What is non-standard thinking and how to develop it?

Most people have a very standard wish list: a house - a full bowl, a prestigious job, a smart guy (a beautiful wife), children - smart women and handsome men, a summer house on the river bank (lake, pond, sea). We all want about the same thing. But we get in different ways. It all depends on how a person goes to achieve his dreams. It is known that for those who know how to think outside the box, the solution of any questions, whether professional environment or everyday difficulties, is given much easier than the total mass thinking standardly.

Thinking outside the box - it is the ability to think beyond generally accepted norms and rules. This does not mean that it is necessary to violate all laws, including the criminal code or norms of public morality, nevertheless they must be observed, but there are also such rules that it is permissible to violate them. Standard thinking or, as it is also called in psychology - convergent, involves actions according to strictly defined standards and algorithms.

However, even in science, the highest achievements are achieved by those who allow themselves some non-standard. They do not recognize generally accepted, imposed beliefs, they all try to verify for themselves in order to have their own opinion about what is really good and what is bad. For a person with non-standard thinking, finding a solution means not just finding the right answer, but several answers.

First of all, in order not to get stuck at a certain stage of development. A person with standard thinking sooner or later turns into a biomachine, which does everything according to a program previously invested in it. His brain stops working in full. As a result, the individual degrades. A person with non-standard thinking acts more efficiently. He is not afraid of difficult tasks. Rather, even they amuse him.

You will not meet him in a crowd blindly following a certain leader; he himself is a leader and leader. Unfortunately, even in childhood, stereotypes are laid in our heads, which are difficult to get rid of. The most striking example of how standard thinking is inculcated is the school curriculum. Rules, formulas, theorems - we cram them and do not question. But what if parallel lines still intersect? We are told that there is no need to reinvent the wheel. What if you would create something completely new and worth a try?

It is known that secondary education is difficult for people with non-standard types of thinking.. Perhaps the most striking and well-known example of this is Albert Einstein. In childhood, the future Nobel laureate was not distinguished by good knowledge and excellent grades in school. His own parents didn’t really appreciate him. But those who were lucky enough to talk with him in adulthood, claimed that they had visited a different dimension.

Sometimes it really seems that some prominent people come from outer space. But they were born and raised with us. So why do some succeed, others do nothing? By the way, among these "others" there are many excellent students. But along with a certificate and a medal, they seem to receive a curse that prevents them from moving on in life. They are clamped as part of the curriculum. Together with teachers and textbooks, they lose the guides that show them the way, and simply get lost. But all this is fixable. The main thing is to start acting out of habit, break yourself and choose a new motion vector.

People would never have flown into space, if they hadn’t among those who soap non-standard. They proved that the earth is round, and does not rest on three elephants or whales. And they did it with a threat to life, and many parted with it. The Inquisition Tribunal has destroyed more than one bright head. But Gordano Bruno who died at the hands of the Inquisition back in the 16th century proved his conclusions about the infinity of the universe and even about the presence of many worlds.

Consider a more everyday example. How many ways to cook potatoes did the heroine of Nadezhda Rumyantseva Tosi Kislitsina from the legendary film "Girls" have? And you? A man lives within the framework that he has established for himself. Get rid of templates as much as possible. Of course, for adults this process will be more complicated than for a child. The children's brain is not “clogged” with standard thoughts. Children are more likely to fantasize, compose, and experiment. So allow yourself to fall into childhood at least for a while.

Try to find unusual use for familiar things. An ordinary pencil, if desired, can be used both as a pointer, and as a hair clip, and how ... Think of 5 different ways yourself. With a pencil sorted out. Take the next item.

Make it a rule to solve at least one such task per day. Stop eating eggs exclusively for breakfast. Think of 5 ways to make eggs. A better 10. Move away from the standards in everything. Try to change the usual route from home to work and back. Change your daily routine. Try different options anytime, anywhere.

We do the same thing every morning. And most often in a certain sequence. Break this law. Let your day not start the way the previous one started. Diversify it with music, do exercises, and over and over again changing the set of exercises. Do not be afraid to change the schedule. Do not be afraid of any changes in principle. Try to live one day "vice versa." Do everything as you like, and not as you are used to.

It is known that it is more developed in left-handed people. It is believed that among them there are more creative people who think outside the box. Are you not left-handed? No problem. Make the right hemisphere work with simple exercises - at least brush your teeth with your left hand.

Develop outside the box thinking dancing. Experts call the sense of rhythm a direct road to thinking outside the box. In addition, movements to music are not only a way of self-expression, they develop coordination. Thinking outside the box also contributes to classes in various types of needlework. Another way to learn to think outside the box is card games. Poker, of course, is not suitable for preschool children, but an adult will teach a lot. Checkers and chess are also welcome.

Everything new is well forgotten old or vice versa. Use various methods to solve any problem. Even when it comes to banal payment of bills for utilities. It is not worth every time out of habit to go for this to the post office or to the bank. Use the mobile application of a financial institution. Do this using your nearest ATM using a barcode. And so on. Take yourself out of your comfort zone even in such trifles.

We are following the path of greatest resistance. When looking for an answer to any question, determine what most of the people around you would do. Try acting exactly the opposite, or though a little differently. Come up with at least 5 options for each task. One of them will surely turn out to be more effective than generally accepted ones.

Brainstorming is a method that is not only suitable for working in a group. It can be built independently. Take a piece of paper and write out everything that comes to your mind on a given topic. That's all - even that which seems absolutely impossible to you. Do not be afraid of your thoughts, they are your friends, not enemies.

Start saying the opposite. Start with short ones, then try to do this with small sentences. At the initial stage, signs in stores can help. Just read them the other way around. Do this several times a day.

Build a house. You have long dreamed about this. So the time has come to at least design it. But it will be an unusual building. The most unexpected materials will be used to create it. What kind? Ask your subconscious. Write on a piece of paper the 10 first words that came to mind, denoting objects, fruits, vegetables, and so on. Now start creating an architectural masterpiece. What do you have. A pineapple? Let the windows be in the form of this sweet fruit. Buckets? Place them in the kitchen instead of stools. The task is to find application for each item from the list.

Do the usual things in an unusual way. The fact that you need to brush your teeth from time to time with a non-working hand, we have already said. Let's complicate the task. Try to dress without the help of one hand, blindfolded or standing on one leg, for example. Make yourself small difficulties so as not to face serious difficulties.

Trite, but the fact - how "wide" we can think depends on the breadth of our horizons. Read more. Take a variety of literature. Expand your vocabulary and knowledge in different directions. Watch documentaries on the development of genetic engineering and the life of Native American tribes. Learn the culture and traditions of other nations.

Travel more. If you still don’t have enough money to travel abroad, explore the neighboring regions. And by the way, while you can learn a foreign language. It is also very useful for the development of innovative thinking. Look for the unusual in everything.Make up stories whose heroes will be clouds. Write letters to yourself. Write down even your craziest ideas. Sooner or later, anyone can come in handy. Move the spring cleaning day from this Saturday to the next. And spend the next weekend in a museum, theater or cinema.