Think! by Edward de Bono Read Free Book Online Page A

more roads; smaller vehicles.
    We then take each of the specific concepts and see how this could be put into action with specific ideas.
For 'restricting the number of vehicles' we might have: high entry tolls; vehicle purchase permission auction (as in Singapore); special city access licences.
For 'discouraging traffic' we might have: high congestion charges for entering the city (as in London); no provision for parking; poor-quality roads; publicise poor traffic flow.
For 'reducing the need to travel' we might have: decentralise stores and offices; work from home via Internet, etc.; work stations.
For 'multi-use transport' we might have: buses; trams; light rail; taxis; multi-user taxis.
    The next broad concept was 'increasing traffic flow' and the concepts serving this could be delivered as follows:
For 'remove peak traffic flow' we might have: staggered working hours; differential tolls; tax incentives.
For 'remove junctions' we might have: overpasses and underpasses; roundabouts; a spiral road layout.
    The next broad concept was 'increasing travel space' and the concepts could be delivered as follows:
For 'more roads' we could have: underground roads; elevated roads; using riverbanks.
For 'smaller vehicles' we could have: bicycles; lightweight motorcycles; very small cars, etc.
    In this cascade effect, each point multiplies down to several points at the next level. It is very important to keep the 'broad concepts' (directions) as broad as possible. Too often people put specific concepts as broad concepts. These do not have the same multiplying effect.
    Occasionally, it is useful to have yet another layer where the idea is made even more specific (where do we place the overhead road?)
    The Concept Fan can be done by an individual or by a group working together. It is a way of generating alternatives through working downwards from very broad concepts.
PROVOCATION
    There is a mathematical need for provocation in any self-organising system, otherwise the system gets stuck in a local equilibrium.
    Traditional thinking makes much use of judgement. With judgement you come to an idea and then you judge it. You accept the idea or you reject it. For most parts of our life judgement is essential and extremely useful. The judgement of recognition allows us to make rapid use of past experience and also the experience of others. The judgement of assessment prevents us from making mistakes. Without judgement, it would be difficult to exist. So it is hardly surprising that the brain is a judgement machine. Nor is it surprising that philosophers have put all the emphasis on truth or judgement.
    All that is very well, but lateral thinking requires a different operation. Instead of accepting or rejecting an idea you look at the idea in order to 'see where you can move to'. This puts a very different sort of usefulness on ideas.
    One of the techniques of lateral thinking is to set up provocations.
    Einstein used to carry out what he called 'thought experiments'. He would say, 'What would I see if I were travelling at the speed of light?' The child who places one block on top of the other 'to see what happens' is also carrying out an experiment.
    Provocation has everything to do with experiments in the mind. Provocation allows us to make a statement that does not make sense, may contradict experience and may be totally illogical. We preface this with the signal word 'po', which indicates a provocation. 'Po' could be taken as implying a (P)rovocative (O)peration. It is also related to possible, hypothesis, pose, potential, etc.
    Instead of just sitting and waiting for ideas, provocation provides a means by which you can unsettle your mind in order to increase the chance of having a new idea.
    Using this, we create a provocation that lies outside our normal experience. This then provides a stepping stone which we can use to get across to the separate track – to point C. This was the idea of the factory being downstream of itself in Chapter