6 THINKING HATS : ADDITIONAL READING

[Murali P V [MU-BC]]

 

The Six Thinking Hats, a concept articulated by Edward de Bono, is a powerful tool for brainstorming and innovation. By breaking down thoughts into six “parallel” or “lateral” areas, it allows a spectrum of thought, from gut feeling to data analysis, to be separately discussed. By using these six types of thinking in a structured way, groups can more effectively approach problem solving.

The Six Thinking Hats

 

First, let's briefly explain the six hats and the role each plays:

 

The Six Thinking Hats

Create your own at Storyboard That Blue Hat Green Hat Black Hat Red Hat Yellow Hat White Hat Manages the process Looks for alternatives, new solutions, and creative ideas Judges and plays "devil's advocate" Considers feelings, both positive and negative Explores value and benefits Focuses on facts and data Six Ways of Thinking Let's lay down some rules of order. I can see at least three problems with that plan. I'm after the facts, and just the facts! It's not perfect, but there are definitely some upsides here! What's something we haven't tried yet? That's exciting but makes me anxious!

 

The Six Thinking Hats, a concept articulated by Edward de Bono, is a powerful tool for brainstorming and innovation. By breaking down thoughts into six “parallel” or “lateral” areas, it allows a spectrum of thought, from gut feeling to data analysis, to be separately discussed. By using these six types of thinking in a structured way, groups can more effectively approach problem solving.

The Six Thinking Hats

First, let's briefly explain the six hats and the role each plays:

Our natural way of speaking often combines multiple hats. For example we may say, "This idea aligns with our current strategy and could improve our market position, but I'm not sure the cost is reasonable or that our customers will fall in love with it." That sentence goes from white hat (aligns with strategy--a fact) to yellow (improve market position--a benefit) to black (costly--what could go wrong) to red (customers may not love it--feelings). The six hat approach helps us to analyse these hats into different statements and consider them separately.

Hat	Definition	Examples
Blue Hat	Manages the thinking process by timekeeping, moderating, and ensuring the Thinking Hat guidelines are observed.	"We will discuss this matter for one hour." "Time to Yellow Hat this idea. Everything else aside, what are the benefits of this plan?" "Let’s set aside emotional responses for the moment; we’ll come to them when it is time to put on the Red Hat."
White Hat	Calls for and provides facts and data that are known or needed.	"What does it costs us to manufacture one unit?" "Revenue was up 8.5% last quarter." "There are estimated to be 75 million 18-34 year olds in the US, as of last year."
Green Hat	Focuses on alternatives, new perceptions, or fresh ideas.	"Instead of manufacturing in China, we could refurbish a plant in Detroit." "This is a difficult position. Let’s brainstorm some potential solutions to address the Black Hat problems." "Are there other options?"
Yellow Hat	Finds the value and benefits of ideas and supporting concepts.	"Can we curtail heating or air conditioning to save on energy costs?" "Our sales staff already has a lot of experience selling widgets." "Pushing into a new market segment would open up a lot of room for growth."
Red Hat	Acknowledges feelings like fear, disappointment, enthusiasm, and expresses intuitions or hunches.	"That suggestion makes me angry." "I really love this project! I’m excited to work more on it!" "There is no White Hat data to support it, but my gut says customers are afraid we'll cut legacy support down the road."
Black Hat	Spots problems and tries to make the best argument against an idea.	"We don’t have the production capacity to expand that fast." "I’m pretty sure that would be illegal." "That idea has a lot of Yellow Hat benefits, what problems can we find with it?."

Using The Thinking Hats in Team Activities

Teams can use these hats in any order during a discussion, but typically progress from blue, to white, to green, to yellow, to red, and finally to black. This order organizes the discussion:

• Blue: Start with the approach and process
• White: Review the facts
• Green: Generate new ideas without judgement
• Yellow: Focus on the benefits
• Red: Consider emotional responses to any ideas
• Black: Apply critical thinking after the benefits have been explored to test the viability of the new ideas

Any hat could make a reappearance in the discussion. For example, after facts (white) are laid out, more process (blue) may be applied, or after pros (yellow) and cons (black) are discussed, new ideas (green) may surface.