Typical Thinking For Product Development

 

 

 

‘Ordinary’ thinking includes such useful (but sometimes harmful) thinking forms as:

Associative Thinking This is the human relationship database, full of words and groups of words (concepts) which have pre-programmed relationships with one another. The Associative Thinking section of the human brain is both a thesaurus and a dictionary, full of vivid and highly useful information. Without guidance by a ‘Higher Mind,’ this form of thinking falls short, and can even become a barrier to invention (i.e., intellectual property that pays off). This barrier has been coined ‘formatory thinking’ - thinking according to established mental programs.

Logical Thinking Logical thinking, a slow process, is the thinking of choice of good product designers. Understanding the inner workings of all products involves the law of cause-and-effect. Logical thinking uses cause and effect to create ‘good’ product designs. Higher Level Thinking™ includes Logical Thinking, but Logical Thinking by itself is inadequate to achieve brilliant Next Generation products.

Analogous Thinking Too few designers use ‘other seemingly unrelated systems or products’ to improve upon their own product designs. Higher-Level Thinking incorporates Analogous Thinking into several of its creative problem-solving tools. Analogous Thinking is a good habit, but it needs to be directed by Higher-Level Thinking.

Metaphorical Thinking "Your breath is a mild wind, your body a sun, radiating energy to its surroundings." These are metaphors, quite useful to poets. They happen to be just as useful to inventors and designers who know how to use them. Metaphorical Thinking makes possible a rich assortment of creative ideas. Like other forms of thinking already mentioned, Metaphorical Thinking is a part of Higher-Level Thinking.

Symbolic Thinking Symbols are all around us and are actually quite useful. An ordinary stop sign on the highway instructs us to "Stop!" Mathematics is full of symbols, numbers and operators. Chemistry employs symbols for the basic elements and in chemical equations. All fields of engineering employ symbols as shortcuts for information purposes. Higher-Level Thinking symbols are used not only for information purposes, but to assist the designer in meeting design challenges, without being seduced by lower-level 'solutions.'  Symbolic Thinking is one of the most inventive forms of thinking.

Abstract Thinking Inventive prompts are common to Higher-Level Thinking. Investigating the possibilities of a pencil, for example, a designer might receive the inventive prompt "Multiply the object." Applied to a single pencil, this generic inventive prompt results in a specific conceptual idea: 'a device that includes several pencils in one.' Some pens, for example, offer the user a choice of a half dozen colors - all the user has to do is to move a lever along the side of the pen. Another design from this inventive prompt is 'a device that includes several different-colored leads, all combined into one piece of lead.' Such novelty-pens are available for purchase in stationery stores. Through Abstract Thinking, designers can move 'from the general to the specific, creating valuable corporate Intellectual Property.