1. GENERATING POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS
UNIT 4:
GENERATING POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS

2. RECOGNIZING MENTAL BLOCKS
Once you’ve defined the problem, you want to make sure you generate the best solution.
Perseverance is perhaps the most notable characteristic of successful problem solvers,
so don’t become discouraged when solutions aren’t immediately evident.
1st step in overcoming these blocks is to recognize them.
GS1140.U4.WS1.Mental Blocks Worksht

3. TYPES of BLOCKS:
Conceptual Blocks – is a mental wall that prevents the problem solver from correctly perceiving a problem or conceiving its solution
Example: Draw 4 or fewer straight lines (without lifting your pen from the paper) that will cross through all 9 dots.

4. Most common Conceptual Blocks
Perceptual Blocks
Stereotyping
Limiting the Problem Unnecessarily
Saturation or Information Overload
Emotional Blocks
Fear of Risk Taking
Lack of Appetite for Chaos
Judging Rather Than Generating Ideas
Lack of Challenge
Inability to Incubate
Cultural Blocks
Environmental Blocks
Intellectual Blocks
Expressive Blocks

5. Most common Conceptual Blocks
Perceptual Blocks – are obstacles that prevent the problem solver from clearly perceiving either the problem itself or the information needed to solve it.
Stereotyping – uses of a flashlight other than that
Limiting the Problem Unnecessarily – you must explore and challenge the boundaries of the problem to find the best solution.
Saturating or Information Overload – too much info is just as bad as not enough.

6. Most common Conceptual Blocks
Emotional Blocks – these interfere with your ability to solve problems in many ways. By decreasing your freedom of exploration and manipulation and they prevent you from communicating your ideas to others.
Types of Emotional Blocking:
Fear of Risk Taking – stems from childhood
Lack of Appetite for Chaos – Problem solver must learn to live with confusion.
Judging Rather Than Generating Ideas – Negativity
Lack of Challenge – it may be too easy to take on.
Inability to Incubate – Rushing to finish it too fast.

7. Most common Conceptual Blocks
Cultural Blocks – Limits set by cultural patterns.
One type – is the failure to consider an act that causes displeasure or disgust to certain members of society.

8. Most common Conceptual Blocks
Environmental Blocks – limits imposed by our immediate social and physical environment.
Cell phone interruptions.
Hostile work environments
Pleasant work environments

9. Most common Conceptual Blocks
Intellectual Blocks – can occur as a result of an inflexible or inadequate uses of problem-solving strategies.
Additional background, training, or resources may be necessary to solve a problem.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help…

10. Most common Conceptual Blocks
Expressive Blocks – the inability to communicate your ideas to others, in either verbal or written form.

11. BLOCKBUSTING
A number of structured techniques are available for breaking through mental roadblocks:
Negative Attitudes = Attitude Adjustments
Fear of Failure = Risk Taking
Following the Rules = Breaking the Rules
Over-reliance on Logic = Creative Internal
Climate
Belief That You Aren’t Creative = Creative Beliefs.
Blockbusting assignment

12. IMPROVING YOUR CREATIVE ABILITIES (Part I)
Look at pages 97 – 99 – read and take notes to improve your creative abilities.
Make sure you relate how you personally have used the technique in the past or present.

13. BRAINSTORMING TECHNIQUES
Brainstorming – one of the oldest techniques to stimulate creativity – is a familiar and effective technique for generating solutions.
Brainstorming Techniques:
Free Association- generation of list of ALL possible solutions. NO Negative comments. (P113)
Vertical Thinking – can build on the ideas already generated (piggybacking) or it can look at the different parts of the problem in an effort to generate new ideas. Uses Osborn’s Checklist to Add New Ideas.
Lateral Thinking – used to get unstuck by changing the pattern of thought and stimulating the flow of ideas, based on random pieces of information.

14. BRAINSTORMING TECHNIQUES
Example: How would you use one of those 3 techniques to increase crowd participation at a sporting event.

15. ANALOGY and CROSS-FERTILIZATION