Saturday, December 24, 2011

Apply Your Creative Problem-Solving Skills!


In a recent interview on Book TV Thomas Friedman, co-author of the new book, That Used to Be Us, stated, "Employers are looking for individuals who utilize creative problem-solving to invent, re-invent, and re-engineer their jobs."

Creative Problem-Solving

Many investigators of thinking processes contend that there is a strong connection between problem-solving and creative production. 

The Osborn-Parnes Creative Problem-Solving Model emphasizes both divergent and convergent thinking in each phase of the process. 

Consider the following elaboration of the elements in the process:
  • Objective-Finding: Awareness and a "fuzzy" statement of the problem.
  • Fact-Finding: Utilize fact-finding questions, and select and answer the most important ones.
  • Problem-Finding: Problem is stated and restated "In what ways might I..." and the broadest statement of the problem is chosen.
  • Idea-Finding: Generation of ideas through brainstorming and other ideational techniques emphasizing the principle of deferred judgment, and selection of ideas.
  • Solution-Finding: List necessary and desirable criteria and evaluate ideas against selected criteria.
  • Acceptance-Finding: List anticipated problems in implementing solution, and design strategies to overcome them to insure success.

In what ways might you apply this Creative Problem-Solving process to invent, re-invent or re-engineer your life?

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