Strategy Eight

Eighth strategy teaches us how to find something that we are not looking for. Usually before even starting studying some particular subject, our intelligence immediately applies specific emotions and biases to it. We have to allow our intellect to prevail over intelligence because it will direct our thinking in a different and more creative way. PMI (Plus, Minus, Interesting) strategy can help us to succeed in this task. We have to analyze both pluses and minuses of our subject and, in addition to that, come up with interesting aspects about the matter. By focusing on interesting facts, we can end up thinking about ideas which we would never be looking for.  

It is important to know and remember that every subject has a latent potential. People tend to skip things that seem to be irrelevant instead on concentrating on them. Those ideas that have been refused can be recycled and turned into something totally new and unexpected by simply changing our point of view or perspective. Another method to trigger creative thinking is to restructure a problem and make it more abstract. It helps to avoid frames of usual thinking patterns and focus on possibilities and assumptions. This strategy can be practiced in groups as well.

Most often ideas are developed in a predictable way. The influence of what we already know and understand is considerably strong upon the way we think. It makes our ideas and solutions predictable and ordinary.  In order to make the production of unexpected ideas possible, we have to shift the context. It is recommended to concentrate our thinking on information that we view as odd and strange. This method works perfectly in groups of different individuals. There are various activities, for example, Unrelated Ideas game, which can stimulate unexpected explorations. Fantasizing about our subject also contributes to creative thinking. In addition to this, our mind has to be prepared before we start analyzing the issue. The more information about our subject we know, the higher probability of unexpected discovery will be.

Most often people prefer creative solutions to ordinary ones. However, they make no or little attempt to solve problem in a creative way. Because of our usual thinking patterns and some particular templates for dealing with unexpected situations, things that we claim to be creative have already became ordinary. In order to overcome this problem, ideas that we perceive as irrelevant to our issue must be taken into consideration as well. The main reason for this is that those “unimportant” ideas can give birth to totally new solutions which will result in creative strategy or project.

Sometimes we have to think about unreal and impossible solutions so that later we can look at the given subject even in a more creative way. However, in order to succeed in any task related to creativeness, we have to be prepared. If a person wants to experience unexpected discovery, he or she has to gather as much information about the topic or issue as possible. The idea cannot arise from nowhere. Hard work and intensive thinking precede any creative insight.

People have to realize that creative thoughts do not come to our mind spontaneously. Time, numerous efforts, and constant practice are needed in order to prepare ourselves for perception of unusual and extraordinary ideas.  It depends on a person what kind of strategy he or she uses. However, if it is quite challenging to work individually, everyone can try to work in a group. The process of generating ideas will become even easier if several people are involved in it because every person brings own experience, knowledge, and attitudes which can be really helpful and important for the whole group.