Techniques for Enhancing Creative Thinking

If you’re tired of team exercises that feel forced, try the Start / Stop / Continue ritual that actually builds team bonding. Here’s how to do it: Step 1: Pick a topic Choose one specific area you want to improve. You can do this as a team (like marketing strategy, branding, or workflow) or even as a couple or family (like health habits or household routines). When my team did this for our marketing strategy, we asked: “What’s working? What’s not? What should we try next?” Step 2: Sticky it up Give everyone a stack of sticky notes. Each person writes down every task they do related to that topic (one per note). Then, color-code: • Different colors for different people (for transparency) • Or all one color if you want to keep feedback anonymous This part alone often surprises people. We realize how many invisible tasks we’re doing, and how much effort goes unnoticed. Step 3: Place the tasks Draw three columns on the board: 🟢 Start – New ideas or things worth trying 🔴 Stop – Tasks that drain time or add no real value 🟡 Continue – What’s working and worth doubling down on Then, together, sort each sticky. When we did this at Science of People, we learned: • We wanted to start experimenting with Medium and LinkedIn posts • We needed to stop wasting time on low-return platforms (sorry, X) • And we should continue doing more of what was driving real results (YouTube, email newsletters, and blog writing) If you disagree on something (like we did about Medium), place it in between columns as a trial. Set a test period. For example, “Let’s try this for 2 months and then review.” Step 4: Create a safe space This is a critical step. Start / Stop / Continue only works when feedback feels safe. You’re talking about the task, not the person. We even use different colored stickies to separate ideas from ownership. That way, no one feels attacked. When people feel psychologically safe, they share the truth, and that’s when real improvement happens. Step 5: Assign and act Insight without action is just decoration. So before you finish, assign ownership: • Who’s starting the new tasks? • Who’s stopping or phasing out the old ones? And for the “Continue” column, ask: “Can we make this even better?” A bonus: It works outside of work, too I even do this exercise with my husband once a year, for our health and habits. We’ve listed things like: • Start: Morning protein shakes, evening routines • Stop: Buying soda, eating out too often •Continue: Yoga and weekend soccer We walk away feeling more connected and intentional. The takeaway: When you pause to ask, “What should we start, stop, and continue?” you give yourself (and your team) permission to refocus energy where it truly matters.

He followed the process perfectly and lost She questioned the process and won in seconds This is first principles thinking in action The man executed flawlessly but he solved the wrong problem. The woman won because she identified what actually mattered. The difference wasn't skill. It was how they defined the problem. Watch this game closely. A ball sits on top of stacked cups. Goal is to arrange all cups in a line. The man focuses on the constraint. Ball must stay on top. So he methodically places the cup with ball on each cup. One by one. Perfect adherence to what he thinks the rules require. The woman focuses on the goal. Arrange cups in a line. She removes the top cup with ball. Lines up remaining cups. Done. Same challenge. Radically different thinking. This is first principles versus process thinking in action. I see this constantly in fintech product development. Teams build elaborate authentication flows because that's how banking apps work. Meanwhile users abandon at signup because nobody asked whether complexity solves the actual problem. Teams add features methodically because the roadmap says so. Meanwhile competitors solve the user need with one-tenth the functionality. In payments, we inherited payment flows with seventeen steps. Each step solved a compliance requirement or edge case from years past. Nobody asked the first principles question. What does the user actually need to accomplish? When we redesigned from that question, we cut the flow to four steps. Compliance stayed intact. Conversion doubled. First principles thinking asks why before how. Why build this feature? Roadmap checkbox or user problem? Why twelve approval layers? Always been done or actual risk reduction? Why follow industry standards? Optimal or just familiar? Process thinking optimizes the existing path. First principles thinking questions whether you're on the right path. What process are you following because it's always been done that way versus because it's the right way?

Leaders, how do you facilitate creative problem solving for your people? 👉🏻👉🏻 Solutions are the results of asking the right questions about “solving” the problem. Questioning the problem and the issues that arise due to the it will make your people stay stuck in the problem. As leaders your questions should be directed towards unraveling the problem and identifying the root cause. This is how effective solutions are discovered. One such question is “how might we”, (a technique I learned by using Design thinking). 👉🏻✅ “How might we” (HMW) questions have the power to take “ideas” and turn them into solutions. ✅ This however needs the leader to first become unbiased and not judge the ideas. 👉🏻 Lead your people to question the process and ask “how might we simplify the process?” 👉🏻 Guide them to question their biases and “how might we” break free of them. 👉🏻 Encourage them to question their perceptions and “how might we” change the beliefs that make them perceive the way they do. Especially when it comes to ideas that are termed as “crazy” or “too simple”. Sometimes the most craziest of ideas have the potential of becoming a blockbuster solution. For eg- the case of post it’s at 3M. Guide your people to simplify the problem by asking questions. 👉🏻 Because the most creative solutions are often the result of the most simple ideas. #creativeproblemsolving #designthinking #solutionorientedmindset #change #transformationalleadership

If your AI brainstorming starts with an AI prompt  such as “give me ideas about for X,” you’re limiting your imagination.  I learned this while working through IDEO U’s Human-Centered Design and AI certificate program, which keeps reminding me that AI only supports creativity when humans stay actively involved. To test this, I ran a small experiment tied to my design challenge: how can nonprofit professionals use AI to augment their thinking so their work becomes more strategic, creative, and human-centered? Here’s what happened. When I began with human-only ideation (my own brain or a brainstorming session with other humans), the ideas were grounded in mission, constraints, and real community needs. When I switched to AI with a clear creative direction to generate ideas, I asked for absurdity.  AI delivered: costume-based learning scenes, dramatic falling sequences, Play-Doh brains, even a human–AI tango. These weren’t solutions or a waste of time. They were creative provocations that loosened up the tight mental space we often operate within. The best ideas emerged only after I cycled through several layers of human grounding, AI variation, and human synthesis. It felt like a club sandwich of thinking modes. Humans brought mission and ethics. AI widened the possibility space. Humans shaped meaning. The infographic (created in Nano Banana) shows the practices that made this work: 💡Begin with human insight. 💡Give AI a clear creative direction. 💡Separate idea expansion from idea selection. 💡Use reflective checkpoints. 💡Treat AI as a partner, not a replacement. This experiment makes me think that the real value of AI in nonprofit brainstorming is less about efficiency and more about expanding imagination. When humans guide the process, AI becomes a thought-partner for more human-centered creativity. What would open up in your work if your organization treated AI as a creative partner instead of a shortcut?

This simple habit helps me learn fast and be creative on demand: systematic note-taking. A few years back, I noticed something frustrating. I’d read a great book or article, get excited about new ideas for my work, and then… They’d vanish from memory in no time. Sounds familiar? So, I decided to build an “external drive” for my brain. Now, whenever I read something insightful, listen to a podcast, attend a workshop, or come up with a new idea, I take notes. I organize them by topic and save them to a cloud drive. Whenever I need a dose of inspiration or a quick refresher, it’s all there at my fingertips. Here’s what these notes do for me: • Brain Backup: They’re like a backup drive for my brain. I never forget a good idea. • Skills Boost: Taking notes isn’t just about remembering. It’s about understanding new ideas clearly and making the knowledge stick. • Connecting the Dots: My notes link up over time, blending ideas to create new insights, patterns, and knowledge. • Idea Goldmine: Need a spark for your next big thing? Dive into the notes. That’s where all my LinkedIn posts, workshops, and speeches begin. • Creativity on Demand: Notes are like Lego for the brain. You can mix and match to build new ideas and get inspiration. Below is a snapshot of my notes library. 🗒 What’s your go-to method for learning fast and being creative? #HumanitariansAtWork #Learning

Life Hack 22 | Stealing Genius: Innovate by Borrowing from the Unrelated I’ve always struggled to understand innovation. Does it happen through a structured process, or is it intuitive? Can you train yourself to be innovative, or is it an inherent trait? Is it a habit, an art, a science, or a combination of all these? My journey over the last 40 years has been an exploration of these questions, often leading me into the dark corners of the maze of innovation. I'm still trying to figure it out. My first brush with innovation was far from a success. I launched a nail polish remover box where you put in your finger, rub it, and—voila!—the polish is gone. But it wasn’t just the polish that disappeared; mechanical engineers like me should not meddle with chemistry. That failure taught me that copycat innovation fails faster than you think. It is fascinating to believe that innovation doesn’t grow on trees or hide under bushes waiting to be discovered. The best ideas often come from the most unexpected places. Take Velcro, for example. It was inspired by burrs sticking to a hiker's clothes. Barbed wire was developed by mimicking the thorny Osage orange tree. Penicillin was discovered by Alexander Fleming when he noticed that a contaminated petri dish had killed the bacteria around it. These examples show innovation doesn't happen in isolation; it requires inspiration from diverse and unrelated fields. My own journey has witnessed three big attempts at disruptive innovation, each a decade apart. The first in 1995 was a product innovation through the creation of Remote Infrastructure Management (RIM), which later grew into a multi-billion-dollar industry. The second in 2005 was cultural innovation with the birth of the "Employees First, Customer Second" approach, a philosophy influenced by observing the cultural transformation of Japanese car manufacturers, who revolutionized their industry by empowering their workers and focusing on continuous improvement. The third in 2015 was the biggest, a mega-scale social transformation through Sampark Smart Shala where we created rechargeable audio devices with Sampark Didi's enchanting voice teaching through songs, stories, and music, bringing pure joy back into the classroom! Innovation thrives on inspiration from the most unexpected places. Other than diverse sources of inspiration, embracing serendipity is crucial; being open to unexpected connections can spark brilliant insights. Diverse teams with varied backgrounds can create solutions that homogeneous groups might miss. Experimentation and iteration are essential; innovation is a continuous process of testing, learning from failures, and refining ideas. Innovation isn’t about following a specific formula. It’s about drawing inspiration from diverse fields and being open to new ideas. So, look beyond your domain, embrace serendipity, and let unrelated ideas inspire your next breakthrough. #LifeHack #ThinkOutsideTheBox

Most teams don’t have a talent problem. They have a challenge problem. It’s not that people aren’t smart, skilled, or hardworking. It’s that they play it too safe in conversations, avoid tough questions, and hesitate to push each other’s thinking. 👇 The result? Slow decisions, missed opportunities, and a team that feels collaborative but isn’t truly high-performing. A leadership team I worked with had all the right ingredients: experience, ambition, and expertise, but their discussions stayed surface-level. They weren’t failing, but they weren’t excelling either. So, we made some tweaks.  Not by forcing more meetings, but by shifting how they work together. Here are 6 practices you can also try: 1️⃣ Mental Model Mapping Instead of debating what to do, map out how each team member thinks about a challenge. Ask everyone to write down: - What assumptions they are making - What past experiences shape their views - What risks they foresee Comparing these “mental maps” exposes team blind spots and enhances collective intelligence. 2️⃣ Curiosity Round Before giving feedback, asking this question first: “What was your thought process behind this?”. It opens up constructive dialogue instead of triggering defensiveness. 3️⃣ "Energy Audit" Method Instead of assigning tasks based only on skills, tracking what energizes or drains each team member helps optimize workflows and prevent burnout. 4️⃣ "Mistake-Learning" Sprint Once a month, instead of analyzing success stories, pick a past team failure and collaboratively discuss: - What went right despite the failure? - What invisible factors played a role? - How would we approach it differently now? 5️⃣ Red Team vs. Blue Team For big decisions, split the team into: - The Red Team (critics) who try to poke holes in the idea - The Blue Team (defenders) who justify why it will work This forces teams to think through risks and opportunities instead of making rushed choices. 6️⃣ One Bold Experiment Encourage teams to propose and test one out-of-the-box idea every quarter, with permission to fail. - Frame it as a low-risk experiment rather than a big change - Assign a “learning lead” to document what works - Celebrate insights, not just outcomes This keeps teams innovative without fear of failure. P.S.: Which one would make the biggest difference in your team? --------------------------------- Hi, I’m Susanna. I help leaders and organizations build high-performing teams through psychological safety and inclusive leadership. 🚀 Visit my website to book a free discovery call!

I was introduced to the concept of System 1(S1) and System 2(S2) thinking through Daniel Kahneman’s Thinking, Fast and Slow. S1 operates automatically—our reflexive, intuitive responses—while S2 requires deliberate effort, engaging in complex reasoning. But here’s the fascinating part: S2, when practiced repeatedly, can become hardwired into S1, transforming conscious effort into instinctive action. Take driving as an example. The first time we navigate a new city, we rely on directions, leading to cognitive overload. But with repeated exposure, we start recognizing landmarks, billboards, and familiar turns—eventually, our brain takes over, and we drive without consciously thinking about the route. However, if we rely solely on navigation tools like maps, this memory never forms, and we remain dependent on external guidance. This principle intrigued me, so I conducted an experiment. Research suggests that the human brain cannot multitask—rather, they switch between tasks rapidly, leading to cognitive strain. I tested this by reading a book while listening to music. Initially, I noticed my brain constantly shifting between the two, unable to retain both simultaneously. Then, I changed the approach: I played the same song on loop while reading Amish Tripathi’s Shiva Trilogy. Over a month, I trained my brain to focus on the book while the music played in the background. The result? Now, whenever I hear that song, my mind instantly recalls passages from the book—the music became a cognitive anchor, permanently linking itself to the story. This phenomenon explains why bells remind us of temples or why an organ evokes the image of a church. Memory is deeply tied to sensory cues, and this insight shaped my approach to designing facilitation workshops. Repeated exposure to a stimulus can create lasting cognitive associations. Many trainers believe that delivering knowledge through oratory (telling or asking questions) alone leads to learning. But often, audiences disengage. True learning requires structured activities that trigger S2 thinking and, through repetition, embed it into S1 reflexes. This is why motivational speeches rarely translate into behavioral change—without meaningful engagement, inspiration fades. In my workshops, I integrate anchor activities that create lasting memory associations, ensuring that learning isn’t just a fleeting moment but a deeply ingrained skill. Research by Da Silva (2023) has further validated the dual-processing theory, emphasizing how S2 thinking, when reinforced through repetition, transitions into S1 automaticity. Studies on multitasking by Wagner and Uncapher (2018) too validates my experiment. If we want to drive real transformation, we must design learning experiences that leverage the science of the brain—otherwise, training remains just another tick in the box exercise. #NeuroscienceOfLearning #BehaviourChange #MemoryAnchors #HumanResources

𝑭𝑰𝑹𝑺𝑻 𝑷𝑹𝑰𝑵𝑪𝑰𝑷𝑳𝑬𝑺 𝑻𝑯𝑰𝑵𝑲𝑰𝑵𝑮 Made popular by Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Steve Jobs, First Principles Thinking is not just a buzzword, it’s a way to reverse-engineer complicated problems. At its core, it’s about breaking down problems to their fundamental truths and building solutions from the ground up. It’s the practice of questioning every assumption you think you know about a given problem, then creating new solutions from scratch. Jeff Bezos used this approach when he revolutionized e-commerce with Amazon. One key insight? Instead of just following traditional retail models, he asked: ‘What do customers truly value?’ The answer was simple yet powerful—low prices, vast selection, and fast delivery. Bezos then rebuilt Amazon’s business model around these fundamentals, investing in innovations like advanced warehousing, algorithms for personalized recommendations, and Prime for faster shipping. By focusing on these first principles rather than copying competitors, Amazon became the giant it is today. First Principles Thinking helps us question the status quo and innovate boldly. What’s one assumption you can break down to build something extraordinary?

We spend a lot of time making decisions. But not enough time designing how we make them. Most people rely on habit, instinct, or advice. The best thinkers rely on frameworks. Mental models that cut through the noise and spotlight what actually matters. These 7 decision-making razors don’t just boost productivity. They sharpen your thinking and align your actions with strategy. 🧠 Occam’s Razor: Simpler is smarter → When in doubt, choose the least complicated explanation → Great for: troubleshooting, clarity, diagnosing fast 🧠 Hanlon’s Razor: Don’t assume bad intent → Most mistakes are due to confusion, not cruelty → Great for: conflict resolution, team dynamics, giving grace 🧠 First Principles Thinking: Rebuild from zero → Strip away assumptions. Start from undeniable truths → Great for: innovation, disruption, big-picture thinking 🧠 The Eisenhower Matrix: Urgency ≠ importance → Don’t let the loudest task win. Focus on impact → Great for: time management, prioritization, strategy 🧠 Inversion: Flip the problem → Ask what would cause failure, then design around it → Great for: risk management, planning, avoiding blind spots 🧠 Chesterton’s Fence: Pause before you change → Understand the purpose before removing what exists → Great for: evolving systems, editing rules, leading change 🧠 Hell Yes or No: Use energy as your filter → If it’s not a clear yes, it’s a no → Great for: boundaries, decision fatigue, opportunity filtering Clarity isn’t always about knowing more. Sometimes, it’s about thinking differently. 📥 Save this to sharpen how you think and decide. 🔁 Repost to help others cut through the noise. ➕ Follow Desiree Gruber for more insights on storytelling, leadership, and brand building.