Rethink Your Thinking- Essay

Rethink Your Thinking

Introduction     

“Rethink Your Thinking” is an essay written by C.L. N. Prakash. He is closely associated with the British council. He has served as a teacher, trainer and author. In this essay, he asks the people to change the way of their thinking for effective problem solving.

Visual Thinking

                Generally, people are trained to think in words. Any thought comes to one’s mind in the form of a sentence. But, most of the creative minds in the history used to think in pictures. Einstein said that he rarely thought in words. William Harvey got the inspiration about open heart surgery while watching the exposed heart of a live fish. David Hilbert found the concept of infinite numbers by imagining a hotel with hundred rooms and hundred and one guests. Newton’s discovery of gravity was also based on visual thinking. So, one should visualize an idea instead of verbalizing it in order to solve a problem.

Lateral Thinking

                All people are trained to think either vertically or logically. Such thinking is analytical, sequential or purposeful. This aims at a traditional solution to any given problem. Edward Bono popularized an alternative way of thinking called “Lateral Thinking”. According to this, one should make ‘jumps’ while trying to solve a problem. Also, one needs not follow a logical path. He illustrates the usefulness of lateral thinking through various examples. An employer displays the photograph of  the work place from 9.00 a.m. onwards. As a result, the employees started coming to the work on time. Like this, a telephone company solved the problem of job-hoppers by employing only differently-abled persons. Thus lateral thinking can bring unusual solution to a difficult problem.

Imagined Boundaries

                When there is a problem, people limit themselves to find a solution. But a creative mind should be allowed to roam freely. So that solution can be identified. The author explains this idea by asking us to join nine dots in four straight lines without taking the hand off from the paper. This is not possible unless one goes beyond the boundary to draw four lines. Further, the author strengthens this idea by asking the students to take a ping-pong ball from a cylinder. He provides some materials also to do the thing. But he does not restrict the use of other materials. If one pours water into the cylinder, the ball can be taken easily.

Use of Setting Limits

                While advising people to go extra mile to find a solution, the author talks about the importance of setting limits for our imagination. Rollo May considers creativity as a ‘phenomenon’ which requires a certain limit. Moreover, creative act arises out of the struggle of human beings with and against that which limits them. It is true deadlines help one to accomplish a work.

Conclusion        

                Thus C.L.N. Prakash, in this essay, makes an appeal to all to change the traditional way of thinking to find out an easy solution to every problem.