears to be
    little understood. At least three kinds of
    browsing have been recognised
  • Purposive browsing Where you are deliberately
    seeking a defined piece of information.
  • Capricious browsing where you are randomly
    examining material without a definite goal.
  • Exploratory browsing Where

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Creativity techniques
  • Brutethink
  • Brutethink is a technique by Michael Michalko,
    based on random stimuli, and is defined in detail
    in his book Thinkertoys.
  • The process is
  • 1.       bring in a random word into the problem
    (from a dictionary, newspaper, book...)
  • 2.       Think of things associated with the
    random word
  • 3.       Force connections between the random
    word, and the challenge, also between the
    associated things and the challenge.
  • List all your ideas

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Creativity techniques
  • Bug listing
  • A bug list (Adams, Conceptual Blockbusting A
    Guide to Better Ideas, 1987) is simply a list of
    things that bug you! It should be personal and
    illuminate specific areas of need. Adams
    recommends keeping it fluent and flexible,
    remembering humorous and far-out bugs as well as
    common ones. He suggests that if you run out of
    bugs in under ten minutes, you are either
    suffering from a perceptual or emotional block or
    have life unusually under control!It may well be
    the most specific thinking you have ever done
    about precisely what small details in life bother
    you if properly done, your bug list should spark
    ideas in your mind for inventions, ideas,
    possible changes, etc.

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Creativity techniques
  • Bullet Proofing
  • The bullet proofing technique aims to identify
    the areas in which your plan might be especially
    vulnerable
  • What may possibly go wrong?
  • What are some of the difficulties that could
    occur?
  • Whats the worst imaginable thing that could
    occur?
  • There are some similarities with Potential
    Problem Analysis (PPA) (Kepner and Tregoe),
    Negative Brainstorming (Isaksen and Treffinger,
    1985) who suggest that What might happen if?
    is a useful question to use for looking at
    potential challenges.

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Creativity techniques
  • Bunches bannas
  • The Bunches of bananas technique is one of
    lateral thinking, reducing excessive left-brain
    attention (which may be fuelling a mind set).
    There are people that instinctively liven up a
    sluggish meeting by being provocative, or
    throwing in a bunch of bananas.

41
Creativity techniques
  • Card story board
  • This technique although similarly named is quite
    different from the Cartoon Story Board technique.
    It is an idea organizing method using tree
    logic (c.f. Mind-Mapping, and other hierarchical
    diagrams and outlines, and Venn-convention
    methods such at Snowball Technique, and
    KJ-Method).
  • The facilitator is more able to concentrate on
    idea-generation of particular topics and
    sub-topics much more closely than is usually
    possible in open-ended methods (c.f. Constrained
    Brain writing as another way to achieve this).
  • Cards are laid out in a tabular format a simple
    row of header cards (or possibly header and
    sub-header cards as in the example below), each
    with a column of idea cards below it, perhaps
    with added action or comment notes attached
    (index

42
Creativity techniques
  • CATWOE
  • CATWOE is a mnemonic for a checklist for problem
    or goal definition (Checkland and Scholes, Soft
    Systems Methodology in Action, 1990). CATWOE is
    applied to the system which contains the problem,
    issue or solution, rather than to the problem or
    goal itself i.e. to A system to ... A
    system for ... or A system that .... Such a
    definition should include
  • C.       The customers of the system. In this
    context, customers means those who are on the
    receiving end of whatever it is that the system
    does. Is it clear from your definition who will
    gain or lose?
  • A.       The actors, meaning those who would
    actually carry out the activities envisaged in
    the notional system being defined.
  • T.       The transformation process. What does
    the system do to the inputs to convert them into
    the outputs.
  • W.     The world view that lies behind the root
    definition. Putting the system into it's wider
    context can highlight the consequences of the
    overall system. For example the system may be in
    place to assist in making the world
    environmentally safer, and the consequences of
    system failure could be significant pollution.
  • O.      The owner(s) i.e. those who have
    sufficient formal power over the system to stop
    it existing if they so wished (though they wont
    usually want to do this).
  • The environmental constraints. These include
    things such as ethical limits, regulations,
    financial constraints, resource limitations,
    limits set by terms of reference, and so on.

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Creativity techniques
  • Charrette
  • Originating in the US in the 1960's, Charrette
    involved an intensive two-week consultation
    process, usually preceded by a massive public
    relations campaign. The aim was for a local
    community to developed social, economic and
    physical plans combined the resources of a number
    of local bodies, and integrated them all into a
    prioritised programme of action.
  • The resource people (consultants, experts,
    professionals) were usually brought in from out
    of town to bring fresh minds to the problems. The
    Charrette building had to be able to provide for
    large evening forums, small group discussions
    during the day and also for secretarial
    services, the press, television, child care,
    lunch and light meals. It was a live-in,
    work-in, 24-hour facility.

44
Creativity techniques
  • Cherry Split
  • Cherry Split is an attribute listing technique by
    Michael Michalko and is defined in detail in his
    book Thinkertoys.
  • The process is
  • 1.       State the challenge - in two words
  • 2.       Split the challenge into two separate
    attributes
  • 3.       Split each attribute into two further
    attributes
  • 4.       continue splitting each attribute into 2
    more attributes, until you have enough to work
    with.
  • 5.       look at each attribute at a time and try
    thinking of ways to change or improve it.
  • re-assemble the attributes

45
Creativity techniques
  • Circle of Opportunity
  • Circle of Opportunity is an Morphological Forced
    Connections technique by Michael Michalko and is
    defined in detail in his book Thinkertoys.
  • The process is
  • 1.       State the Challenge
  • 2.       Draw a circle and number it like a clock
    (number 1 through 12)
  • 3.       Select any 12 attributes
  • 4.       Throw a pair of dice to select the first
    attribute
  • 5.       Throw a pair of dice to select the
    second attribute
  • 6.       Consider the attributes, both
    separately, and combined, to find an association
    between the two attributes.
  • Search for a link between your association and
    your challenge .

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Creativity techniques
  • Clarification
  • The things that people actually say are often
    rather different from what they mean, equally
    parts of their story may be missing without them
    realising it.
  • The clarification technique helps communication
    to others and will often release problems and
    help the problem owner as well. The material
    below shows how important language analyses are,
    on the left are some common forms of language
    fuzziness, and on the right are some question for
    clarifying them.
  • Specific answers are requested in the questions,
    not only for clarifying the speakers own
    thoughts, but also preventing questioners
    imposing their own (possibly incorrect)
    interpretations on it.

47
Creativity techniques
  • Classic brainstorming
  • 1.       Arrange the meeting for a group of the
    right size and makeup (typically 4-8 people)
  • 2.       Write the initial topic on a flipboard,
    whiteboard or other system where everyone can see
    it. The better defined, and more clearly stated
    the problem, the better the session tends to be.
  • 3.       Make sure that everyone understands the
    problem or issue
  • 4.       Review the ground rules
  • o        Avoid criticising ideas / suspend
    judgement. All ideas are as valid as each other
  • o        Lots, Lots Lots - a large number of
    ideas is the aim, if you limit the number of
    ideas people will start to judge the ideas and
    only put in their 'best' or more often than not,
    the least radical and new.
  • o        Free-wheeling. Don't censor any ideas,
    keep the meeting flow going.
  • o        Listen to other ideas, and try to piggy
    back on them to other ideas.
  • o        Avoid any discussion of ideas or
    questions, as these stop the flow of ideas.
  • 5.       Have someone facilitating to enforce the
    rules and write down all the ideas as they occur
    (the scribe can be a second person)
  • 6.       Generate ideas - either in an
    unstructured way (anyone can say an idea at any
    time) or structure (going round the table,
    allowing people to pass if they have no new
    ideas).
  • 7.       Clarify and conclude the session. Ideas
    that are identical can be combined, all others
    should be kept. It is useful to get a consensus
    of which ideas should be looked at further or
    what the next action and timescale is.

48
Creativity techniques
  • Collective notebook (CNB)
  • John Haefele (1962) of Proctor and Gamble devised
    CNB to encourage idea generation within an
    organisation. A key advantage is that since the
    idea generation is extended over several weeks,
    the opportunity for incubation and exposure to a
    wide range of stimuli is readily available.
    Unfortunately the workload on the co-ordinator
    can be high if numerous people are taking part,
    however, that on the participants is very low.

49
Creativity techniques
  • Comparison tables
  • The two tables below show both simple and complex
    forms of the classic method of comparing small
    numbers of alternatives in terms of multiple
    properties (e.g. as used in many of the best
    buy magazines). This particular version uses

50
Creativity techniques
  • Component detailing
  • The component detailing technique (Watkin, 1985)
    has associations with Attribute Listing and Brain
    Sketching. Components are drawn in much the same
    way as the old childrens game combining pictures
    of heads, bodies and legs taken from different
    people to make a bizarre composite person.
  • The method works best when the problem is the
    design of a physical object, but it can also work
    with problems whose components have a clear
    logical, rather than physical, relation to one
    another.
  • It has strong elements of problem exploration
    as well as idea-generation, because it often
    helps comprehensive understanding and the
    development of new viewpoint.

51
Creativity techniques
  • Concept fan
  • The Concept Fan is a way of discovering
    alternative approachs to a problem when you have
    discarded all obvious solutions. It develops the
    principle of 'taking a step back' to get a
    broader viewpoint. Initially, the Concept Fan
    requires you to draw a circle in the middle of a
    large piece of paper. Write the problem you are
    trying to solve in the circle. To the right of it
    radiate lines representing possible solutions to
    the problem see the diagram below

52
Creativity techniques
  • Consensus mapping
  • The consensus mapping technique (Hart et al.,
    1985) helps a facilitator and group reach
    consensus about how best to arrange a network of
    up to maybe 20 30 activities that have to be
    sequenced over time into a useable plan of action
    (e.g. outlining a 10-year network of sequentially
    linked activities to deal with a complex
    environmental pollution issue). These will
    usually be activities that could be done in a
    range of orders i.e. the order has to be
    approved it is not given by the internal logic
    of the activities themselves.
  • The technique has parallels to many of the usual
    project planning methods (and could if necessary
    feed into them) but operates at a purely
    qualitative, outline, level.
  • It merges elements of standard clustering
    techniques such at KJ-method and Snowball
    Technique with elements of sequential mapping
    Causal Mapping incorporated into a wider
    consensus-seeking procedure that has associates
    with Edens SODA method.

53
Creativity techniques
  • Contradiction analysis
  • At the heart of most problems is a contradiction
    between two requirements or factors. These
    contradictions can either by technical where
    alternative solutions improve one aspect of the
    design at the expense of another or physical
    where the physical state of the object must be in
    two states at once. If these contradiction can be
    understood, and innovative solutions found,
    significant advances can be made.
  • In many systems the majority of the
    contradictions can be easily found. For example,
    in the case of the car, the requirement to go as
    far as possible can be thought of as the need to
    carry the maximum fuel load. This is contradicted
    by the need to weigh as little as possible extend
    endurance, and thus reduce fuel load. With the
    conventional internal combustion engine this is
    not a significant problem. However the electric
    car shows the contradiction in sharp focus.

54
Creativity techniques
  • Alternative Scenarios
  • Scenarios are qualitatively different
    descriptions of plausible futures. They can give
    you a deeper understanding of potential
    environments in which you might have to operate
    and what you may need to do in the present.
    Scenario analysis helps you to identify what
    environmental factors to monitor over time, so
    that when the environment shifts, you can
    recognize where it is shifting to.

55
Creativity techniques
  • Controlling Imagery
  • Warning As with all imagery based methods, you
    should be conscious of the possibility that you
    may experience imagery relating to unexpected
    matters maybe to undesirable past memories.
    Should this be a concern, dont use imagery-based
    methods, or use them with appropriate level of
    support.
  • The following set of techniques has been devised
    to help exercise more control over you imagery,
    both in the positive sense of doing more with it,
    and in the negative sense of knowing how to stop
    it or defuse it.

56
Creativity techniques
  • Crawford slip writing
  • Crawford developed the Crawford slip writing
    method in the USA in the 1920s, for use in
    gathering ideas from large groups (even up to
    5000 people, though its much easier to handle
    with, say, 50 200).
  • It is actually one of the original forms of brain
    writing, and for small groups it reduces to an
    undemanding private idea generation phase. It
    is used with large gatherings of people in say, a
    lecture theatre or hall and is in many ways is
    the manual, text-based, predecessor of a modern
    radio or TV phone-in.

57
Creativity techniques
  • Creative problem solving (CPS)
  • Osborns original classical brainstorming is the
    root of creative problem solving (CPS). There are
    a variety of general structures define problem,
    generate possible solutions, select and implement
    the best which can be found extensively, in
    several different academic traditions.
  • However, the account illustrate here was
    formulated by Sidney J. Parnes in the 1950s and
    has been build upon continuously since then by
    various authors, e.g. Isakesen and Treffinger
    (1985) Isaksen, Dorval and Treffinger (1994 and
    1998).
  • The method can be used as a training programme
    and has a very extensive track record linked
    particularly with the Centre for Studies in
    Creativity of the State University College at
    Buffalo, New York, the Buffalo Creative problem
    Solving Group, and with the Centre for Creative
    Learning in Sarasota, Florida.

58
Creativity techniques
  • Criteria for Idea-Finding Potential
  • The focus and content of a problem statement can
    be adjusted and developed in a variety of ways
    (try a search on Defining). However after the
    development stage it is valuable to ensure that
    the way it is expressed will support the workings
    of the problem solving method you are using.
  • Isakesen, Dorval and Treffinger (1994) developed
    this straightforward checklist, which is
    supportive of this procedure

59
Creativity techniques
  • Critical path Diagrams (CPD) or
  • Critical Path Method (CPM)
  • The critical path method (CPM), and the Project
    Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT), both
    devised independently in the 1950s, but share
    similarities and now form the basis of many
    project planning software packages.
  • The description outline below is simplified
    approach to CPM and assumes that you can
    recognize component activities that are required
    to carry out your project, the sequence(s) in
    which they must take place and how long each will
    take.
  • The purpose of CPM is to permit you to recognise,
    which activities lay on the critical path
    i.e. those for which any setback or rushing will
    affect the overall time for the project. This
    will assist you in managing the collection of
    tasks to accomplish fixed time targets overall.
  • More advance forms of CPM also know about the
    cost of each element, so overall costs can be
    managed as well as timing.

60
Creativity techniques
  • Decision Seminar
  • The decision seminar technique (Laswell, 1960) is
    a predecessor of the Think Tank technique of the
    1960s and is derived from a more sociological
    rather brainstorming procedure. It was primarily
    designed by a social science research facility to
    tackle applied social policy issues in an
    efficient way, focusing on past, present and
    future developments.

61
Creativity techniques
  • Delphi
  • The Delphi technique was developed in the 1950s
    by the RAND Corporation as a tool for harnessing
    the views of a group of experts to forecast the
    potential damage from atom bomb attacks.
  • Other users for Delphi are in the surfacing and
    judging components of messy issues. Its main
    disadvantage being its high administrative
    overhead, however the method has been
    successfully inorporated in some computerised
    problem solving systems.

62
Creativity techniques
  • DO IT
  • DO IT is an acronym that stands for
  • D - Define problemO - Open mind and apply
    creative techniquesI - Identify best solutionT
    - Transform

63
Creativity techniques
  • Dialectrical Approaches
  • The dialectical approach (Mason and Mitroff,
    1981) uses creative conflict to help identify and
    challenge assumptions to create new perceptions.
    Firstly the devils advocate approach is useful
    in exposing underlying assumptions, but has a
    tendancy emphasise the negative, whereas
    dialectical inquiry has a more balanced approach.
    (See also Idea Advocate)

64
Creativity techniques
  • Dimensional analysis
  • The dimensional analysis technique is a checklist
    (Jensen, 1978) that relates to Five Ws and H,
    and is of most use as an aide memoir for initial
    exploration of a problem or evaluating options,
    particularly those associated with human
    relations, rather than of a technical nature.
    Jensen defines a problem as a violation of values
    a slightly unusual approach that is reflected
    in this list

65
Creativity techniques
  • Drawing
  • The drawing technique can seem more acceptable
    than imagery work and freehand expressive drawing
    often helps to liberate spontaneous thoughts that
    cant yet be put into words. Drawings may have
    meanings that are not consciously realised when
    drawn they just feel right

66
Creativity techniques
  • Estimate-Discuss Estimate
  • This technique is useful when a good quality
    united group judgement is required. A balance to
    maintain constructive discussion and idea
    contribution whilst at the same time steering
    away from biasing or destructive group anxiety is
    the key to success here.

67
Creativity techniques
  • Exaggeration (Magnify or minify)
  • From Osborns original checklist, magnify (or
    stretch) and minify (or compress) are two of
    the idea generating transformations, both of
    which are forms of exaggeration. The table below
    shows a selection of exaggerations to illustrate
    the problem I need a lot of capacity in my
    Reprographics Department to cope with a few key
    peak loads, but this means that for much of the
    time much of it is idle.

68
Creativity techniques
  • Excursion
  • General Guidelines
  • Attempt to get as much distance from the problem
    as possible.
  • Make the excursion about 5-10 minutes.
  • Include some physical activity if the energy
    level of the group is low.
  • Give the group some rationale for why an
    excursion might be helpful.
  • If necessary, provide a model or example to help
    demonstrate it.

69
Creativity techniques
  • Factors in Selling Ideas
  • When selling an idea or new concept to
    management, it would be prudent to bear in mind
    the following issues
  • The Selling Context
  • Timing, includes large scale issues such as past
    company experiences with similar ideas, and
    smaller scale issues such as annual committee
    cycles, etc.
  • Audience is there a possibility that the audience
    will be receptive to your suggestions and if so
    do they have the ability to do anything about it.
  • Idea

70
Creativity techniques
  • False faces
  • False faces is a Problem Reversal technique by
    Michael Michalko and is defined in detail in his
    book Thinkertoys.
  • The process is
  • 1.       State the problem
  • 2.       List the assumptions
  • 3.       Challenge the fundamental assumption
  • 4.       Reverse eash assumption - Write down the
    opposite for each one.
  • 5.       Record differing viewpoints that might
    proove useful to you
  • Ask how to acomplish each reversal, listing as
    many viewpoints and ideas as possible.

71
Creativity techniques
  • Fishbone diagram
  • The fishbone diagram (see below) originally
    developed by Professor Kaoru Ishikawa, is often
    referred to as an Ishikawa diagram. The technique
    can help to structure the process of identifying
    possible causes of a problem (see also Causal
    Mapping)
  • The diagram encourages the development of an in
    depth and objective representation ensuring all
    participants keep on track. It discourages
    partial or premature solutions, and shows the
    relative importance and inter-relationships
    between different parts of a problem.
  • The method is ideally organized over a number of
    meetings, enabling the team to become deeply
    immersed in the problem. Fresh suggestions
    regarding possible causes can arise during the
    break and members are more likely to forget who
    originated every idea, thus making subsequent
    discussions less inhibited.

72
Creativity techniques
  • Five Ws and H
  • The Five Ws and H, are an influential,
    inspirational and imaginative checklist (often
    used by journalists). The technique uses basic
    question generating prompts provided by the
    English language. The method is useful at any
    level from a formal checklist to complete
    informality.
  • Who?
  • Why?
  • What?
  • Where?
  • When?
  • How?

73
Creativity techniques
  • Flow charts for action planning
  • Flow charts for action planning
  • Flow-Charts revolve around the decision phase
    they are therefore most appropriate for action
    planning scenarios where the chain of events is
    likely to change dynamically as it opens out, see
    the diagram below which shows the fundamental
    features of a flow-chart

74
Creativity techniques
  • Focus groups
  • This is a technique similar to 'Using Experts'
    whereby 'experts' are used to provied ideas and
    input to a policy group, or similar body.
  • The experts can be either set up from within the
    company (for example a team from all layers of
    management to focus on communications issues) or
    they can be external experts prought in to
    provide a fresh set of eyes to the problem

75
Creativity techniques
  • Focusing
  • The focusing technique (Gendlin, 1981) does not
    use conventional visual imagery but a form of
    imagery work based on body feelings and
    sensations. The description below is a brief and
    subtle outline of the process, for a more
    detailed account of the technique, see Gendlins
    book. The central act of focusing can be broken
    down into six phases

76
Creativity techniques
  • Force-Field Analysis
  • Force-field analysis characterises the
    conflicting forces in a situation. The
    recommended approach to this method is to outline
    the points involved in a problematic situations
    at the problem exploration stage, followed by
    recognising factors likely to help or hinder at
    the action planning and implementation stages.

77
Creativity techniques
  • Force-Fit Game
  • The force-fit game was devised by Helmut
    Schlicksupp and resembles the Brainwriting Game.
  • As a rule competition is avoided in creativity,
    it is potentially disruptive and can cause
    conflict. However, a small amount of pressure can
    benefit creativity. For the game to be useful a
    light-hearted frame of mind is essential, with no
    significant losers.

78
Creativity techniques
  • Free Association
  • Free association contains elements of several
    other idea-generating techniques and depends on a
    mental stream of consciousness and network of
    associations of which there are two
  • Serial association, start with a trigger, you
    record the flow of ideas that come to mind, each
    idea triggering the next, ultimately reaching a
    potentially useful one.
  • Centred association, (which is close to classical
    brainstorming) prompts you to generate multiple
    associations to the original trigger so that you
    delve into a particular area of associations.

79
Creativity techniques
  • Fresh eye
  • The fresh eye technique looks directly to
    outsiders who are not so affected by the
    tunnel vision that can be experienced by
    practicing problem solvers.
  • Basic Model
  • 1.       Write down your problem simply, clearly
    and in a non-technical format
  • 2.       Show it to people who have no direct
    experience of the problem and invite ideas and
    opinions. Recommend that they think about the
    problem for a few days, write down any ideas and
    thoughts they have about what they see as the
    real problem and any potential solutions. It is
    essential that their expectations of your ability
    to use their ideas are realistic (see Step 4).
  • 3.       Develop or re-interpret the ideas so
    that they become workable. You should anticipate
    the idea may be technically naive, but
    nevertheless still be creatively thought
    provoking.
  • Provide responsive feedback to the helper to show
    their contributions are appreciated, valued and
    of productive use. If your helper feels
    undervalued, further help towards yourself will
    not be forthcoming. Equally if your helper
    receives feedback of how their ideas were put to
    use they will be only too glad to help again.

80
Creativity techniques
  • Gallery Method
  • The Gallery method is a mixture of physical and
    mental activity whilst generating ideas. The
    participants move past the ideas (as in an art
    gallery) rather than the ideas moving past the
    participants (as in the Pin-Card technique). The
    down side of this method, no anonymity is offered
    for idea generation and there is a risk of
    competition between participants during the break
    and view

81
Creativity techniques
  • Gap Analysis
  • Gap analysis is a methodical investigation
    throughout the whole area of a given technology
    for gaps. Thus highlighting inadequate areas in
    existing technology that are open to speculation
    with a view improvement.
  • For example a study for the analysis of
    transportation technology, using the aspects
  • Speed
  • Maximum range
  • Demand

82
Creativity techniques
  • Goal Orientation
  • Goal orientation is a basic logical checklist for
    problem statements. For a more involved set of
    logical criteria, see the CATWOE checklist. For a
    more inventive-based checklist see Multiple
    Redefinition
  • The procedure is as follows
  • 1.       Describe the problem by writing down a
    general description but in as much detail as
    possible
  • 2.       List the needs implied by the problem,
    by outlining what you are trying to achieve
  • 3.       List the inherent difficulties that are
    preventing you from achieving your goal. E.g. if
    I am chopping down a tree, the hardness of its
    wood is an inherent difficulty because anyone
    chopping down that tree would have to deal with
    it.
  • 4.       List the external constraints that apply
    to this problem at this time e.g. I have promised
    to finish chopping down the tree for the owner by
    lunchtime today, is an external constraint
    because it is specific to this occasion.
  • Now write a clear problem statement that
    illustrates all these requirements, restrictions
    and hindrances.

83
Creativity techniques
  • Alternative Scenarios
  • Scenarios are qualitatively different
    descriptions of plausible futures. They can give
    you a deeper understanding of potential
    environments in which you might have to operate
    and what you may need to do in the present.
    Scenario analysis helps you to identify what
    environmental factors to monitor over time, so
    that when the environment shifts, you can
    recognize where it is shifting to.

84
Creativity techniques
  • Greeting Cards
  • Prior to introducing a group to a problem the
    Greeting card method invites the group to create
    their own stimulating problem solving
    environment. A sense of comradeship is thus
    introduced and a feeling of ownership and
    involvement in the problem solving is
    experienced.

85
Creativity techniques
  • Help, Hinder
  • The Help, hinder method is a fairly simplistic
    procedure and comparable to Bullet-proofing,
    Potential problem analysis, Negative
    brainstorming, and Stakeholder analysis.

86
Creativity techniques
  • Alternative Scenarios
  • Scenarios are qualitatively different
    descriptions of plausible futures. They can give
    you a deeper understanding of potential
    environments in which you might have to operate
    and what you may need to do in the present.
    Scenario analysis helps you to identify what
    environmental factors to monitor over time, so
    that when the environment shifts, you can
    recognize where it is shifting to.

87
Creativity techniques
  • Heuristic Ideation Technique (HIT)
  • Heuristic ideation technique (HIT) is an
    alternative variation to Attribute Listing,
    Morphological Analysis, Listing, etc. for initial
    developments (although it could be used in other
    areas). The procedure is as follows
  • 1.       Choose two items of interest that
    already exist, e.g. if I sell novelty goods, I
    might select a particular china mug with a floral
    decoration on it, and a particular novelty
    greetings card.
  • 2.       Make a list of each component, e.g. the
    components of the mug may include handle, square
    shape, coloured china, floral decoration, coffee
    sized, etc. The cards components might include
    glitter decoration, poetic message, can be sent
    by post, etc.
  • Construct a matrix, where the rows list the
    components of the one product the columns list
    the components of the other, and each cell
    corresponds to a combination of one element from
    each product.

88
Creativity techniques
  • Highlighting
  • Highlighting is a straightforward and vigorous
    technique, which can be put into place with
    little training and capable of capturing
    attention and participation. Ideas are screened,
    the best of which are short-listed triggering
    discussion.
  • There are noticeable similarities to the
    KJ-Method and the Snowball technique, with the
    use of clustering. However, there is an important
    difference in that clusters are only created from
    items that are felt to be interesting or
    intriguing, so that the clusters identify
    hotspots groups of related ideas that have
    connected with someones imagination.

89
Creativity techniques
  • Idea Advocate
  • Idea advocate is a simplified form of the
    dialectical approach (qv). The method has an Idea
    Champion to offer continual support and
    enthusiasm for a project in the development
    stage. Assume that the group of original ideas
    for solving some issue has already been
    concentrated to a small number, say 3 6 of
    strong contenders

90
Creativity techniques
  • Imaginary for Answering Questions
  • This technique draws on your own intuition for
    help, similar to prayer or meditation. However,
    there is a structure as follows
  • 1.       If your preference is to tape-record the
    script below rather than working from memory,
    read it slowly with plenty of pauses.
  • 2.       Define your question, clarifying its
    exact meaning to yourself
  • 3.       Go through any standard Relaxation
    process.
  • 4.       When you feel ready, recall your
    question (from 2), making yourself fully aware of
    it.
  • Placing the question aside, let a fantasy on the
    lines of the script below materialise.

91
Creativity techniques
  • Imagery Manipulation
  • Imagery manipulation is employed in a
    psychotherapeutic context and requires skilled
    helpers or should be carried out under
    supervision. The technique does not utilize the
    usual rational framework (Explore problem,
    Generate ideas, Select and Implement) that is
    fundamental to most problem solving methods.
  • It is unnecessary for the helper to be made aware
    of the real nature of the original situation or
    the final solution, in fact any efforts by the
    client to introduce reality will hinder
    success. Dissimilar to guides imagery activities,
    Imagery for Answering Questions (qv) there is no
    preliminary relaxation phase required, and the
    exploration of the imagery is performed in a
    mater-of-fact way with both the helper and client
    in adult mode, capable of critical judgement.
  • The helper asks questions and suggests answers,
    while the client views the current state of
    images and attempts his own answers. A client
    should be supported to reject or undo
    inappropriate suggestions they should feel a
    sense of responsibility for the management of
    their own imagery. The technique follows these 5
    steps .

92
Creativity techniques
  • Imaginary Brainstorming
  • Imaginary Brainstorming is like classic
    brainstorming, but with a slight twist. The
    ground rules etc. are the same, the differences
    are
  • 1.       When defining the problem make sure that
    it has
  • a subject - who is acting
  • a verb - the action
  • an object - who / what is being acted upon.
  • 2.       Perform a classic brainstorming session
  • 3.       Define the essential elements of the
    problem, and identify which of the elements above
    (1) is the most directly tied to a successful
    solution.
  • 4.       Propose imaginary replacements for the
    other elements. e.g.
  • (This element is kept as the essential element.)
  • 5.       Formulate a new problem statement,
    substituting one of the imaginary elements.
  • 6.       Brainstorm ideas for the imaginary
    problem
  • 7.       Apply ideas from the imaginary
    brainstorming back to the real problem statement.
  • Analyse all of the ideas (real, imaginary and
    combined) and take forward those of most
    interest.

93
Creativity techniques
  • Implementation Checklists
  • There are two implementation checklists presented
    here, the first by VanGundy and the 2nd by
    Isaksen, Dorval and Treffinger. Each has subtle
    differences in their perspectives.
  • Implementation Checklist 1 (VanGundy, 1988)
  • Resources are the resources (time, personnel,
    equipment, money, information) sufficient for
    executing this idea?
  • Motivation, are there others with equal
    motivation and commitment required for successful
    implementation?
  • Resistance, is the idea likely to come across any
    closed thinking and/or resistance to change in
    general?
  • Procedures, are there any procedural
    complications to get over
  • Structures, are there any structural obstacles to
    surmount (e.g. bad communication channels)?
  • Policies, What official/unofficial policies need
    to be overcome?
  • Risk, will risk taking be tolerated by those
    responsible for implementation and if so to what
    level?
  • Power, do any power struggles exist relating to
    the idea that might obstruct implementation?
  • Clashes, are there any clashes of personalities
    that may hinder advancement in the
    implementation?
  • Climate, is the organisational environment one of
    teamwork and co-operation or suspicion and
    distrust?

94
Creativity techniques
  • Improved Nominal Group Technique (INGT)
  • Improved Nominal Group Technique is a extension
    of Nominal Group Technique (NGT) with an
    additional pre-meeting stage which ensures full
    anonymity of contributions and speeds up
    transcription phases.
  • Advance Preparation
  • 1.       Clarify the purpose of meeting with a
    prior problem recognition meeting, with anonymous
    input
  • 2.       Circulate the agreed purpose of the
    meeting and request anonymously submitted ideas
    on cards by a well-defined cut off time.
  • Circulate a numbered word for word list of the
    ideas submitted and request those participating
    bring to the meeting any additional ideas (on
    cards) or proposals for varying or combining
    ideas. Explain fully what structure the meeting
    have.

95
Creativity techniques
  • Interpretive Structural Modelling
  • Presume that you have a compilation of say 20
    50 matters concerning some of the following
  • 1.       Issues
  • 2.       Ideas
  • 3.       Objectives
  • 4.       Options
  • SWOT elements (Strengths, Weaknesses,
    Opportunities, Threats) (see SWOT)

96
Creativity techniques
  • Keeping a Dream Diary
  • To experience creative dreaming it is essential
    to come into better contact with your dreams.
    Psychologists have revealed that each of us
    dreams every night. However and unfortunately
    most of our dreams are forgotten. Thus, keeping a
    dream diary is helping in retaining the
    information longer. The building of the dream
    diary will demonstrate over a period of time,
    that you recall more and more of your dreams by
    being more aware of them. Regular discussion of
    your dreams and diaries will also help in
    understanding them, any themes running through
    them and unconscious ideas.

97
Creativity techniques
  • Kepner Tregoe Method
  • This technique emphasises the rational rather
    than the creative, it is essentially a method
    for fault diagnosis and repair rather than for
    disorganized or systemic problem domains, or
    those where freshness of vision is essential.
    Kepner and Tregoe (1981) describe the method
    below, but its origins date from the 1950s.
  • The method is fully developed, with recommended
    techniques, worksheets, training programme's,
    etc.

98
Creativity techniques
  • KJ Method
  • The KJ-Method is fundamentally similar to the
    Snowball Technique. Introduced by the Japanese,
    it has become one of the Seven management (New)
    tools of modern Japanese quality management and
    uses values of Buddhism intended as structured
    meditation.
  • The Basic Cycle,
  • 1.  Card making
  • 2. Grouping and naming
  • 3.  Redistribution
  • 4.  Chart making
  • 5. Explanation

99
Creativity techniques
  • Alternative Scenarios
  • Scenarios are qualitatively different
    descriptions of plausible futures. They can give
    you a deeper understanding of potential
    environments in which you might have to operate
    and what you may need to do in the present.
    Scenario analysis helps you to identify what
    environmental factors to monitor over time, so
    that when the environment shifts, you can
    recognize where it is shifting to.

100
Creativity techniques
  • Laddering
  • Switching to and fro between different levels of
    abstraction to create ideas is often known as
    laddering. The sequence below is a ladder of
    concepts in which the items lower down are all
    members or sub-sets of the ones higher up so that
    you move between the abstract and the concrete

101
Creativity techniques
  • Lateral Thinking
  • Edward de Bono writes in "Serious Creativity",
    how he became interested in the sort of thinking
    that computers could not do creative and
    perceptual thinking. The entry in the Concise
    Oxford Dictionary reads "seeking to solve
    problems by unorthodox or apparently illogical
    methods.
  • Lateral thinking is about moving sideways when
    working on a problem to try different
    perceptions, different concepts and different
    points of entry. The term covers a variety of
    methods including provocations to get us out of
    the usual line of thought. Lateral thinking is
    cutting across patterns in a self-organising
    system, and has very much to do with perception.

102
Creativity techniques
  • Listing
  • Listing is a derivative of the Attribute Listing
    idea and in actual fact is a one-dimensional
    version of the Heuristic Ideation Technique HIT
    (qv) method. Although used mainly for new product
    development in theory it can be used for any
    situation, which has elements that can be listed,
    and for which combination of elements are likely
    to suggest solutions.

103
Creativity techniques
  • Listing Pros and Cons
  • If an established set of criteria already exists
    evaluation of the options becomes equivalent to
    Comparison Tables, with all criteria of equal
    weight. However, it is more likely that a
    situation is not that simplistic with little or
    no clear criteria. For example, deciding what you
    should do next from a set unrelated possibilities
    (Shall I go home, finish this job, or go to the
    cinema).

104
Creativity techniques
  • Metaplan Information Market
  • The Metaplan method, developed by a German
    consultancy firm uses a number of communication
    tools. Groups are set up to focus on a problem
    and its possible solutions. Opinions are
    developed, a common understanding is essential
    and a formulation of objectives, recommendations
    and actions plans is the goal.
  • Specially trained facilitators administer the
    groups, ensuring good communication cooperation
    and high levels of understanding are achieved.
    His objective is to provide the group with the
    right sort of communication tools at the right
    moment so that the group is able to get to the
    bottom of the crucial matter with greater success
    and efficiency.

105
Creativity techniques
  • Mind Mapping
  • Mind mapping also called spider diagrams
    represents ideas, notes, information, etc. in
    far-reaching tree-diagrams.
  • To draw a mind-map
  • Layout a large sheet of paper in landscape and
    write a concise heading for the overall theme in
    the centre of the page.
  • For each major sub-topic or cluster
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