Six Thinking Hats

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The Six Thinking Hats is a role-playing model presented by Edward de Bono. It serves as a team-based problem solving and brainstorming technique that can explore problems and solutions and uncover ideas and options that a homogeneously thinking group might otherwise overlook. It is a simple and effective parallel thinking process that helps teams to produce amazing results. It is a powerful toolset, which, once learned, can be applied immediately.

Evidence shows that the best decisions are made when we have mechanisms to counteract our natural blind spots. It means learning to think in ways that may feel uncomfortable or unnatural. The key to the effective use of this leadership tool is to Invite people into the discussion who represent a cross-section of these intuitive ways of thinking.  In addition to parallel thinking, it encourages full-spectrum thinking and separates ego from performance. The technique encourages a group to approach the issue at hand from all possible angles.

White Facts The White Hat focuses on facts and logic.
Yellow Positivity The Yellow Hat is the optimistic hat used to look for positive outcomes
Black Negativity The Black Hat is the hat of logic and critical judgment. It’s called the devil’s advocate hat.
Red Emotions The Red Hat signifies feelings, hunches, and intuition. Using this hat, you can express emotions and feelings, share fears, likes, dislikes, love, and hate.
Green Creativity The Green Hat focuses on creativity, possibilities, alternatives, and new ideas.
Blue Control The Blue Hat is used to manage the thinking process. It is the hat of control.

We are all capable of wearing all the above six hats. In other words, we are capable of thinking in all six ways. Unfortunately, most of us are habituated to wear one or two hats which we are comfortable wearing all the time. You may assign a hat to the entire group or a different hat to each person and then rotate the hats to encourage more ideas. Some claim better results from insisting that everyone wear the same color hat at the same time because it ensures everyone is looking in the same direction at the same time.

How to Use the Hats?

Green Hat:

  • It is used to think about creative alternatives we haven’t considered yet.
  • To identify the missing elements.
  • To express new concepts and new perceptions.

Red Hat:

  • It is used to check in on everyone’s instincts.
  • To integrate emotions into the thinking process.
  • To think about how others may react emotionally to a decision.

Blue Hat: 

  • To facilitate the meeting and keep the team on track.
  • To decide which types of thinking hats are needed at a specific time and directs people to wear a certain hat.
  • It is used to wrap up the session.
  • To synthesize the viewpoints into a collective decision or clear “next steps.”

Black Hat:

  • To look at things with a critical eye.
  • To identify the risks and potential pitfalls.
  • To determine why something may not work.
  • To consider and make the assumptions that are being made explicit.
  • Help decrease the chances of making poor decisions.

Yellow Hat: 

  • To look for positive outcomes.
  • To identify opportunities or benefits that could arise from your proposed course or courses of action.
  • To keep the team spirits up during stressful times.
  • To work with Black Hat thinkers and develop a project plan.

White Hat: 

  • To examine the data related to the problem and use it as a key input in the decision-making process.
  • To find the data which may support the solutions.

 Advantages of using Six Thinking Hats

  • Adds clear structure to the brainstorming or feedback process.
  • Productive and clear thinking processes.
  • Reduces conflict within a team.
  • Avoids potential future threats to the deliverables.
  • Inspires creative thinking.
  • Increases efficiency and effectiveness of thinking methods.
  • An extremely useful way to debate an issue, solve a problem or arrive at an important decision.

Many researchers have concluded that effective use of the six thinking hats approach has led to more effective meetings, building stronger project teams, and an overall sound approach to making decisions.

Call To Action: 

If you do not want to immediately embark on the journey of using Six Thinking Hats, then I would recommend you to feel the taste of it by using just one important hat. During your next team meeting, nominate one of the team members as a “Black Hat” aka the “Devil’s Advocate Hat” and ask him to play the role. The nominated employee should provide a critical viewpoint on the proposed idea or situation. I am sure it will help your team by decreasing the chances of making poor decisions. It helps encourage critical thinking and challenge the proposed ideas from multiple stakeholders’ points of view.

It is super important to empower employees to think critically and bravely voice their opinion. That is why as leaders, we need to create and foster a culture of bravery.  If you want to achieve better business decisions, then start using the Six Thinking Hats tool in your teams and organization.

Before you go…

If you enjoyed this post, you would love my book, “Don’t Coast: Accelerate Your Personal and Professional Growth.”

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It’s not about you it’s all about others !!

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We love our grandfather. I have grown up with six cousins, more or less of the same age. At the age of 6, every day, we used to have a list for our grandfather. We used to think God created grandparents to serve grandchildren. Oh yeah, we were six years old. My Grandfather used to take us to a nearby playground and watch us playing various games with other kids. Our parents used to think my grandparents were spoiling us, but after all, grandparents meant to do that. They don’t care about what parents think. So this was a kind of a routine for us. We prepared a list and submitted it to our grandfather. I promise you every day that list contained chocolates, lollipops, and cool drinks.

If he ever forgets to buy them, we used to look at him and say, grandpa, we are hungry, and we need a snack. There was only one rule: we shouldn’t tell this to our parents because parents are paranoid about it. So this was kind of a secret. Sometimes during dinner time, kids weren’t hungry, and parents could never figure out the reason. We are six years old; every day, we have an agenda for our grandfather. It was all about us. Not one time, not one time we went to our grandfather and said; grandpa, we have thought you have done so much for us for so long. What can we do for you?

You see, it doesn’t enter a 6-year-old mind that they should do something for someone else. It is okay at six years old, but it’s sad when you are 26 or 36 or 46. Still, If you have not figured out that it’s not about you, it’s all about others, then I doubt whether you can grow any further in your career as a leader. Having this kind of mindset and making a difference in other’s lives will naturally show results in your life too.

A good leader understands this. The day he takes up the mantle, he will give up thinking about himself. Remember, you don’t have to know it all to be a great leader. Be yourself. Why, because people would instead follow a leader who is always real than one who is always right. Therefore always put others first and find ways and means to add value to them daily.

Before you go…

If you enjoyed this post, you would love my book, “Don’t Coast: Accelerate Your Personal and Professional Growth.”

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Don’t Be Average, Be Awesome

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Friends, I am talking about those who set out themselves to exceed expectations. You don’t want to be average because nobody pays for average. You never go to an average restaurant with an average table and eat average food and walk out and see how excited you are with an average evening. People forget average so fast. You never go to your friends after having average food in an average restaurant and tell them that you are pumped and would like to return to the same restaurant again.

  1. What time do you go to work? 8 AM? Not you. Average people go to work on time. It would be best if you went to work a little early. How about 7.30 AM? Because you don’t want to be average.
  2. How much time do you get at lunch? 1hour. Not you. How long does it take to eat? 20 mins? 30 mins? One more thing while eating lunch, can you listen to some podcast that will enrich your knowledge or start learning a new skill? How good would it be if people can learn while they eat?
  3. What time do you get off work? 5 PM. Average people leave work on time and work average hours. Not you.
  4. Average people use their smartphones for doing all sorts of things. Not you. When you are working, only use your smartphone for calling and nothing else.
  5. Average people stop asking questions. Not you. Be curious and ask questions all the time.
  6. Average people don’t take care of their health. Not you. Love yourself and take care of your health and your body. Because without good health, you have nothing.
  7. Average people learn from other’s success stories. Not you. Learn from your own mistakes and the mistakes of others, in other words, from failure stories.
  8. Average people cannot withstand difficult times. Not you. Work on developing an attitude that sees opportunity in every difficulty and ready to convert every adversity into an advantage.
  9. Average people are not good observers. Not you. Be more observant. Notice everything that surrounds you. The world is full of examples, ideas, words, and wisdom.
  10. Average people do not pay attention to ideas. Not you. Collect ideas and thoughts which might evaporate from your mind too fast. Try to capture them before it’s too late.
  11. Average people do not read. Not you. Read a lot. Read at least 30 minutes per day reading. Ideally, have a book always with you.
  12. Average people do not analyze their day. Not you. Before going to bed, spend at least 10 minutes analyzing your day. Consider what things you have managed to do well and what mistakes you made.
  13. Average people don’t write journals. Not you. Start writing. The most significant value of good writing is that it cultivates discipline, the discipline of thinking.
  14. Average people don’t cherish friendships. Not you. Cherish all the beautiful friendships and never take them for granted.

Too many people are willing to settle for average in life. Only a few people are aware of the gap between where they are and where they could be; they read books and keep themselves in good company to close the gap. The average is the top of the bottom, the worst of the best. Somehow I’m not too fond of the idea of being marked as average. No organization pays well for average staff. Who are you? Are you someone settling for familiar things instead of what you want?

  • It doesn’t matter what others say you can’t do; it only matters what you say you can do!
  • It doesn’t matter if they don’t think you’re good enough; it only matters if you believe you’re good enough!
  • And it doesn’t matter if they don’t believe your dreams are possible; it only matters if you believe your dreams are possible!

I encourage each one of you to develop your personal definition of success. Many people tie their definition of success to goals, which is a huge mistake. I also suggest you not link your definition of success with titles, positions, and numbers. Success is more significant, higher, and more profound than that. Success should know your purpose in life, growing to your maximum potential and sowing seeds to benefit others.

Before you go…

If you enjoyed this post, you would love my book, “Don’t Coast: Accelerate Your Personal and Professional Growth.”

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Know Your Ducks & Eagles

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A leader achieves nothing by himself, but whenever the team wins leader gets the credit. Think of any popular cricket or football coach. We don’t see them inside the field. They neither play nor score a run or goal. However, everybody gives credit to them for winning.  Why? Because they select the players for the team and chooses their positions according to their strength. Later they motivate the team members daily and coach them. A coach achieves nothing by himself but achieves everything through the team. Therefore the number one job for any leader is to focus on the team and coach them according to their strengths.

There are two kinds of people on every team – the Ducks and the Eagles. Ducks are good, but they always wait for someone to teach them what to do. They are too comfortable, and they don’t show interest in learning new skills or upgrade themselves. They don’t have fire in their bellies to become high performers. They never mind doing the same thing repeatedly for any number of years. Suppose you put your foot down on the accelerator and ask them to produce more, then they fumble.

Now the question is, how can we identify a duck in our team? Very simple, ducks always have ready-made excuses.  They are complacent and not self-starters.  I am too busy, or I can’t do more, or this is not the right time, or I am not made for this, or I am not trained for this, or I’m not too fond of it list goes on. As a leader, you need to understand one thing once a duck is always a duck, and no matter what you do, a duck always likes to swim and not fly. As a young leader, I felt that I could turn any duck into an eagle. In no time, I realized that I am putting undue pressure on both myself and the ducks. I was forcing the ducks to become something that they don’t want to be.

Eagles are different. They love to learn, grow and fly high. They don’t wait for the boss to tell them what to do next. They get bored if they are stuck in the same place for too long. They enjoy helping other team members. They always try to find the big picture of what it is that they are doing. They constantly upgrade themselves and try to do different things. Often when working against recruitment deadlines, we make the mistake of hiring ducks though they quacked during the interview. Sometimes during the interview, it isn’t easy to notice a duck suit underneath their eagle clothes. Ducks are also important for the overall operations. However, we cannot depend on them for the outcome. Also, if you have a team full of eagles, things could get overly competitive and complicated within no time.

A leader needs to understand who the ducks are and who are the eagles in their team. Ducks Quack and Eagles Soar. Ducks keep complaining about everything – coffee, desk, laptop, task, etc. They don’t go the extra mile when needed. These people are mostly losers and attach themselves with the other losers in the company. On the other hand, Eagles have an attitude of gratitude. Another interesting observation I made over the years is that you don’t find ducks alone; they always get surrounded by other losers.

It’s eagles in your team who will help your team and organization to soar.  Once you identify the strengths of each of your team members, then invest quality time in training. Don’t send your ducks to eagles school. To have fewer ducks in your team, stop hiring out of desperation. Take time and hire the most skilled person you can for each position. For this to happen, you should start your recruitment process a little earlier than you need.  Also, keep an eye on the lack of creativity or initiative in your team members. Staff can do every job better. Do not hesitate to terminate a duck when needed. Always remember that no one was successful in converting ducks into eagles, so don’t try.

Before you go…

If you enjoyed this post, you would love my book, “Don’t Coast: Accelerate Your Personal and Professional Growth.”

Grab your copy from the below links:

You can subscribe to my social media channels:

COVID Is The New CTO

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COVID has put all of us on the back foot. It started as a pandemic in health and within no time is converted into an economic crisis, social crisis, an emotional crisis, and for some of us a parental crisis too. Most of you agree when I say so much has changed, and very little remained unchanged due to COVID 19.

COVID has changed:

  • the way we live
  • the way we work
  • the way we do business
  • the way we travel
  • the way we attend school or college
  • the way we consult a doctor
  • the way we make digital payments
  • the way we entertain ourselves

Seventy years into the IT revolution, it became clear in early 2020 that although we thought Tech was big, IT had only really scratched the surface of life. And the virus did the magic. COVID-19 digitized the world at lightning speed. COVID is the new CTO of every company in 2020 and beyond. It has made digital transformation inevitable for almost every sector. In the middle of the pandemic, Satya Nadella rightly said, “we have seen two years’ worth of digital transformation in just two months.”

Seventy years into the information technology revolution, it became clear in early 2020 that although we thought tech was big, IT had only really scratched the surface of life. The virus ended all that

Before the pandemic, many digital alternatives – whether to traditional healthcare, education, finance, you name it – were there; we just weren’t trying them, bemoaning “they’re too expensive” or “we’ve always done it this way.”  But when the pandemic took hold, necessity dictated: “Get over it, get going, get used to it.”

COVID-19 digitized the world at lightning speed. It has made digital transformation inevitable for almost every sector. It also widened the divide between digital natives and legacy economy companies struggling to shift to a fully digital operating model. With digital moving into the heart of business operating models and processes, expanding growth horizons, including for SMEs, will be about deepening and broadening new-age capabilities required to realize agile, data-driven, and automated processes eye on accelerating innovation and enhancing customer experience. COVID will be the new Y2K for Indian companies in terms of opportunities.

Hyderabad Software Enterprises Association (HYSEA) conducted its 2nd Biz Summit 2021 on the theme of “Expanding the Growth Horizons in the New Normal” successfully. I had the opportunity to act as session chair for Business Development Round Table. Great inputs from my panelists on Innovation in business development – Digitally Enabled Growth.

Link to the event can be found here – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Vnl1khrr3k

About HYSEA (Hyderabad Software Enterprises Association)

https://www.hysea.in

HYSEA is a registered apex body with more than 300 members representing the software industry in Hyderabad. It is a not-for-profit organization whose vision is ‘To Position Hyderabad as the leading intellectual capital of the world, by nurturing entrepreneurship, research, and innovation, to achieve global excellence in IT products and services. HYSEA works very closely with the Government, STPI – Hyderabad, and with various industry bodies like NASSCOM, FICCI, CII, TiE, AMCHAM, IACC, FTCCI, etc. and acts as a catalyst to promote the growth of the IT & ITES industry in Hyderabad.