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Critical Thinking and Creative Problem Solving
Making Better Decisions

Course: 284   Type: Workshop   Duration: 3 Days
Quick Enrol  

You Will Learn How To

  • Make better decisions through critical thinking and creative problem solving
  • Adapt to different thinking styles in group and team environments
  • Recognise and remove barriers to individual and group creativity to foster an innovative work environment
  • Systematically analyse a target problem
  • Present your ideas clearly and concisely for maximum stakeholder buy-in
  • Transform your creativity into practical business solutions

Course Benefits
Successful organisations recognise that critical thinking and creative solutions to problems significantly enhance business potential. Today's decision makers must use a variety of thinking styles, methodologies and creative processes. In this course, you develop your skills as a critical thinker and problem solver. You learn to leverage your personal thinking preferences using tools and techniques based on cutting-edge technologies.

Who Should Attend
Individuals at any level of an organisation who want to apply creativity and critical thinking skills to their decision-making process.

Course Workshops
Through a series of interactive small-group workshops, you gain practical decision-making skills using critical thinking and creative problem-solving techniques. Workshops include:
  • Profiling your personal thinking style and the styles of others
  • Identifying personal and team roadblocks to success
  • Analysing left- and right-brain characteristics
  • Leading through speaking in another style
  • Applying logical methodologies to transform a range of creative options into supportable decisions
  • Preparing a framework to present your decision
  • Developing your personal decision-making toolkit

Course Content
Introduction
  • Balancing people, processes and tools for optimal decisions
  • Business drivers that demand creative problem solving
  • Deciphering critical thinking
Leveraging Personal Thinking Styles
The Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument (HBDI)
  • MacLean's Triune Brain Theory
  • Assessing your preferred approach to thinking
  • Leveraging whole-brain thinking
  • Identifying left/right-brain dominance
Analysing personal preferences
  • Identifying your own natural brain dominance
  • Determining non-dominant approaches
Managing thinking preferences
  • Avoiding quadrant bias
  • Bridging opposing styles
  • Predicting co-worker profiles
Unleashing Your Creativity
The creative environment
  • Setting the creative stage
  • The power of positive communication
  • Identifying elements that stimulate creativity
  • Eliminating barriers to innovation
Group creative thinking
  • Brainstorming options
  • Challenging assumptions
  • Dispelling personal and corporate myths
The iterative mind
  • Moving between quadrants
  • Valuing non-dominant preferences
  • Stretching outside your personal style
Recording the creative process
  • Drawing mind maps
  • Chart writing
Solving Problems Using Analysis and Prioritisation
Systematic approaches to problem solving
  • Defining criteria
  • Focusing on outcomes
  • Leveraging left-brain thinkers
  • Applying questioning techniques
  • Deconstructing problems using stair-step techniques
Analysing the creative process
  • Identifying business-critical ideas
  • Categorising, prioritising and purging
Avoiding analysis paralysis
  • Overcoming the "It won't work here" mentality
  • The Five Monkeys Syndrome or "But we've always done it this way"
  • Analysing for outcomes, not solutions
Applying analysis models
  • Situation assessment
  • Decision analysis
  • Problem evaluation
Translating Creativity and Analysis into Practical Application
Organisational politics
  • Recognising the workplace culture
  • Maintaining outcome-focused goals
The influence of decision-making styles
  • Recognising your own blind spots
  • Self-awareness and self-regulation
  • Forming a coalition with style opposites
Deploying your decision
  • Clearly expressing analysis results
  • Ensuring organisational benefit
  • Guaranteeing maximum buy-in
Putting It All Together
Integrating your solution into the business
  • Creating a whole-brain presentation
  • Strengthening your non-dominant position
  • Adjusting communication to thinking styles
  • Transforming confrontation into communication
Continuing your development
  • Conducting self-checks
  • Being persistent: a key trait of successful creatives
  • Mapping thinking skills to your business
Your Personal Decision-Making Toolkit
  • Your personal thinking style
  • Your stakeholders' styles
  • Flexing to colleagues' styles
  • Committing to your Personal Action Plan
  • Checklists for success
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Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
Course Schedule
16 - 18 Jul, 2008
London
17 - 19 Sep, 2008
London
19 - 21 Nov, 2008
London
4 - 6 Feb, 2009
London

Course participants developing a personal decision-making toolkit.

£ 1,395 - Standard Tuition
Savings Plans
£ 810 - 10-Day Training Pass
£ 995 - Flex-Training Passport
£ 800 - Short Course Vouchers
£ 1,255 - Alumni Gold Tuition

 
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Customer Service or Enrol: 0800 282 353 or +44 1372 364610