TRIZ – breaking mental barriers. How does TRIZ work? Here’s the psychological mechanism of problem-solving on a real example.
TRIZ – Battle with Tough Grime
Last Saturday, I found myself trying to clean a rather neglected window. The worst part was the traces of adhesive tape. The sun had hardened the glue residues from the tape, which defiantly refused to yield to either branded products or traditional vinegar. When wet, I could scrape it off a bit with my fingernail, but it would take all day to remove all the dirt from just one window. I was tired of trying again and again – just water, water with detergent, professional cleaning agent, and then vinegar. Each substance with a special soft sponge, I also unsuccessfully tried with lint-free paper, because that’s what I took from home, and finally with my fingernails.
Blind Alley of Thinking
I was at a point that could be compared to tunnel vision; I was blind to other possibilities. My thoughts did not go beyond the attempts listed, I thought about replacing my fingernails with some stick, but there was no stick available. A large number of failed attempts encouraged me to give up. The mechanism of rationalizing failure kicked in – after all, the window looked much better than at the beginning, it didn’t have to be perfect. TRIZ has a whole set of tools to break out of this tunnel thinking. These inspirations come from other solutions, sometimes far from our topic. We might also stumble upon a new idea by accident, but we need to look around broadly for new inspiration. And I was too tired to think about anything.
Breakthrough in Thinking
Then a breakthrough occurred. No, it did not come in the form of a TRIZ tool, but it was still a revelation very similar to what happens when I work with TRIZ. My spouse, struggling with another window at the other end of the building, asked for my help (because I am taller). It turned out she had an equally neglected window, but she had found an effective method. She took a dishwashing sponge from home, which had a harsh side for stubborn grime. It turned out that with this ‘scrubber,’ the dirt came off quite well. Maybe not miraculously fast and with significant effort, but 100 times more effectively than with fingernails. Probably each of you would have thought of this idea, but I experienced tunnel thinking at that moment, and it was out of reach for my tired brain.
TRIZ as a Tool Against Tunnel Thinking
TRIZ – breaking mental barriers. TRIZ is a set of tools for breaking out of narrow thinking. One of the first questions that should be asked in TRIZ – who has faced a similar problem before me and how did they solve it? Because there are always more solutions than our minds think. Especially the mind in a tunnel. Do you also experience such narrow thinking?
TRIZ Champion and Project Management Expert. Valued for opening thinking. The trainings he conducted were often a breakthrough event in the participants' careers. At TRIZ, he is fascinated by the possibility of providing simple solutions to difficult problems and breaking fixations. A trainer with over 20 years of experience, as well as a long-term member of the Supervisory Board at the ODITK GROUP. A respected speaker talked about TRIZ at Lean, Project Management (IPMA, PMI) and Production Management conferences.
