Edward de Bono came up with the idea of parallel thinking using the 6 thinking hats. These are the slides that I put together, based on my learning of the 6 Thinking hats, in order for people to have a quick reference point, to understand the idea of parallel thinking better
5. Of course…. Over the course of time
We evolved as a civilization and started developing cultures
Then came the era of Rulers/Imperialism/Colonialism etc……
7. By Means of arguing
Argue over the benefits of
one’s own idea, bring out
the flaws in another
person’s idea
8. So….
Each person would talk about how best their idea is, and
how bad the other person’s idea is
Acceptance of an idea would purely depend on weather of
not the individual could present it flawlessly
One party would talk about the merits of the idea, and
another party would talk about the demerits of the idea
Even today, this seems to be the preferred way of arriving at
the best solution to a given problem, or, to get mutual
agreement among people
9. Today….
Most problems that we encounter today in out
professional lives are
mostly intellectual
Those which need collaboration
Arguing over multiple solutions might not be the best
option
10. Argument v/s Parallel Thinking
While in Argument
The focus is on “What Is”
Each person talks out of their own silo
Each person sees from his own direction, not from any other direction
While In Parallel Thinking
The focus is on “What Can Be”
Design the best way forward – together
The Idea is put on the table and everyone looks at it in the same direction
14. Well, In the world of parallel thinking
All 6 men would take a walk around the elephant
Feel the elephant from each side
Discuss what they think
Constructively agree on what could be the best fit
15. Edward de Bono
Physician, Psychologist and Author
Originated the term “Lateral Thinking”
Came up with the Idea of “Six thinking Hats” for Parallel Thinking
16. 6 Thinking Hats
There are 6 coloured hats
The group wears a same coloured hat at a time while considering a problem
Colour of the hat is metaphorical for a way of thinking
Each colour brings out a different perspective
Note
Different Colours bring out different perspectives of the idea
All the people looking at the idea, look at it from one direction, for example, the
entire group, together, discuss on the benefits of the idea, then, move on to
discuss the pitfalls of the idea, and, so on…
All this is done as a group
17. Now lets look at the hats and
the direction these hats point
towards
18. White Hat
Neutral and Objective
Facts and Figures
Thinking Directions
What Information do we have?
What Information do we need?
What Information is Missing?
Do we have Enough Information to make a decision?
19. Red Hat
Red as a colour suggests anger, rage
Red is a sign of emotion and takes on the emotional direction of an idea
Some of the directional questions for a Red hat
My “Gut” feeling tells me that this is risky
I “Feel” that the targets are aggressive
Bring out the range of feelings – “Like” “Hate” “Unhappy” “Mixed” “Doubtful”
20. Black Hat
Black is Serious
This is where we exercise caution, try to be careful
What are the weak links of an idea
Some directional thoughts for Black Hats
Why this might not work
What are the pitfalls
What should we be careful about
What would be the difficulties in implementing this idea
21. Yellow Hat
Sunny Side Up
Brings out the positives of an idea
Talks about hope
Has an optimistic outlook
Some Suggestive directions
What are the possibilities
What are the benefits
Some the great things that could come out of this idea
How can we “Make things Happen”
22. Green Hat
Green as a colour represents abundance, fertility and growth
Look at creativity
Come up with new ideas
Some Directives
New and New ideas
Alternative ideas
Changes that will bring in benefits
New approaches to problem solving
23. Blue Hat
The colour of the Sky, which is above everything else
It is concerned with structure and organizing
Controls the other hats and the thinking process
Could also be the hat worn by the facilitator
Some Directions
What would be the best order of hats, in order for us to achieve best results
Thinking about thinking
Instructions
Summarizing
24. So, how does this work
As a group, pick up a problem to be solved, or a solution to be analysed
Wear the hats one at a time – speak your thoughts in the direction, as
indicated by the colour of the hat
Bingo… You have consensus even before you know it
It is not necessary to use all 6 hats, you can chose to use only the relevant
hats
25. But… How about the order of the hats
It depends of the situation at hand
The order differs if you would like to solve a problem v/s analyse the
feasibility of the solution
The order could be pre-determined, or agreed upon, at the start of the
discussion – Do remember to wear a blue hat at this point
It might be a good idea to start with a Blue Hat (Summary of the situation at
hand + set the context) then move to Red Hat (To understand how people feel
about the situation) then move on to other hats
Its suggested to end with a Blue Hat
You could switch hats multiple times, but, stick to the rules of the game
26. Some obvious benefits
Of course, collaborative thinking
Its easier to ask someone to “take off the black hat” than to “stop being
negative”
Here, thinking is not used to put down idea or people, people are equally
compelled to wear a Yellow Hat
Thinking will go beyond being “Personal thoughts”
“Confusion is the biggest enemy of good thinking” Here, all thoughts are
channelized