5 books that will help you think outside the box and why it matters right now

Consuming gigabytes of information, we begin to think in a stereotyped way. Robots are automating more and more specialties, and only those workers who think outside the box become irreplaceable. Many people think that creativity is an innate skill. I thought so too, until I read these books. They proved that everyone can learn to think outside the box.

Everyone can think outside the box

Make the following equation correct without rearranging the matches:

I - IX = X

Did you do it? Yes? Congratulations. Not? Look at this equation upside down. Now it worked out. This simple example proves that the non-standard of thought is a skill that can be mastered.

Of course, rearranging matches will not help you succeed in your career. It is not a matter of solving logical problems, but of a way to look at familiar things in a new way. It is this skill that distinguishes a person from the crowd at an interview, in the office and in life.

The concept of strategic management of ideas

Ideal - Mario Priken

Waiting for insight is unproductive, especially when your result depends on non-standard solutions. No matter who you are: developer, designer or writer. You need to get creative ideas almost every day.

The book contains more than two hundred examples from real advertising campaigns. The author does not disclose methods of creative thinking, but asks suggestive questions that make the reader get to their essence on their own.

Practical methods of thinking outside the box

Rice storming and another 21 ways to think outside the box - Michael Mikalko

If the first book forces the reader to come to their own conclusions, Michael Mikalko shares ready-made ways of thinking that will help come up with an idea, look at it differently and determine its viability.

I started reading this book on the phone, but quickly realized that such a book needs to be kept on the table in order to periodically peek. The advice of the author is very simple to implement and I, as the chief designer of the product, started using them right away.

10 commandments of a creative person

Stealing as an Artist - Austin Cleon

It is amazing how simple ideas can change thinking. The author resembles a person who got rid of the surrounding noise and formulated 10 rules of a creative person.

I started reading this book in the store and finished on the way home. The author writes very briefly and sensibly, and most importantly, arouses the desire to create.

How to be different than everyone else

Doubt. The manifesto for those who are ready to leave the crowd is Glory to Baransky.

It doesn’t matter if we trust the information we receive. She still settles in the head and changes her mindset. It is becoming difficult to distinguish our opinion from the imposed one, and we even stop trying to do it. Doubt is a way to find your opinion.

The book “Doubt” did not become a bestseller, but changed the lives of many people. The author’s words hurt. They either repel or completely change because he is telling the truth. The only question is how you perceive it.

Effective thinking

Visual Thinking - Dan Roem

This is amazing. By simply stating the situation on paper, you can find unexpected things. Moreover, you do not need to be an artist. The fact that a thought is fixed in the form of visual images helps to find something new in it.

My most important career decision was made with a simple drawing. I visualized my skills, aspirations and the choice of the future path was obvious to me. Since then, any problem requiring a solution is considered only on paper.

You are already able to think creatively

Even if you do not read any of these books, do an experiment. Look at a familiar task or problem in a new way. Find in it something superfluous and clean. Or vice versa, connect it with another idea or task and get a hybrid. Thus, they come up with the plot of films, books are written, and innovative companies are created.

Our creativity is incredible. Use them.

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