Proximity Thinking

Why Proximity Thinking?
Idea generation, creativity, innovation,
the arts, human relationships, design,
problem-solving, growth, change,
mental development, idea evaluation.

Proximity Thinking = ProxThink

Share & Proxri ProxThink.com

What has ProxThink done?
It has helped with daily life, inventions,
business approaches, collaboration,
conversations, learning, cooking, sales,
furniture designs, structural components,
jokes, writing, jobs, cartoons, scarves,
downloadable content, climate change,
art, brochures, logos and websites.

✓
☐

Beneﬁts of these Slides
• You’ll get an introduction to creating
and innovating with ProxThink.
• You’ll get more out of the website.
• You’ll relate what you’re learning to
speciﬁc situations in your life.

»!«

But wait, there’s more!
Our Promise to You
If you make it through this, we
promise you’ll either think it’s
pretty cool, or be indifferent, or
have a splitting headache!

Share & Proxri
☃ ProxThink.com

Share & Proxri
As you ﬁnd this rewarding, please
share it and proxri. A proxri, short for
ProxReward, is money or a custom
reward. It’s often made with the
proximity in mind. When you’re ready,
go to ProxThink.com and click
Proxri Here. Thank you!

Share & Proxri ☺ ProxThink.com

Three Innovations of ProxThink
1. Thinking Structure
2. Patterns and Tools for
Creativity & Innovation
3. Growth Model


What We Won’t Cover
The growth model and sustainable
proximities approach. With them, among
other things, we started a climate
change project. More at Proxearth.org.

☀

Upcoming Parts
• Thinking Structure
• Creating & Innovating
• Website


Part One
Thinking Structure


Thinking Structure – Why?
Q: Why have, and why learn,
the thinking structure?
A: The patterns and tools for
creativity and innovation use
the thinking structure.

?

Names
• Thinking structure is called
the ProxThink Basics.
• Prox is short for proximity.
• Creativity and innovation patterns
are called the ProxPatterns.
• The Basics include four Terms.

Share & Proxri
4 ProxThink.com

ProxThink Basics – Terms
• Situation
• Element
• Relationship
• Proximity


Ordinary Language
• The four terms are used pretty
much like we already use them.
• Value is in relating them.
• Value is in a small set of terms.

“Everything should benot simpler.
made as simple
as possible, but
—Einstein
“

Terms in Use – Example 1
ProxPatterns help you relate elements
in the proximity of your situation.


Terms in Use – Example 2
Honor Integrity ProxPattern:
How can you relate elements in ways
that honor their integrity?


Situation
• A situation is whatever you are
dealing with or considering.
• Problem, challenge, opportunity,
place, time, state of affairs,
circumstances, etc.


Your Situation
What is a situation you’ve been
dealing with lately?

(You can use this situation or other
situations in later slides.)

Element
• An element can be anything.
• Person, place, thing, idea, feeling, time,
group, relationship, situation, proximity.
• More accurately, an element
relates to other elements.
• Useful since very general.


Element
More elements in relationship with
other elements.

E = Element
R = Relationship


Your Elements
What are some of the elements
in your situation?


Relationship
• A relationship is any kind of association
or connection between elements.

E = Element
R = Relationship

• Elements can be related in space and
time, and in thoughts and emotions.
• Descriptions can reveal relationships.

Relationships – Examples
• Driving is associated with
independence and speed,
but also with trafﬁc.
• Meetings may relate
elements of fun, politics,
food, ideas and projects.
• A rope keeps a boat
connected to a dock, as well
as to food and supplies.

Your Relationships
Describe some of the relationships
in your situation.


Proximity
• Dictionary meaning of proximity
includes “nearness in relationship.” This
ﬁts with elements and relationships.
• The proximity is a general way of
thinking about a context, environment,
network, region, domain, or other set of
relationships. It’s more simple.

Share & Proxri
•
ProxThink.com

Proximity
The proximity consists of elements
related or potentially related to a
situation, in physical, mental
and other ways.


Proximity includes the …
• Clock, person, mattress,
morning, sleep, feelings,
goal of getting up.
• Machinery, driver, wood,
scaffolding, plans, budgets,
deadlines, cash ﬂow.
• Vacation, palms, chairs,
ocean, mood, relaxation,
sun, anticipation, breeze.

Proximity = Green + Blue

■ Related to Situation and Part of the Proximity
■ Potentially Related to Situation and Part of the Proximity
■ Not Related to Situation and Not Part of the Proximity


Your Proximity
What are some of the key elements
in the proximity of your situation?


Core Idea of ProxThink
• Underlying Concept of ProxThink:
Being is about relating.
• Add the four terms just covered,
and you get the Core Idea
(see next slide).


Core Idea
In a situation, change elements,
relationships and the proximity to
better relate to each other.


Core Idea & Your Situation
How might you change elements,
relationships, and the proximity to
better relate in your situation?


Part Two
Creating and Innovating
with ProxPatterns


What are ProxPatterns?
• Similar to rules of thumb.
• ProxPatterns are an integrated group
of patterns for relating to situations.
• Use them to generate ideas, evaluate
ideas, solve problems, grow, change,
relate to people, create and innovate.
• Hints tools are built with
the ProxPatterns.
PPs

16 ProxPatterns (PPs)
Three groups:
• Combo PPs - 7
• Limits PPs - 4
• Pure PPs - 5

Won’t cover all 16, but some.


Combo ProxPatterns
Combo PPs combine, work and play well
together (as in dating and collaboration):
• Relate a Variety
• Honor Integrity
• Allow Uncertainty
• Avoid Forcing
• Involve Actively
• Transition Smoothly
• Connect Independently

Honor Integrity PP
• How can you relate elements in
ways that honor their integrity?
• It means to respect the unique
properties, dimensions or
characteristics of elements.
• Examples: friendship, ergonomics,
bridges.


Honor Integrity – Examples
• Friends respect each
other’s unique points of
view and characteristics.
• An ergonomic mouse
honors the properties of
the human hand.
• A drawbridge respects
the dimensions of the cars
and the ships.

Honor Integrity & Your Situation
In your situation, how can you relate
elements in ways that honor
their integrity?


Relate a Variety PP
• How can you relate a wider
variety of elements?
• It means relating elements that
are different or diverse.
• Examples: stories, democracy,
interfaces.


Relate a Variety – Examples
• Stories relate a variety of
elements, from people to
places, history, ideas, etc.
• Democracy relates a wide
variety of people, regions,
interests and needs.
• User interfaces relate
diverse skill levels, tasks
and hardware.

Variety & Your Situation
In your situation, how can you relate
a wider variety of elements?


Limits ProxPatterns
• Value of Some
• Limits of One
• Never Know All
• Rank Depends


Value of Some PP
• How can you focus on some elements?
• Some relates to limits, partial progress,
neither one nor all, in between, shades
of gray, probabilities and guesses.
• Examples: parts of a job, customer
service, weather forecasting.


Value of Some – Examples
• We break down jobs into
parts, to focus on some
things or the next thing.
• In customer service, we
focus on a person’s needs,
not everything possible.
• Weather forecasters give
us some idea of the future,
not perfect information.

Some & Your Situation
In your situation, how can you focus
on some elements, rather than all
elements or just one element?


Pure ProxPatterns
• ProxAwareness
• Introduce Related
• More Proximate
• Create Links
• Group/Ungroup


Introduce Related PP
• How can you introduce elements
which are related?
• It means to introduce elements
which are associated or connected.
• Examples: conversation, learning,
arrow keys on a keyboard.


Introduce Related – Examples
• In conversation, it’s good
to introduce related topics,
stories, people or facts.
• Effective learning often
involves building on related
information already known.
• Arrow keys on a keyboard
relate to our sense of
up/down and left/right.

Introduce Related
& Your Situation
In your situation, how can you introduce
elements which are related?


ProxPatterns as a Team
• They work together.
• Complement each other.
• Some, not all, apply.


PPs in Conversation
We honor the integrity of the other
person by focusing on their interests.
We actively involve them by asking
questions and restating some of their
points. We allow some uncertainty by
trying a new topic. We relate to the
variety of ways they respond with other
PPs, such as introducing related facts,
or creating links to people we know.
Share & Proxri • ProxThink.com

PPs in Driving
Car manufacturers honor the integrity
of materials and the bodies of drivers.
Roads, signs and lights help with
smooth transitions. Cup holders make
drinks more proximate. We allow some
uncertainty due to trafﬁc. We pass
cars using proximity awareness. Map
systems help us connect to some places
independent of our knowledge.
Share & Proxri •• ProxThink.com

PPs in a Business Lunch
Your product is technical, and with
proximity awareness, you discover your
lunch partner isn’t technical. You honor
their integrity, and don’t force technical
talk. By also being able to talk about
some general product beneﬁts, you
can relate to variety. In addition, you
offer to talk to their engineers, creating
a link and making a smooth transition.
Share & Proxri ••• ProxThink.com

ProxThink Hints Tools
• Hints tools focus your attention, and
trigger ideas, by inserting your word or
phrase into ProxPattern sentences.
• Example: In your situation, how can
you allow some uncertainty, ambiguity,
chaos, chance and/or tension related
to __________________?


Hints Tools
On the website, there are sixteen
main hints; sixteen follow-up hints
expansions; the VIU Hint tool; the
Core Idea hint; pairs tools; and a
three random hints generator.

✄

Your Examples are Needed
We’re looking for examples from people
who have tried ProxThink. You would
be part of our Collaboration Deal.
But intrinsic rewards and helping the
proximity are also important. You might
beneﬁt in a variety of ways.

✉

More Personal?
If you would like a more personal or
customized experience of ProxThink,
we’re available for speaking, seminars,
idea facilitation and idea collaboration.
In person or via video.
Contact us at ProxThink.com.


Part Three
Website


Proxri and the Site
As you ﬁnd the ProxThink site and
framework rewarding, please proxri. A
proxri, short for ProxReward, is money
or a custom reward. It’s often made
with the proximity in mind. It's a way to
create sustainable proximities. Thanks!

☹☻

You’re ready for the site!
You’ll see the question …
“What are you considering?”
Enter a word or phrase.
Click ProxThink Hints.
(Write ideas down. Play. Experiment.)
Try it at ProxThink.com!

☞

Proximity Thinking

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

Similar to Proximity Thinking

Similar to Proximity Thinking (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

Proximity Thinking