7 Keys for Developing Effective Creative and Critical Thinking

Course details

Being a creative thinker is about nurturing curiosity and fluidity, being able to generate lots of different ideas, and being willing to try out different approaches to solving problems. Creative thinking is more than just your ability to analyze, debate, and evaluate. Critical, creative, and collaborative thinking are essential skills for success. Being a truly critical thinker includes being able to move fast, adapt well to change, and break down some of our natural barriers to thinking critically. In this course, Emma Sue Prince—author of 7 Skills for the Future and an expert in creative and critical thinking—coaches you through simple and time-tested techniques for improving and perfecting your grasp of the essentials of creative thinking. Explore creativity and brain science, idea generation, divergent thinking, ambiguity and change, natural biases, and more.

Learning objectives
Describe your creative brain and where ideas come from.
Develop divergent thinking.
Facilitate group creativity.
Explain your brain’s biases and where they come from.
Apply practical strategies for breaking down the barriers to creative and critical thinking.

Concepts

0. Introduction

01 - Welcome to the course

1. Creativity and the Brain

02 - Creativity and brain science
03 - The neuroscience of creativity
04 - Brain exercises for creative thinking

2. Generating Great Ideas

05 - Finding order in chaos
06 - Personal experience
07 - Divergent thinking
08 - Curiosity
09 - Constraints and limitations
10 - Mental states
11 - Inspiration
12 - Generating ideas exercise

3. Developing Divergent Thinking

13 - Building a creative context
14 - Brainstorming and ideation
15 - Mind mapping
16 - Random word object association
17 - Reverse thinking
18 - The SCAMPER technique
19 - Taking on different perspectives and views

4. Embracing Ambiguity and Change

20 - Cultivating a growth mindset
21 - Mindfulness and the present moment
22 - Building emotional and mental strength
23 - How to be open to different perspectives
24 - Cultivating curiosity
25 - Learning to embrace change
26 - Learning from mistakes
27 - Developing tolerance to discomfort
28 - The power of reflection

5. Understanding Natural Biases

29 - Why does our brain have biases
30 - The danger of making assumptions
31 - Cognitive bias
32 - Filling in the gaps bias
33 - How to ask better questions
34 - Not distinguishing between fact and fiction
35 - How to focus
36 - Ways to reduce brain biases

6. Breaking Down Barriers to Creative and Critical Thinking

37 - Why we second-guess ourselves
38 - How to navigate emotional reasoning
39 - When behavior conflicts with beliefs
40 - How to avoid groupthink when problem-solving
41 - Four strategies to improve critical thinking

7. Building a Creativity Dream Team

42 - Defining goals and vision for your team
43 - Identify key roles and strengths
44 - Encouraging diversity and getting voices into the room
45 - Encourage collaboration
46 - Create freedom, resources, and continuous learning
47 - Resolve conflicts fast

Credits

48 - Image credits