Lateral Thinking Explained

Lateral Thinking is a powerful method to use the unused potential of brain. This is originally propounded by Edward De Bono.  In this post various simple methods which can bring about lateral thinking capabilities in a reader are described.

Lateral Thinking Methods or Skills-

There are a number of mental tools or methods that can be used to bring about lateral thinking. These include the following-

Random Entry: Choose an object at random, and associate that with the area you are thinking about. This is also called the method of focal objects.

For example imagine you are thinking about how to improve fireup.co.in. Choose an object at random from your room, you might see a spectacle. Spectacle helps to see things clearly. Perhaps this makes you think of embedding sound software that would readout the concepts and other website materials which would be a great help for visually impaired students.

Provocation: Provocation provokes us to look at things not as they are but as what they might be. We must change our perception in order to change directions and seek alternative solutions and questions what if, suppose what would happen, etc.. Make an idea that may not be direct solution to the problem but which moves thinking forward to a new place from where new ideas or solutions may be found.

Challenge: Simply challenge the way things have always been done or seen, or the way they are. This is done not to show there is anything wrong with the existing situation but simply to direct your perceptions to exploring outside the current area.

For example you could challenge coffee cups being produced with a handle. There is nothing wrong with coffee cups having handles so the challenge is a direction to explore without defending the status quo. The reason for the handle seems to be that the cup is often too hot to hold directly. Perhaps coffee cups could be made with insulated finger grips, or there could be separate coffee cup holders similar to beer holders.

Solve some real life problems by applying lateral thinking

Real life examples of lateral thinking

A graduate had been trying to get into IT Sector, but without success and had exhausted all the normal routes. As a last resort, he had 100 CVs printed. He then went round the “Sector V”, where all the main IT companies in Kolkata are located and proceeded to place one of these CVs under the windscreen of every Honda City and top of the range BMW and Mercedes he came across.

What happened next day? Yes! You guessed it right. Next day, he had several phone calls offering him interviews from the senior executives whom the cars belonged to.

This question was asked to a candidate in a top MNC to elicit his true perception

Q – A man and his son are in a car crash. The man is killed and the son is taken to hospital gravely injured. When he gets there, the surgeon says “I can’t operate on this boy- he is my son!” How is this possible? [Surgeon is telling the truth, the boy don't have two fathers and he has no look alike]

This is an example of a quick assumption blocking the mind’s ability to explore alternatives. In this case the assumption is that the quintessential doctor is a male. If a candidate change his perception to allow for a female surgeon, then the answer is suddenly obvious, the surgeon is the boy’s mother.

Hope you like this post on Lateral Thinking. Let us know your views on this by posting a comment below-

Tags: 6 thinking hats, CAT, edward de bono, IIM, Lateral thinking, logical thinking, mind mapping, mind power, puzzles, riddles

Logical Reasoning vs. Lateral Thinking

LATERAL THINKING

Lateral thinking is an idea generation and problem solving technique in which new concepts are created by looking at things in novel ways. The term was coined by Dr. Edward de Bono in his 1970 book ‘Lateral Thinking.’“You cannot look in a new direction by looking harder in the same direction” - Edward de Bono

Difference between Logical Reasoning and Lateral thinking

Lateral thinking is not a substitute for Logical reasoning. Both are required. During brainstorming meetings, you encourage lateral thinking during the first session to generate as much creative solutions as possible, and logical thinking during the second session to select the feasible ideas.

Logical (vertical) thinking carries a chosen idea forward. Lateral thinking provokes fresh ideas or changes the frame of reference

Vertical thinking tries to overcome problems by meeting them head-on. Lateral thinking tries to bypass them through a radically different approach

Lateral thinking is not a substitute for Logical reasoning. Both are required. During brainstorming meetings, you encourage lateral thinking during the first session to generate as much creative solutions as possible, and logical thinking during the second session to select the feasible ideas.

Parallel thinking espouses the idea that we must organize our thinking and should not allow our thought to wander around. Parallel Thinking ensures we do only one sort of thinking at a time and the six different colored hats of Six Thinking Hats allows us to wear one hat at a time, each representing different modes of thought:

1. White Hat – Gathers needed and known information

2. Red Hat – Expression of feelings, emotions, hunches and intuitive thoughts

3. Yellow Hat – Expresses values, feasibility and the benefits to the situation/idea at hand

4. Green Hat – Generates alternatives and explores creative ideas

5. Black Hat – Focuses on the cautions and difficulties that may arise with an idea

6. Blue Hat – Manages the framework of the thinking process

Tags: edward de bono, Lateral thinking, Logical Reasoning, mind power, Parallel thinking, six thinking hats

Media Coverage of FireUp

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Media Coverage of FireUp 2

Here is a glimpse of the coverage by Prabhat Khabar

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How to Improve your Reading Speed?

Increase Your Reading Speed

How Fast You Can Be?

Reading speed or Speed Reading has no known theoretical limit. A speed of between 800 and 1200 words per minute (wpm) can comfortably be reached by permanent speed readers, without any constant practice and drilling. Reading speed varies according to the complexity of the reading material, type, face, print quality, grammar, style etc.

We live in the age of information, and we must read extensively if we intend to be successful in our studies, or careers. Schools and colleges have discovered that courses in reading skills give enormous aid to students struggling under the heavier loads of today’s scholastic programs. Young men and women trained in speed reading show distinct advantages over those who lack this kind of skill.

How Much Time It Will Take?

When you participate in a speed reading courses online, or read the book, you will find your reading skills increasing from the very start. With serious application, you will soon be speed reading with ease, and astonished at how much you comprehend in such little time.

Obstacles to Speed Reading

• Reading phrases more than once.
• Wondering mind and straying thoughts
• Anxiety about missing a critical not or other conjunctive structure
• Outside anxiety or stress like job, home, family, etc.

www.fireup.co.in provides you a solution to overcome all these problems and helps you to enhance your speed in reading comprehensions.

General Speed Reading Gyan

Concentration: You can learn anything if you pay attention!

Enjoy Reading: No matter whether you are reading technical material fun is the most important ingredient in a successful reading experience.

Preview the chapter: you will organize your mind before you begin to read, build a structure for the thoughts and details to come, you will be able to sort, understand and remember the information better.

Question: Read each section of the chapter with your questions in mind. Look for the answers, and take note of questions you didn’t think of that were answered in that section

Eye Stops: Read in phrases of three or four words – meaning is easier to pull from groups of words rather than from individual words.

Varying Reading Rates: Vary your reading rate to suit the difficulty and type of writing of the text. An efficient reader speeds up for easier material and slows down for the hard.

You can buy FireUp’s complete course on Speed Reading and Reading Comprehension just at Rs. 390. Visit FireUp’s Purchase page to buy now.

Skimming – Important Speed Reading Techinique

Skimming is a high speed reading process and involves visually searching the sentences of a page for clues to meaning.

There are many strategies that can be used when skimming. Some of them are

1. Read the first and last paragraphs

2. Read the title, subtitles, subheading, and illustrations.

3. Read the first sentence of each paragraph. This technique is useful when you’re seeking specific information rather than reading for comprehension.

Skimming on computer is slower

The reading speed and comprehension is the same for the computer screen and paper. However, according to a research skimming on a computer is 41% slower than on paper.

Reading Comprehension section in CAT is one where large chunk of students face problems due to low reading speed. So prepare online to get a better edge for Common Admission Test. You can buy FireUp’s complete course on Speed Reading and Reading Comprehension just at Rs. 390. Visit FireUp’s Purchase page to buy now.

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Fireup – Online CAT Preparation 2010

India’s best management institutes Indian Institutes of Management’s Admission Group decided to make their Common Admission Test (CAT 2009) online, and an alumnus of IIM Indore geared up for the challenge with his venture www.fireup.co.in

Vineet Patawari, founder of www.fireup.co.in, a Chartered Accountant and a pass-out of the Post-Graduate Diploma in Business Management, IIM Indore, who rejected a sought after seven figure job from JPMC in 2008 to follow his heart. He is supported in this venture by his partner and creative head, Shreshtha Jha.

www.fireup.co.in, which was formally launched at Oxford book store, Kolkata, on 18th December 2008 provides all the facilities for a CAT taker under one banner and includes features like blog, videos, forum, chat, common room and knowledge management.

www.Fireup.co.in claims to train an individual right from the initial CAT preparation to the ultimate challenge of clearing group discussions and interviews thereby securing a seat in the most coveted institutions through its unique courseware and methodology.

Though www.fireup.co.in is primarily an online education venture, some of its modules are also available in CDs at leading stores.

Asked about what initiated him to start an online CAT Preparation site, Patawari said that the logistics of the admission examination was becoming a nightmare, due to the growing number of aspirants every year. It was soon becoming imperative for the exam to go online some day, he added. The online examination would be much easier to manage than the current system, Jha said.

An IIM-A source confirmed that the online examination would cut down administrative costs, involving people travelling to places, and sending papers all over the country, with risks of leaks. The conventional examination can be conducted from a limited number centers while the online tests can be taken from anywhere.

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