Have you ever found yourself in an uncomfortable situation, out of your comfort zone, where you saw no way out but only so many problems?
The answer will certainly be in the affirmative.
Work, school, university, sports, situations that arise in the family, with friends, with one's partner, the various emergency situations (just think of the Covid situation, the reality that most unites us today), teem with difficult situations, and it is more than normal to find oneself experiencing those "knot in the throat" feelings, of getting stuck on a problem and just thinking about getting out of it is itself THE problem.
What to do in this situation? Simple, we change our perspective.
Let us feel free to think in an original way.
"I would like to state that I completely agree that the removal
of inhibitions, fear of making mistakes or looking ridiculous has some value.
It is certainly easier to be creative if you are free to propose and debate ideas and
new thoughts, although they may appear strange."
"Creativity for All" - Edward De Bono
Edward De Bono (Malta 1933), Maltese psychologist and physician, a world authority on creative thinking and the father of lateral thinking, says how necessary it is, often, to "step outside the box" to reinvent, produce, innovate and find solutions.
The author also, with his many successes working with companies, universities and institutions around the world, outlines different ways and different tools for us to be able to develop the inventive potential present in each of us.
It is, in fact, necessary to learn to train our "lazy" brains, adoptlateral thinking , get out of our "logic bubbles" and then achieve, our maximum personally and professionally.
Creativity, intuition, provocation, the freedom to think of crazy and bizarre ideas/situations; there are so many ways to train and research, so we just have to, start getting involved.
Wear the six hats: simple method of lateral thinking.
How does it work? Metaphorically we wear six different colored hats and as many times we will play different roles.
Scientifically, the six hats favor activating different areas of the brain and help us see the same situation from six different perspectives.
Let's see how:
- White Hat. It is The Hat of Neutrality, and that is why when we go to wear it, we will analyze the problem or situation like computer data, in a totally objective and objective way, without interpretation or judgment.
- Red Hat; it is that of emotions and passions, it is that hat that totally strips us of logical reasoning and allows us to let out what are our "gut feelings," our intuitions and our hunches. Once worn, we will be able to recognize not only our own emotions but also those of others.
- Yellow Hat; the color ofoptimism. It is the hat that once worn brings out our best side, the proactive and positive side, that mental inclination that will answer the questions-"how can we improve the situation?", "what are the positive aspects?" "what are those aspects that we can use to improve this situation?"
- Black hat; the dark one, the negative one that when we wear it helps us to make clear all the negative aspects of the situation and that direct us to as many negative solutions. A hat yes seemingly annoying but necessary, because with a critical eye we can outline what are the gaps, the aspects that will lead us to fail. Not only that, it teaches us to take into account the risks, what could go wrong, the possible dangers and the unexpected.
- Green hat; the hat of creativity and fertility and is the one that, most of the time, we wear it for the longest time. It will help us find more solutions and as many creative ideas as possible to our problem. It pushes us to push boundaries, to be original, innovative and daring, breaking out of those rigid patterns in which we are often trapped when facing difficulties.
- Blue hat; the color of the clear sky. Without worries we will learn to observe the problem from afar, as if looking at it from above, and break it down into several components. It is the hat of control, balance and self-control that helps us set a totally practical method and then follow it, arriving at the most concrete solution possible.
How to use these hats?
If you are on your own, there is no set order; everyone can choose his or her own, depending on the specific situation to be analyzed with the one clear rule: wear them all before you get to the solution.
Within the group, on the other hand, different methodologies can be adopted, as the situations are the most diverse: solving problems at work, creating new products, getting to know and know each other within the group, helping to create the teaching of children with DSA, and so on.
The most common method is to identify one context to analyze, invite all group members to wear all six hats, and appoint a specially trained supervisor from outside the group who holds the time and analyzes the group dynamics clearly and objectively.
The goal is to teach methodical thinking.
The advantage of this technique is to learn to reason in many different ways, analyzing, for example, first information, then thoughts, emotions, logic, creativity, and only then coming together to find the most creative solution possible.
Lateral thinking: the skill most in demand by recruiters
"Lateral thinking trains creativity at work, and from creativity comes innovation."
Companies, today, are totally aware of the usefulness of this skill at work and that is why so many of them adopt the strategy of searching for this skill already in the selection process, built ad hoc to detect it in candidates.
Not only that, the same companies use as a development strategy to train all employees in lateral thinking, relying on experienced psychologists and trainers, with the goal of developing more creative ways of thinking at work.
There are many cases that denote the enormous innovative potential inherent in lateral thinking, its proper use and the great competitive advantage that companies are able to derive from it.
Just think of the success of lateral marketing; an approach useful for developing new products and new services that break traditional logic or even for rethinking old products and services in a new key.
Now that we know that we can "train ourselves to think in so many ways," all we have to do is start so that we are not found unprepared at work and in life in general because let's remember that challenges always exist and it is only up to us to overcome them and make a difference.
Recommended books:
- Denis Murano and David Buonaventura "Inhuman Selections: The Real Reason They Discard You"
- Demetri macheda "Social recruiting, soft skills and neuroscience - Criteria and tools for personnel selection"
- Edward De Bono "Creativity and Lateral Thinking: Handbook of Imagination Practice"
- Edward De Bono "Six Hats for Thinking: Practical Handbook for Thinking Creatively and Effectively"
- Rachele Mariani, Attà Negri, Gian Maria Mussino "Interpersonal Q-Sort (IQS) and Digital Assessment Profile (Dap). New tools for human resource assessment between change and digital transformation"
- Rino panetti "Being Creative in Complex Contents. Creativity methodologies and tools for seizing opportunities and generating ideas and realizing them"
Martina Di Nizo
Ambassador In-Formation - Digital Innovation Days