Creative Problem Solving

UMC1022 CREATIVITY & INNOVATION Creative Problem Solving (CPS) Zainal Abidin Sayadi Faculty of Science, Arts & Heritage

Identify the Goal, Wish or Challenge Gather Data Clarify the Problem

Generate Ideas

Select & Strengthen Solutions Plan for Action

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Explore the Challenge

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Generate Ideas

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Prepare for Action

DIVERGING & CONVERGING

Whatever idea comes to mind, go with it.

Don’t evaluate ideas while you are generating them.

The ideas can be evaluated later.

The more ideas you have, the greater chances of getting a good one.

Lay out all the usual approaches to the problem, then push to consider new ideas.

Freewheel - the wilder the ideas the better.

It’s easier to tame a wild idea than to invigorate a weak one. (Osborn) Stretch your thinking to create some wild ideas.

“If at the first the idea is not absurd, there is no hope for it” Albert Einstein

Let one idea spur other ideas.

Build, combine and improve ideas.

1st Stage Divergent What if?

Why not?

What associations can we find What rules can we break?

What assumptions are at work?

What is this like?

What analogy could we use?

What metaphor suggests itself?

Suppose the problem were a solution?

2nd Stage Convergent Will it work?

Can we do it?

Has it been tried before?

Does it fit in?

Have we got the resources?

Is the timing right?

Who can help?

How much will it cost?

Suppose it fails?

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Explore the Challenge Identify the Goal, Wish or Challenge •

State a variety of goals, wishes or challenges.

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Choose a goal, wish or challenge where you have ownership, motivation and a need for imagination

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Explore the Challenge Gather Data • Explore all data around the goal, wish or challenge.

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Identify all the relevant data

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Use Journalist’s questions 5Ws & 2Hs

•Who…? What…? When…? Where…?

Why…? How…? How much…?

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Explore the Challenge Clarify the Problem • State the problem in as many ways as possible. • Choose a problem statement to work on.

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Generate Ideas • Think up a wide variety of ideas to solve the problem. • Choose the most promising ideas.

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Prepare for Action Select & Strengthen Solutions • Evaluate and refine the ideas you selected.

• Select the most promising solution(s).

• Many similar ideas – Restate & PPCO • One idea – PPCO •Diverse Ideas – Evaluation Matrix •Many ideas of equal worth – Card Sort

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Prepare for Action Plan for Action • List a series of possible actions for implementation.

• Form a specific plan for action.

•Select key actions to implement.

•Create a plan that details who does what, by when, reporting completion to whom.

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Prepare for Action Goals Immediate Short Medium Long Term

Action By Whom

By When

Reporting completion to whom

Brainstorming Brainwriting Forced Connections Visual Connections SCAMPER Ladder of Abstraction Word Dance Random Word Excursions Focus Alternatives Challenge

Highlighting Praise First (PPCO) Card Sort Evaluation Matrix

Highlighting  3 steps of highlighting  Hits  Look for ideas that are interesting, promising, compelling, intriguing, innovative or on target.  Mark or “hit” those ideas with a check, star or colored dot.  Cluster  From the hits, see if any share a theme or reiterate the same idea.  Group or “cluster” of those related ideas.  Restate  For each cluster, try to synthesize the different ideas into a single statement.  Try to capture the essence and paraphrase the ideas into one concise phrase.

Praise First (PPCO) 

Pluses

 What do you like about the person’s idea, work, proposal, or performance right now?  Be direct, honest and specific.

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Potentials

 What opportunities might this idea open up?  It might…

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Concerns

 Express your concerns as open ended questions that offer a possible future direction.  How to…

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Overcome Concerns

 Review your list of concerns.  Brainstorm to generate ways to overcome each concern.

Card Sort 

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Helps to compare, rank and prioritize promising ideas.

It can be used to rank ideas, solutions, problem statements or criteria.

Continued…..

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Card Sort… directions Write each idea on a separate card (3” x 5”) and arrange the cards in a row.

Count how many cards (ideas) you have.

Identify the option you like the least. Write the number that equals the total number of cards you have. Put the card off to the side.

Of the cards remaining, identify the option you like the best and write “1” on it. Put it off to the side. ……

Evaluation Matrix  

A systematic way to analyze ideas.

Directions:  Generate Criteria  Select Criteria  Create a rating scale  Set up the matrix  Fill in the blank boxes

 Compare their strengths & weaknesses  Overcome low criteria ratings

Evaluation Matrix Rating Scale: Good 5

Average 4 3

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Fair 1

option1 option2 option3 option4 option5 Option6

criteria1 criteria2 criteria3 criteria4

criteria5

…summary

Explore The Challenge

1. Identify the Goal, Wish or Challenge.

2. Gather Data 3. Clarify the Problem

Generate Ideas Prepare for Action

4. Generate Ideas 5. Select & Strengthen Solutions 6. Plan for Action