The first and last thing demanded of genius is the
love of truth.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe,
1749 - 1832
German playwright/author
Thinking and recall series
Thinking like a genius
Problem solving: creative solutions
"Even if you're not a genius, you can use the same
strategies as Aristotle and Einstein to harness the power of
your creative mind and better manage your future."
The following strategies encourage you to think
productively,
rather than reproductively, in order to arrive at solutions
to problems. "These strategies are common to the thinking
styles of creative geniuses in science, art, and industry
throughout history."
Nine approaches to creative problem solving:
Rethink! Look at problems in many different ways.
Visualize! Utilize diagrams and imagery to analyze
your dilemma.
Produce! Genius is productive.
Combine! Make novel combinations...
Form! Form relationships.
Opposite! Think in opposites.
Metaphor/simile! Think metaphorically.
Failure! Learning from your mistakes is one example
of using failure.
Patience! Don't confuse inspiration with ideas.
Nine approaches to creative problem solving:
Rethink! Look at problems in many different ways.
Find new perspectives that no one else has taken.
Solutions example: Finding a job or internship:
Ask friends or colleagues for potential leads
Over-sell yourself
Send samples of your work or portfolio to anyone
that might respond.
Check local resources like Craigslist or your
school's job search
Broaden your target audience.
What other fields could you specialize in?
Visualize! Utilize diagrams and imagery to analyze
your dilemma.
How can you use pictures, images, graphs, etc.
in your studies?
Write out one example of how you can use
imagery, then print and post it in your study area.
Produce! Genius is productive.
Perhaps originality is not the key, but rather
constant application of thought and tools to arrive
a solutions.
Geniuses are the luckiest of mortals because
what they must do is the same as what they most want
to do. W. H. Auden (1907–1973) Anglo-American poet
Genius is nothing but a great aptitude for
patience.
George-Louis Leclerc de Buffon (1707–1788)
French naturalist
Combine! Make novel combinations... Combine and
recombine ideas, images, and thoughts into different
combinations no matter how incongruent or unusual.
Form! Form relationships. Make connections between
dissimilar subjects.
This doesn't always apply to objects:
form relationships with people and ask them
questions!
Get to know people in your field that
can help you excel to the best of your
ability.
Write down one person that you could get
in contact with, why you think this person
can help, and print/post it for reference!
Opposite! Think in opposites. Don't always stick with
the obvious solutions. Get outside of your comfort zone.
“Opposites” bring two approaches to a
situation but they do share a basic
similarity.
Example: “right” and “left” are both
directions, but which is the right choice?
The Sesame Street Muppet Elmo
teaches small children the concept of
opposites!
Metaphor/simile! Think metaphorically.
Metaphors are connections that are
unusual or not an ordinary way of thinking:
A sea of troubles; the heart of a lion;
raining cats and dogs.
Similes use "like" or "as" to illustrate
The boy was as agile as a monkey.
The miner's face was like coal. The task was as easy as ABC.
Dry like a raisin in the sun.
Failure! Learning from your mistakes is one example
of using failure.
As strange as it seems the human brain
is failure machine: it generates models of
reality, acts on them, and adjusts or
creates new, successful models based on
failures.
From Daniel Coyle’s the Talent Code
on Adam Bryant’s weekly interview: “every
single CEO shares the same nugget of wisdom:
the crucial importance of mistakes,
failures, and setbacks… mistakes create
unique conditions of high-velocity learning
that cannot be matched by more stable,
“successful” situations.”
Patience! Don't confuse inspiration with
ideas. Apply your ideas with patience for the
reward they may deserve.
Website overview:
Kiosk guides for learning are a freely accessible educational environment that offers strategies to recognize and realize learning objectives. We accept individual differences without regard to ability and creed; sexual and affectional orientation; caste, tribal and national affiliation; individual, familial and collective history. Our suggestions should be thoughtfully considered for appropriateness and guidance to your situation, relying on elders, mentors, cohorts and/or professionals to achieve learning objectives and outcomes.