What if?

Filed under: Creativity

“What if?” is a popular tool for generating ideas, creating ideas, solving problems.

What if a personal computer was fun and easy to Use?
asked Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, and the result was Macintosh.

What if a hub-and-spoke system was used for overnight delivery?
asked Fred Smith, and the result was FedEx.

What if a beer bottle looked really different?
asked Interbrew, and the result was Wildbrew in a in a tiger-print bottle.

Hundreds of “What if?” questions can be asked to inspire creative thinking:

What if society was structured differently?
What if money wasn’t a consideration?
What if there was no divide between the rich and the poor?
What if what happens after death is something we haven’t imagined yet?
What if there were no borders?

List five “What if?” questions that come to your mind in the first 60 seconds from reading this post.

Excerpted from “zing! Five steps and 101 tips for creativity on command” by Sam Harrison