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Proposition 67
Wearing Six Thinking Hats
In a Word The difference between poor and effective teams lies not so much in
their collective mental equipment but in how well they use their abilities to think
together. The Six Thinking Hats technique helps actualize the thinking potential of
teams.
Introduction
Routinely, many people think from analytical, critical, logical perspectives, and
rarely view the world from emotional, intuitive, creative, or even purposely neg-
ative viewpoints. As a result, their arguments do not make leaps of imagination,
they underestimate resistance to change, or they fail to draw contingency plans.
Lateral thinking
1
is reasoning that offers new ways of looking at problems—
coming at them from the side rather than from the front—to foster change,
1
The term was coined by Edward de Bono in 1967.
©Asian Development Bank 2017
O. Serrat, Knowledge Solutions, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-0983-9_67
615
creativity, and innovation. One tool of lateral thinking, the Six Thinking Hats
technique, was devised by Edward de Bono in 1985 to give groups a means to
reflect together more effectively, one thing at a time.
Six Hats, Six Colors
The Six Thinking Hats technique involves the use of metaphorical hats in discus-
sions.
2
Participants put on hats in turn, possibly more than once but not necessarily
all of them, to indicate directions (not descriptions) of thinking. The color of each is
related to a function
•White hat thinking—neutral, objective—focuses on the data and information
that are available or needed.
•Red hat thinking—emotional—looks at a topic from the point of view of
emotions, feelings, and hunches, without having to qualify or justify them.
•Black hat thinking—somber, serious—uses experience, logic, judgment, and
caution to examine the difficulties and problems associated with a topic and the
feasibility of ideas.
•Yellow hat thinking—sunny, positive—is concerned with benefits and values.
•Green hat thinking—growth, fertility—intimates creative thinking and move-
ment, not judgment, to generate new ideas and solutions.
•Blue hat thinking—cool, the sky above—concentrates on reflection, metacog-
nition (thinking about the thinking required), and the need to manage the
thinking process.
3
Applications
Pertinent applications for the Six Thinking Hats technique include team productivity
and communication; product and process improvement, as well as project man-
agement; critical and analytical thinking, problem solving, and decision-making; and
creativity training, meeting facilitation, and meeting management.
2
The larger benefits lie in conversations. But the technique can be also used by an individual.
3
A blue hat should always be used both at the beginning and at the end of a discussion. What
follows it depends on the nature of the topic and emotions about it. For instance, wearing a red hat
next might defuse strong feelings. Discussions to brainstorm problems might adopt blue, white,
green, red, yellow, black, green, and blue hats in sequence. Conversations seeking feedback might
follow a blue, black, green, and blue hat pattern.
616 67 Wearing Six Thinking Hats
Benefits
The Six Thinking Hats technique provides a common language that works in
different cultures. It promotes collaborative thinking, sharpens focus, facilitates
communication, reduces conflict, enables thorough evaluations, improves explo-
ration, fosters creativity and innovation, saves time, and boosts productivity.
Discipline
Discipline is important. The facilitator’s role is to define the focus of the thinking,
plan the sequence and timing of the thinking, ask for changes in the thinking if
needed, handle requests from participants for changes in the thinking, and form
Unbundled Thinking
Blue Hat
(Process-Oriented)
•Setting the focus
•Drawing conclusions
•Launching action
plans
White Hat
(Factual)
•Neutral and objective
•Information and where
to source it
•Facts missing
Black Hat
(Critical)
•Cautions and
difficulties
•Problems and faults
•Proposals must fit the
facts
Yellow Hat
(Speculative)
•What if?
•Values and benefits
(both known and
potential)
•Why do you think it
will happen this way?
Red Hat
(Intuitive)
•Emotions or hunches
•No reasons or
justifications
•
Acting on the spur of
the moment
Green Hat
(Creative)
•Possibilities and
alternatives
•New ideas and
concepts
•Overcoming black hat
problems; reinforcing
yellow hat values
Fig. Wearing six thinking hats. Source Author
Benefits 617
periodic or final summaries of the thinking for consideration by participants. Each
participant must follow the lead of the facilitator, stick to the hat being used, try to
work within time limits, and contribute honestly and fully under each hat.
Further Reading
De Bono E (1999) Six thinking hats. Back Bay Books
The opinions expressed in this chapter are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the
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618 67 Wearing Six Thinking Hats
