Design Thinking & Innovation
Six Thinking Hats
Look at a decision from six deliberate angles, one at a time, instead of arguing from all of them at once.
- Time: 30 to 60 min
- With: A group or alone
- You get: A balanced view and a decision
How to use this worksheet
- Write the topic. Everyone wears the same hat at the same time: that is what removes the debate.
- Spend 5 minutes on each hat in the suggested order. Write everything down, even if you disagree.
- Finish with the blue hat: summarise, decide and name next steps.
- If a discussion drifts, say which hat you are on: "this sounds like black hat, we are still on green".
What do we know, what do we not know, and how could we find out?
Prompts and example
Ask yourself
- What data do we have?
- What is missing and how do we get it?
Example
- Churn was 4.1% last quarter, up from 3.2% - Exit survey response rate: 12% - Unknown: why enterprise accounts leave
Gut reactions, no justification needed. How does this feel?
Prompts and example
Ask yourself
- What does your gut say?
- Where do you notice energy or resistance?
Example
- Uneasy about the timeline - Excited about the new onboarding - Anxious that support will be overloaded
What could go wrong? Where are the weak points?
Prompts and example
Ask yourself
- What are the worst realistic failure modes?
- Which assumption is the weakest?
Example
- Migration may break two integrations - No budget for a pilot - Support is already at capacity
Why could this work? What value does it create?
Prompts and example
Ask yourself
- What is the best realistic outcome?
- Who benefits and how?
Example
- Activation up by an estimated 10 points - Simpler story for sales - Reusable for the next launch
New ideas, options and "what if" with no judgement.
Prompts and example
Ask yourself
- What else could we try?
- What would a much cheaper version look like?
Example
- Pilot with ten friendly customers first - Roll out in two phases - Offer the old flow as an opt-out for six months
Summarise, decide and plan next steps.
Prompts and example
Ask yourself
- What did we learn from each hat?
- What do we decide, and what is the next step?
Example
Decision: run a six-week pilot with ten customers. Next: Sam selects accounts (Fri), Priya preps support (Mon).
Before you finish
- Each hat got its own time slot, no mixing.
- Red hat feelings were recorded without being argued.
- The blue hat names a decision or the next step to reach one.
About the Six Thinking Hats
Edward de Bono's method separates kinds of thinking that normally collide. Instead of one person defending and another attacking, everyone looks in the same direction at the same time.
It works well for decisions with emotion and uncertainty, and for meetings that keep ending in the same argument.
Recommended reading
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- Six Thinking HatsEdward de Bono
The original method for parallel thinking that this tool puts into practice.
- Lateral ThinkingEdward de Bono
De Bono's classic on generating new ideas by deliberately changing perspective.