To Boost Creative Thinking, Ask This Question

Recently I posted one design thinking tip from Change By Design: Once a Day, Deeply Observe the Ordinary. Here's another:

Don't Ask "What?" Ask "Why?"
Instead of accepting a given constraint, ask whether this is the right problem to be solving.

Every parent knows how infuriating 5-year-olds can be with their constantly questioning "Why?" But for design thinkers, asking "Why?" is an opportunity to reframe a problem, redefine the constraints, and open the field to a more innovative answer.

For example Will Work For, the design provocation I wrote about earlier this week, questions the core motivations for why we work.

There is nothing more frustrating than coming up with the right answer to the wrong question. This is true whether you're designing a new company strategy or designing the next week of your life.

A willingness to ask "Why?" will annoy your colleagues in the short run, but in the long run it will improve your chances of spending energy on the right problems.

What will you ask "Why?" about this week?

(photo from Thoughtless Acts by Jane Fulton Suri)

Gurdeep Singh

Senior Manager - IT| IT Operation|ITIL|Cloud Ops

11 年

Sir, yes it's True , and thanks for Posting this Nice Article! :)

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Adriaan Michiel De Lange

Linux System Engineer at MMI Holdings

12 年

Askking the question why is good but if your really want to make people think as all five of the W's "Who", "What", "When", "Where" and "Why" Then after gaining all the information and answers try and sort or group them in the following sections liveness ("becoming-being") sureness ("identity-context") wholeness ("unity-associativity") fruitfulness ("connect-beget") spareness ("quantity-limit") otherness ("quality-variety") openness ("paradigm-transformation")

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Charlene Johnson

Experienced Program Manager, Teacher and Research Asst.

12 年

Certainly "why?" is a wonderful tool for gaining clarity, and yet many use this more as a "defense then an opportunity to explore; an endless round of "why" can be just that. I think this a distinction that bears some consideration.

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Mo Irfan

Head of Global Industrial Design

12 年

Like it! How one asks "why" is as important as the question itself.

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Francisco Marcondes

International Consultant, Institutional and Financial Analisis, Project Development, Writer

12 年

In terms of enhancing one's creativity, to ask "Why not?" could be much better than just ask a "Why"?

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