Page 112 - THE DO-IT-YOURSELF LOBOTOMY Open Your Mind to Greater Creative Thinking

So Easy My Dog Can Do It 103

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HOW TO USE 180° THINKING

Try it. You can’t do wrong wrong.
Here’s how to use 180° Thinking against a challenge or opportu-
nity that you face:
Step 1. Identify some of the directions of thought that are typically
used when thinking through such a situation.
Step 2. Push your thinking in the opposite direction. If you’re work-
ing in a realm where you can isolate very definable traits or char-
acteristics, sometimes it’s helpful to write down those attributes,
then next to each one write down the “untribute” (as I call it).
For example: Cold/hot. Big/small. Open/shut. Yes, there are some
attributes that are not so easy to reverse, like oat-flavored, rectangular, or
French. In cases like that, just think “not oat-flavored,” “not rect-
angular,” “not French.”
Step 3. Now that you’ve identified the 180° possibilities, go with the
flow. Work with the concept of “small,” even though “big” is the
accepted attribute. Work with “not rectangular” if what you’re
dealing with is rectangular. If not rectangular, then what? Round?
Oval? Triangular? Shaped like the continental United States? It’s
that easy.
❖

SO EASY MY DOG CAN DO IT

A few years ago my black Lab, Millie, showed me just how easy 180°
Thinking can be. When invited to go for a ride in my new two-door
convertible, Millie was faced with the challenge of getting her rather
wide frame through the narrow opening that led to the backseat. Her
solution? She aimed her ample body in the opposite direction and
jumped on the back of the front seat, only to propel herself again in the
opposite direction toward the backseat. This then became her every-
day method of getting into the backseat of that car. Of course, this led
to another creative challenge—protecting the fine leather on the back
of my front seat from the marks left by her claws of steel. I have no
doubt a solution will be found. Millie assures me she’s working on it.
(See creative problem solving cycle on page 57 in Chapter 3.)