Slice+&+Dice

Slice and Dice
When he is united, divide him. Sun Tzu

How many squares do you see?

Is a house one big building or an assortment of separate rooms?

To stimulate new ideas, identify and list the various attributes of a problem and work on one attribute at a time. (Just remodel the kitchen, don't bulldoze the whole house.)

When kisting attributes of a problem, think of them simplay as its componenets, and amke a general list without worrying about how correct iti si.

Some possible ways to describe attributes:

Descriptive Process Function Social Price Ecological

Attributes of a pencil:
 * Used for writing
 * Yellow
 * Lead
 * Eraser
 * Sharp
 * Hexagonal
 * Has printing on it
 * Cylindrical

Blueprint


 * 1) State your challenge.
 * 2) Analyze the challenge and list as many attributes as you can.
 * 3) Take each attribute, one at a time, and try to think of ways to change or improve it. Ask, "How else can this be accomplished?" and "Why does this have to be this way?"
 * 4) Strive to make your thinking both fluent and flexible.

When you subdivide a challenge into many separate parts, the nature of the challenge does not change. However, your perception of it does. It is this expansion of consciousness that leads to new ideas.