Imagine you’ve been given this problem to solve. “You work for a company that manufactures tea bags. But the market for bagged tea has declined as more and more people buy organic bulk tea. What else could you do with the tea bags?”
At first, there’s a tendency for a quick adaptation, solutions that retain the same size, shape, and function (“Fill the bags with dried soup”).
If you ignore the urge to stop with these concrete solutions, you’ll begin to imagine possibilities where the shape and function and/or size may be retained, but there could be different uses for the bags (“Fill them with shoe polish for travelers”).
As you continue brainstorming, you’ll experience a shift in perspective where the original shape, size, function are no longer considered (“Cut and flatten the bags and make parachutes for Barbie Dolls”).
If you reach for the most far-out possibilities, you might even dismiss the original question and answer completely outside the box: “Sell the machinery for scrap metal and start a new business.”
A few original thinkers might move to the more open possibilities right away, but most of us, especially in a busy life with multiple demands on our time, look far too often for the quick solution. A classic story illustrates the pitfalls of adapting too readily:
Frogs were placed in pans of room-temperature water over Bunsen Burners that gradually heated the water. Free to jump at any time, their adaptability to gradual temperature changes kept them in the pans until the heat was so intense they died.
You’re free to jump at any time.
(Thanks to the Center for Creative Leadership for the tea bag exercise,
and to Pfeiffer et al., in Shaping Strategic Planning, for a description of the frog experiments.)
and to Pfeiffer et al., in Shaping Strategic Planning, for a description of the frog experiments.)
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