Six Thinking Hats® is a simple, effective parallel thinking process that helps people be more productive, focused, and mindfully involved. And once learned, the tools can be applied immediately!

You and your team members can learn how to separate thinking into six clear functions and roles. Each thinking role is identified with a colored symbolic "thinking hat." By mentally wearing and switching "hats," you can easily focus or redirect thoughts, the conversation, or the meeting.




The White Hat calls for information known or needed. "The facts, just the facts."


The Yellow Hat symbolizes brightness and optimism. Under this hat you explore the positives and probe for value and benefit.

The Black Hat is judgment - the devil's advocate or why something may not work. Spot the difficulties and dangers; where things might go wrong. Probably the most powerful and useful of the Hats but a problem if overused.

The Red Hat signifies feelings, hunches and intuition. When using this hat you can express emotions and feelings and share fears, likes, dislikes, loves, and hates.

The Green Hat focuses on creativity; the possibilities, alternatives, and new ideas. It's an opportunity to express new concepts and new perceptions.

The Blue Hat is used to manage the thinking process. It's the control mechanism that ensures the Six Thinking Hats® guidelines are observed.

 

Six Hats Thinking
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As you know, the difference between mediocre and highly effective teams lies not so much in their collective mental equipment, but in how well they use their abilities to think and how well they work together.

Six Thinking Hats® helps actualize the full thinking potential of teams. And when used as a meeting management tool, the Six Hats method provides the disciplined process for individuals to be focused and to the point.

But possibly most important, it requires each individual to look at all sides of an issue.

Employees like the way the Six Hats method neutralizes employee rank in a meeting where several levels of employees are present. It also puts people who are quiet and reserved on an equal playing field with those who are more talkative and might monopolize a meeting.


Pertinent Applications for the Parallel Thinking Process of Six Thinking Hats®

 

  • Creativity Training, Meeting Facilitation and Meeting Management
  • Team Productivity and Communication
  • Product and Process Improvement, and Project Management
  • Critical and Analytical Thinking, Problem-Solving, and Decision-Making
  • Wherever High Performance Thinking is needed

 

Six Thinking Hats As a Meeting Management Tool

According to a recent USA TODAY Snapshots® pole 49% of the responders reported that Unfocused Meetings is what makes them feel unproductive at work. Utilize Six Thinking Hats as a meeting management tool and eliminate unfocused and unproductive meetings from your schedule.

 

Pre-Seminar Reading On The Six Thinking Hats.
We encourage you to read this article prior to attending the Six Thinking Hats seminar. This article is also available in booklet format and can be purchased to help you communicate the value of the Six Hats method to others.


Contact us if you need additional copies.

 

Using Six Thinking Hats®, you and your team will learn how to:


  • look at problems, decisions, and opportunities systematically
  • use Parallel Thinking™ as a group or team to generate more, better ideas and solutions
  • make meetings much shorter and more productive
  • reduce conflict among team members or meeting participants
  • stimulate innovation by generating more and better ideas quickly
  • create dynamic, results oriented meetings that make people want to participate
  • go beyond the obvious to discover effective alternate solutions
  • spot opportunities where others see only problems
  • think clearly and objectively
  • view problems from new and unusual angles
  • make thorough evaluations
  • see all sides of a situation
  • keep egos and "turf protection" in check
  • achieve significant and meaningful results
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