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Knowing 600 ways to accomplish a task is certainly better than knowing just one. But wait: are you even working toward the right goal? This course teaches techniques for determining whether the right questions are being asked and how to generate multiple answers once you are sure you have asked the right ones.
Program Overview
At this program's conclusion, participants should be able to:
- Discuss the importance of creative and critical thinking.
- Recognize the difference between left- and right-brain thinking.
- Demonstrate multiple creative-thinking techniques.
- Explain the Osborn-Parnes principle and its value.
- List strategies for selling ideas.
The following outline highlights some of the course's key learning points. As part of your training program, we will modify content as needed to meet your business objectives. Upon request, we will provide you with a copy of the participant materials prior to the session(s).
Course Outline
Critical Thinking: What It Is and Why It Matters
Understanding the importance of critical thinking and how it differs from other types of thinking (e.g. memorization) are the first steps to improving business decision making. In this introductory lesson, participants will be introduced to six critical-thinking skills: interpretation, analysis, inference, explanation, evaluation, and self-regulation.
Right Brain! Left Brain! Brain Sprain!: Understanding Your Preferred Approach
This unit begins with a brief introduction to the physiology of the brain and its impact on thinking. Participants will discover the difference between right-brain and left-brain thinking and assess their preferred approach to processing information.
Get Out of the Box: Basic Creative-Thinking Skills
This third section encourages participants to challenge assumptions, dispel corporate myths, and question the status quo with the exploration of multiple creative-thinking techniques for better problem solving: brainstorming, negative brainstorming, mind mapping, and random words. In this active portion of the training, participants will tackle real-world business problems using a variety of ideation methods.
Beyond Brainstorming: The Osborn-Parnes Creative Problem-Solving Method
This portion of the program goes beyond basic creative-thinking skills and focuses on a process of solving business problems using six specific steps: objective finding, fact finding, problem finding, idea finding, solution finding, and acceptance finding. When used properly, this method can significantly reduce the time required to discover an innovative and sound solution to any workplace problem.
We've Always Done It This Way: Getting Past Nay-Sayers and Other Negative People
Overcoming the mentality of "that's never going to work" is a challenge in any environment. At the conclusion of this course, participants will learn how to sell benefits to guarantee maximum buy-in to new ideas and processes-even with the toughest crowd.
At the program's completion, participants will have an understanding of critical thinking and exposure to several tools for organizing thoughts, finding creative solutions, and communicating those ideas.
