"Thimking," and reserving time for it ... Credit where it's due: "Thimk!" - the headline of one of last week's entries - came from an old Mad Magazine poster. Quite a readers provided thoughts and ideas. Here are a few you might find useful: From Wietze de Vries: "My favorite is The Six Thinking Hats as described in a book by the same name by Edward de Bono, a noted British author on creativity and creative “Thimking,” and reserving time for it …Credit where it’s due: “Thimk!” – the headline of one of last week’s entries – came from an old Mad Magazine poster.Quite a readers provided thoughts and ideas. Here are a few you might find useful: From Wietze de Vries:“My favorite is The Six Thinking Hats as described in a book by the same name by Edward de Bono, a noted British author on creativity and creative thinking. In brief, first you define a ‘focus’ (for example a problem or opportunity), then you purposely segment your thinking into one style at a time. The six styles as designated by the hats are:Blue Hat – Administrative, agenda setting, opening, closing, etc. White Hat – Facts (what are the facts, what information is missing?) Green Hat – Creative (brainstorming is a primitive example)Yellow Hat – Postives (why will this work? what are the good aspects?) Black Hat – Negatives (why won’t this work? risks?)Red Hat – Emotions and feelings (gut reaction) Sounds corny, but it really works.” Ewen, from Edmonton, Alberta, contributes this:“I thimk you missed one of the best ways to make time to think, and that’s to say “No” to things. Ot at least delegate some tasks so you’re not the one actually doing them.If you’re that busy and overloaded you’re not giving a fair shake to anything you do. It’s better to do fewer things well than lots of things half-assed. Helps maintain sanity too!” From Peter Bushman:Exercise – Not only is it good for you physically, science has shown that the action increases the batch of chemicals in the body that enhance the brain’s capacity to innovate. Cogitate on that…Mow the lawn – I have figured out so many things while mowing the lawn that I’ve come to make time to mow because I need to figure something out. Get up twenty minutes early to sit alone and think. No newspapers, no books, no nothing, except maybe some juice or a cup of coffee. Twenty minutes … Maybe a notepad and a pencil.Meditate daily. Twice daily, twenty or so minutes each time. Sit relaxed, close the eyes, repeat a mantra, think, mantra, think, think some more, mantra, etc.A good reminder from Jerry Horwitz: “Better is the enemy of good enough.”And finally, this from Paula:While I totally agree with your opinion that shooting from this hip has numerous undesirable and unpleasant consequences, I do think gut feelings and intuition are very reliable. Intuition coupled with due diligence & knowledge yields the most effective result — in business, in life, and then some. Bob’s Last Word(s):* If you get up twenty minutes early and want to think, I don’t see how coffee is optional.* Sometimes, better is the enemy of good enough. Other times, good enough is the enemy of better. The trick is recognizing which situation you’re in. * Gut feelings and intuition have their uses, but one thing they aren’t is reliable. At best they call your attention to the need to investigate something further. As just one example, a lot of managers rely on their gut feelings and intuition when hiring. It’s been shown repeatedly that doing so reliably and repeatedly leads to their hiring themselves, over and over again.– Bob ——– Technology Industry