Creativity, Problem solving , Decision making & Lateral Thinking

Defining Lateral thinking / Parallel thinking / Creativity & innovation
Clearing out the confusion, this article clearly explains the differences between parellel, lateral thinking as well as creativity and innovation.

How to think lateral?
To think laterally is to make an individual look at something from a different perspective Lateral thinking is an attitude of the mind to generating new ideas and solving problems, supported by unconventional thinking techniques.

8 Blocks to creative thinking
These are the main eight stumbling blocks that keep us from getting in touch with our innate creativity.

Problem solving & Decision Making
Problems are a natural part of our lives. They can of course be a challenge or an opportunity or a situation. In part we will demonstrate our effectiveness in our job role by our ability to solve problems or facilitate this process through our team.

Problem analysis : Fishbone/Cause and Effect diagrams - Ishikawa
This is a simple yet powerful method of visually recording possible causes and relating effect. These help detailed investigation of processes responsible for quality problems. They provide a convenient way of revealing relationships between causes and can help in defining the problem more closely.

Decision making: Force Field Analysis
Force-Field Analysis is a tool for studying a situation that you want to change. The method was first described by Kurt Lewin and is based on the observations that, in general, a situation can be described as a balance between two types of forces.

Solution Generation: Brainstorming and Revers brainstorming
Find out about both brainstorming and reverse brainstorming as creativity tools.

Brainstorming ground rules
For a brainstorming session to be successful, some ground rules should be set and followed by the group. This article lists some useful ground rules to have more successful brainstorming sessions.

SCAMMPERR - Creativity tool
Michael Michalko created a model to help people explore problems and potential solutions from different angles in order to establish the best solution.

De bono's 6 Thinking hats
Dr. Edward De Bono described that when people approach problem solving they do so from quite different perspectives. He associated this with people wearing different hats and identified the different approaches by using hats of different colours. This led to the development of his, now famous, six thinking hats theory.