Define the problem/consider alternative explanations

Critical thinking is akin to creative thinking. Thinking creatively means viewing problems or questions in novel, unusual, or untypical ways. It means looking at things from a different perspective, "seeing" in ways that are not bound by custom, norms, or habit. Thinking critically about behavior may benefit from any effort we make to expand our creative thinking abilities.

The exercises below are most valuable when we first consider them on our own, then discuss them or share them with others in a group to see how others have defined the problem or have taken a different view. To make it a little more interesting, eliminate all of the ideas that are duplicated or common to at least one other person and determine the most creative contributor by tallying who has the most unduplicated ideas.

1. Draw a circle ( or a square, or a triangle, or a squiggly line, etc.) on a piece of paper or a blackboard. Given five minutes, list all the things that you can think of that this picture could represent.

2. Consider a common object, such as a rubber band, tennis ball, newspaper, video cassette case, empty soft drink or beer can, Styrofoam "peanuts", plastic milk carton, brick, paper clip, etc. Given five minutes, list all the things that you can think of that this thing, by itself or in quantity, could be used for.

3. List all the things that you can think of that come in pairs ( harder: sets of three, four, five, or more)

4.  You have good reason to believe that you may soon be abducted by aliens. You want to convey to them the essential elements of life on earth and its people. Since books might not be useful if the aliens can’t read our languages, what could you pack in a suitcase that would be useful to convey what we earthlings are like?

5. A psychotherapist has a patient who is afraid of ___________. (Suggestions : worms, butterflies, scotch tape, flies, fish, the color pink, silk clothing, the smell of mown grass, etc.) Think of as many possible explanations as you can for the patient’s fear.

6.  Make as many four-word sentences as you can in which all the words in the sentence start with the Letter  “B”.

7. You wake up transformed into the opposite sex. List and describe all of the differences you would encounter.  List the plusses and negatives also.

8.  You have to trust a 10 strangers with your life.   You  have to choose by occupation. Make a list of the occupations the strangers might have and their trustworthiness and  why you find them trustworthy.  Then list what the downside might be to trusting that person.. .    

9.  You have just discovered your mother and father are from another planet.  List how this affects you and what implications this has on your  life.

10. A friend of yours is a real cheapskate, a relentless penny-pincher. Then one day, he starts behaving just the opposite, spending money recklessly, buying lavish gifts for all around him, etc. List the reasons  that  might account for this change of behavior.

11. The world is ending and you must choose 25 people other than your family and friends to save.  List who else you would save and why.   

12. List as many improvements as you can think of for computers.

13. If we had at least one eye in the back of our heads and one on each knee what differences might that make in your perception of the world?

14.. If you were going on a trip in the wilderness, and you were concerned that you might get lost and have to survive indefinitely on your own, what would you take with you other than clothes and food?

15. What can we do to reduce our dependence on oil?