| Targeted
Breakthrough Thinking (TBT)
- Everyone
is creative, although the process and results vary according to
thinking styles.
- Ideas flow
when the mind is stimulated. Few people innovate on demand.
- The culture
in which we operate greatly influences output. TBT stretches people’s
minds (and sometimes other body parts as well) through:
TBT
stretches people’s minds (and sometimes other body parts as
well) through:
Assessing
the organizational climate for nurturing and inhibiting innovation
and creativity. We take multiple snapshots of the organization
to look at what employees see and say about its culture. We use
the data to analyze what is/is not working, how to institutionalize
strengths and remediate weaknesses.
Developing
self-awareness of your brain dominance style to assess how your
style impacts the way you approach problems and people.
Being exposed
to and practicing Breakthrough Thinking tools. Many people return
to the same idea generation toolbox because that is either where
they are comfortable or that’s all they know. We apply up
to15 idea generation and 15 idea evaluation tools correlated to
thinking style preferences and problem requirements.
Pushing ideas
to breakthrough. We’ve watched hundreds of people stop
generating ideas way before they achieve breakthrough, and that
results in too few and too unimaginative options. You’ll be
asked to keep generating ideas until you break mach speed.
Differentiating
between problems and dilemmas. A problem can be solved; however,
a dilemma has no “right” answer and requires creative
and/both thinking to surface the most satisfactory and viable alternatives.
You’ll set up dilemmas your organization is facing and develop
unique approaches to overcoming them.
Applying
breakthrough thinking tools to real problems. We first introduce
tools without expecting participants to simultaneously learn a tool
and solve an organizational problem. Once everyone has practiced
using a tool on a generic situation, you’ll be ready to tackle
an actual and important work problem.
Creating
a safe laboratory for experimentation. We establish a climate
that’s open, energetic, engaging and fun.
The objectives
for TBT are:
- Become grounded
in the theories of creativity and innovation
- Establish
a baseline for the state of innovation in the organization
- Gain self-awareness
about individual thinking styles and their influences on problem
solving
- Learn and
use idea generation and evaluation tools in situations of growing
complexity
- Apply a
problem-solving methodology to a work-problem
- Establish
a community of innovators
Off
the Beaten Path (OBP)
- The same
thinking that creates a problem can rarely solve it.
- Chronic problems
do not respond to tried-and-true approaches.
- Problems
are multi-dimensional and there is no straight path to its solution.
- Telling stories
about a problem can alter its meaning, history, truths, and definition.
OBP
re-works a problem through:
Using storytelling
to define (or re-define) a problem. A problem is like the proverbial
blind men and the elephant. We ask you to step back to see the entire
elephant and describe the big picture as well as the part that is
facing you.
Writing a
problem statement that invites the imagination. When a problem
is stated in a black and white fashion, there is little room for
colorful ideas. We help you craft problem statements that are inviting
and capture the essence of the situation.
Using techniques
that engage the head, heart, hands and minds (we’re really
not sure where it lies in our anatomy). We come at participants
from all angles so you are stimulated and can incubate new ideas.
You might walk a labyrinth, create “music,” play with
new idea-generation tools, or change roles—all to gain mental
problem-solving agility.
Harnessing
group brainpower. Many heads may be better than one; however,
unless the brains are channeled a lot leaks out. We facilitate the
experience to guide, elicit and record thinking to make sure your
dynamic ideas can be used and do not seep out or are forgotten when
the session ends.
Determining
next steps. Groups can be superb at generating ideas—ideas
that go nowhere. Our process asks you to wildly diverge on a problem,
then, judiciously converge on it. We expect that everyone will leave
with a new, clear view of the problem, what is required to implement
select ideas, and who will step up to the implementation plate.
The objectives
for OBP are:
- Create a
mindshift about the power of innovative thinking
- Tackle a
chronic or existing problem with renewed vigor
- Learn tools
and techniques that can be applied to this as well as other problems
- Use the experience,
knowledge and wisdom of people to fully explore the past, present
and future of a problem
THINK
TANK: The Game of Creative Problem Solving ®
(TT)
- When people
play a game they tend to participate naturally.
- Game playing
enables observers to see how a team solves problems, interacts
with one another, accommodates individual styles, and innovates.
- Structure
supports creativity, control stifles it
TT
develops group creative collaboration through:
Using a board game to guide the creative thinking process.
THINK TANK is actually a board game with rules and playing pieces.
We find that most players immediately let go of their adult assumptions
about problem solving when they realize they’re about to play
a game. The change in attitude will give you a head start on being
creative.
Examining
the integral parts of a problem. Many problems are so complex
and huge that it is hard to know where to start to solve them. In
this workshop you will deconstruct the problem by answering nine
questions on the game board.
Sharing the
combined knowledge and experience of the group. Everyone in
the group will have something to add to the collective responses
to the questions. You’ll also use specific idea generation
and evaluation tools to help stimulate thinking about your answers.
Diverging
first on ideas, then converging on their usefulness. Problem
solvers often want to rush to solution without first considering
possibilities. The game itself guides players through the steps
of creative problem solving to reduce the likelihood that will happen.
Determining
how to move forward with the most robust ideas. It is crucial that
the ideas that are surfaced in the workshop see the light of day.
We will develop a project plan for next steps
The objectives
of TT are:
- Learn a methodology
and tools for problem solving
- Apply both
idea generation and ideal evaluation tools
- Engage in
innovative thinking about an actual work problem
- Assess your
problem solving style to determine how it impacts input
- Observe individual
contribution and team dynamics
- Increase
collaboration skills
Creativity
101 (101)
- Is there
a difference between creativity and innovation and does it matter?
- Anyone who
is charged with increasing creative output should know about the
field.
- The requirements
for new thinking vary from organization-to-organization.
- Models and
tools provide a platform for growth.
101
educates participants about creativity and innovation through:
Presenting a timeline of the development of the field of creativity
and innovation. We’ll compress 100 years of development
into a story that tells who, what, when and how.
Defining
creativity and innovation and how both their input and output differ.
It is less important to rigidly define the terms than it is to discuss
the needs of your organization. We will look at models to learn
how they function and analyze what might work in your environment.
Teaching
you the major idea generation and evaluation tools, as well as how
to facilitate them. Tools can change a culture. We will help
you learn some powerful tools to usewhen you facilitate problem-solving
initiatives.
Discussing how to become a catalyst for change within your organization.
Altering the way an organization thinks of itself is a critical
challenge, especially if the game plan changes. We will provide
you with stealth techniques that have worked with organizations.
The objectives
of 101 are:
- Provide a
baseline of information about the field of creativity and innovation
- Arm knowledge
workers with tools and techniques that can produce fresh ideas
- Open dialogue
about the appropriateness of the organizational culture given
the marketplace challenges
- Establish
a cadre of change agentsStorytelling: A Powerful Tool for Problem
Definition (Storytelling)
- Rework often
comes from a poorly defined problem.
- Collective
stories refine the way a problem is seen and explained.
- Unexamined
assumptions can lead to poor decisions.
Storytelling:
A Powerful Tool for Problem Definition (Storytelling)
- Rework often
comes from a poorly defined problem.
- Collective
stories refine the way a problem is seen and explained.
- Unexamined
assumptions can lead to poor decisions.
Storytelling
defines a problem through:
- Using a six-step
problem-definition process.
- Gathering
the collective thinking of participants.
- Testing currently
held beliefs and assumptions about the problem.
- Writing an
invitational problem-definition statement.
No organization
can afford to search for right answers to wrong problems; yet it
is the most ordinary of occurrences. Organizational bias for action
can be so great that people ferociously leap towards solutions before
truly understanding the actual problem.
When initial reaction is successfully slowed, the quality of results
improves dramatically.
That's why we've
created a half to full day, seven-step experience aimed at defining
the real problem. The core is storytelling. Stories build common
understanding of a problem and is inclusive of all who gather. By
the end of the session, participants can articulate a coherent,
unified challenge.
The objectives
for Storytelling are:
- Explore
shared history, existing myths and assumptions about the issue
- Learn to
embrace unique perspectives and suspending judgment
- Practice
inquiry, patient listening, talking in the "and" mode
- Allow the
problem definition to emerge
- Learn a
methodology that can easily be applied to define any problem.
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