Creative Thinking Unstickers

Tuesday 4th August 2009 | 2 comments

You know how it happens... you have an idea, or think of a way to solve a problem then after working on it for a while, you get stuck. It's not happening any more, the ideas run dry and you panic. Familiar?

I call that state 'fencing yourself in' after a guinea fowl I saw in Far North Queensland last year. (Go with me on this one...) We were at a lovely B&B near Mareeba eating brekkie on the verandah when the farmer let the flock of guinea fowl out for the day. 19 of them scooted off, flocking and foraging and doing their guinea fowl thing...but the 20th got stuck running back and forth along the fence. Increasingly frantic, its distressed cries made it clear that it had completely lost the plot.

A couple of us went over to help, and were joined by the farmer at the fence. He showed us that in fact the 'fence' was a floating wall and open at both ends, so the bird could have just run around either end. It also could easily have hopped up onto the fence and off the other side. He also explained that guinea fowl can fly...

Do you ever feel like that? Fenced in by your own thinking? Sometimes with hindsight, the way round is obvious, but we don't see it at the time.

A fascinating article in the current Scientific American magazine reports on research that says it's all about getting some distance (either actual or psychological) on your problem. Reassuringly for me, this squares exactly with my own reading and investigations - and what I teach in my workshops!

Here are my top 3 strategies for getting that distance:

  1. Get out of your own way: Put your problem aside for a while and go and do something quite different - something physical is ideal, like walking or even cleaning out a cupboard. If that's not an option at least take a short stroll around your office then come back to your desk and work on another project for a while.
  2. Talk to some aliens: No, not little green men, but people who see the world through a completely different paradigm - either because they work in a different field, or have another thinking style, or whatever. Children can be great for this - and the need to simplify and translate your ideas for them is of itself very helpful. If all else fails, think 'How would the Dalai Lama deal with this issue?' or 'How would a fish solve this problem?'
  3. Question your assumptions: This can be hard to do alone at first, so if you can find a trusted ally to help you, all the better. Look at every aspect of your problem or idea: What have you assumed about cost? the market? manufacturing techniques? your audience? Does it have to be done that way? Assume there are at least 3 solutions to any dilemma. Think of some of the famous assumptions that have now been busted: that man can't fly, that the earth is flat, that the brain is hardwired by the age of 18 - if someone hadn't challenged those beliefs, where would we be now?

What do you think? What are your favourite unsticking techniques?

Tags: thinking, creativity, tips, stuck

Comments

  1. Guinea fowl thinking ... I love it. I like the idea of talking to a child also ... they have surprising insight a lot of the time. Will keep both these tips in mind!

    Posted by Deb Warren | Tuesday 4th August 2009 @ 9:22am

  2. I think kids can be the greatest sources of fresh ideas. My then 11 year old son Josh came to a meeting with my (ex) web designer and interrupted their slightly stuffy ideas by saying 'but isn't it really about going out of black and white and into colour? Shouldn't the website do that too?' And so it became...

    Posted by Joanna Maxwell | Tuesday 4th August 2009 @ 9:27am

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