Philip is on holiday at the moment but he’s been sending some postcards to selected people in businesses he’s interested in. Maybe you received one of them.
If so, here’s what it’s all about.
The postcard sent to you was selected at random. The image on the front is notable in some way but it has no obvious relevance to what your business does. However, that image can be used as visual stimulus in a Lateral Thinking workshop. It could potentially lead to the best idea your business has ever had.
One of the tools of Lateral Thinking – whether done in a conventional workshop or in one of our new Ambulando sessions – is ‘random input’.
Random input is a way to provoke a new idea. You focus on the random image and try to notice things that could be useful to create a commercially viable concept for your company. This search for a connection or an analogy could either provoke you to think of a new way to crack an existing issue or help you create something totally new.
Your commercial issue (let’s say ‘inventing a new toothpaste brand name’) and the picture of, say, a frog, seem unconnected. But your brain will force a connection if you think hard enough. (Maybe the new toothpaste could be called ‘Prince’. You get the idea?)
Keep your postcard and wait for a personal letter from Philip upon his return – week commencing 23rd August. This will be your invitation to a Lateral Thinking session in your office and your postcard will count as a £100 discount.
Philip|Morley 