Using Divergent Thinking - Business Decision Making - ثاني ثانوي

Lesson 3 Chapter 4 www.ien.edu.sa Using Divergent Thinking Groups can develop creative ideas and solutions to problems because their col- lective knowledge is greater than that of a single person. However, groups sel- dom behave creatively on their own. The team leader or other facilitator needs to engage the group in activities that foster creativity and collaboration. Divergent thinking describes thought processes or methods used to generate ideas. As the name suggests, divergent thinking techniques generate many ideas that are often not related to one another. Divergent thinking is usually sponta- neous, free flowing, and unorganized. Later, the group can organize the ideas and apply them to solving the problem. Table 4-2 describes the do's and don'ts of divergent thinking. case After meeting with Omar and the new corporate travel team, you are ready to generate ideas about how to increase the amount of tours designed for business travelers. DEFINITION Divergent thinking: Thought processes or methods used to generate ideas. TABLE 4-2: Divergent thinking do's and don'ts Guidelines Brainstorming Mind map Free writing Journal writing وزارة التعليم Ministry of Education 2024-1446 95198_book_PP1.indb 101 Do • Generate ideas and solutions as a group • Record ideas • Visualize and organize creative ideas as a group Draw ideas as a tree or spoke-wheel diagram Retain the mind map as a record of the group's ideas and decisions • Use to stimulate individual creativity • Write thoughts about a subject nonstop for a short time •Follow up with a group brainstorming or mind mapping session • Use to record spontaneous thoughts and ideas Share journal contents with the group Don't • Don't disregard, analyze, or reject an idea during brainstorming • Don't get bogged down in the mechanics of drawing a mind map • Don't evaluate ideas until you are finished • Don't pause to edit, proofread, or review as you are writing • Don't expect to generate as many ideas with a journal as with brainstorming or mind maps Group Decision Making and Problem Solving 101 07/05/2024 10:57

Essential Elements 1. Brainstorming One of the most popular and well-known techniques for divergent thinking is brainstorming. Groups use brainstorming to generate ideas and solutions to problems. The group considers a question, task, or project, and then gen- erates as many ideas as possible, usually in a short period of time. Every idea is recorded, and no idea is disregarded, criticized, or analyzed. As ideas are suggested, they often stimulate others. The group continues to contribute ideas until everyone has exhausted their creativity. 2. Group mind mapping Mind mapping uses simple graphics to generate, visualize, and organize cre- ative ideas. A group member lists a main idea or problem at the center of a page, white board, or flip chart. Each participant is invited to share reactions and ideas. These are drawn as radial lines or spokes. When someone's idea builds, or piggybacks, on another, it is drawn as a branch in a tree structure. The visual nature of a mind map helps some people to think about a prob- lem more creatively and may yield different results than traditional brain- storming. The map itself is a useful record of the group's contributions. See Figure 4-4. FIGURE 4-4: Group mind map Easy air access Near commercial centers Hotel accommodations Spa facilities Family or individual? Employee incentive vacations Sales people Convention facilities Adequate ground transportation Off-site restaurants Trade shows/ conventions Local catering and food services Golf? Meeting rooms Off-site restaurants 102 4 Chapter رة ا Ministry of Education 2024-1446 Direct air travel Executive retreats Business Decision Making S1 S2 S3.indb 102 Spouse activities Increase business travel? Hotel facilities Multiple locations Recreation options (Daem) meetings Hotel accommodations Off-site Meeting rooms Business- development trips Saudi trade delegations Local Chambers of Commerce Emerging markets access Internet 30/06/2023 14:28

QUICK TIP Allow people to submit their entries anonymously to encourage free thought. 3. Free writing Free writing is a form of brainstorming where group members focus on a subject and then write about it nonstop for a short period of time. Participants write any idea that occurs to them without pausing to consider the value of the idea or to proofread or edit their writing. This exercise is designed to encourage creativity and explore alternatives. When done as a group, free writing can be followed by a brainstorming or mind mapping session to col- lect ideas for the group. 4. Journaling Mind mapping software People often think of creative ideas spontaneously and can easily forget them if they do not act on them or record them. Distribute journals to members of a group and ask each to write down thoughts and ideas. A journal can be an inexpensive spiral notebook or specialty blank book. Team members can keep the journal at their desks to note ideas when they occur to them. They can share the ideas with the group at a later meeting or submit them directly to a team leader. The quantity of ideas generated through journal writing is not as great as some other techniques, but the quality and range of the ideas are often superior. You can use digital tools to boost your divergent thinking. Bubbl.us (www.bubbl.us) is a free Web application that lets you conduct brainstorming sessions online. You write your thoughts in graphical bubbles and connect those to other bubbles without the distraction of drawing and formatting. Bubbl.us helps you brainstorm quickly instead of getting bogged down in the mechanics of creating and linking bubbles. MindMeister (www.mindmeister.com) is a simple, free tool that lets you quickly create mind maps just by pressing the directional arrow keys on your keyboard. XMind (www.xmind.net) is also free, but lets you create fishbone, organizational, tree, and logic charts in addition to mind maps. YOU TRY IT Practice using divergent thinking by generating solutions to a problem. Complete the following steps. 1. Get ready The travel company you're working at wants to offer new types of tours that will appeal to business travelers. Prepare to use the free writing technique to generate tour ideas. وزارة التعليم Ministry of Education 2024-1446 Business Decision Making S1 S2 S3.indb 103 Group Decision Making and Problem Solving 103 30/06/2023 14:28

2. Now you try it REVIEW QUESTIONS Use the free writing technique to generate tour ideas as follows: 1. For one minute, think of the types of tours and destinations that would appeal to various business travelers, including salespeople, managers, owners, and staff members. 2. For five minutes, write down any ideas you have for increasing business travel. Write nonstop during this period without pausing to read or edit your work. 1. Divergent thinking describes thought processes or methods used to: a. design credible arguments b. generate ideas c. select the best alternative d. overcome resistance to change 2. Which of the following is not an exercise in divergent thinking? a. Brainstorming b. Free writing c. Outlining d. Mind mapping 104 4 Chapter رة ا Ministry of Education 2024-1446 Business Decision Making S1 S2 S3.indb 104 30/06/2023 14:28