 The first goal of this chapter is to provide

techniques that will help breakdown barriers

and preconceived notions that get in the way
of generating solutions to the problem.
 The second goal is to try to enhance the
reader's risk taking because most truly
innovative solutions require some risk.
 Mental Blocks
 Blockbusting
 Improving Your Creative Abilities
 Risk Taking
1. Perceptual Blocks
◦ obstacles that prevent the problem solver from
clearly perceiving either the problem itself or the
information needed to solve it.
◦ A few types of perceptual blocks are
 Stereotyping
 Limiting the problem unnecessarily
 Saturation or information overload
Perceptual Blocks (cont’d)
2. Emotional Blocks
 Interfere with your ability to solve problems in
many ways.
 They decrease the amount of freedom with which
you explore and manipulate ideas, and they
interfere with your ability to conceptualize
fluently and flexibly.
◦ Fear of risk taking
◦ Lack of appetite for chaos
◦ Judging rather than generating ideas
◦ Lack of challenge
◦ Inability to incubate
3. Cultural Blocks
 Acquired by exposure to a given set of cultural
patterns, while environmental blocks are
imposed by our immediate social and physical
environment.

4. Environmental Blocks:
 Distractions (phones, interruptions) are blocks
that inhibit deep prolonged concentration.
Working in an atmosphere that is pleasant and
supportive most often increases the productivity
of the problem solver.
5. Intellectual Blocks:
 This block can occur as a result of inflexible or
inadequate uses of problem-solving strategies.
 Lacking the necessary intellectual skills to solve a
problem can certainly be a block as can lack of
the information necessary to solve the problem.

6. Expressive Blocks:
 The inability to communicate your ideas to
others, in either verbal or written form, can also
block your progress.
 Goman's Blockbusters

Block Blockbuster
1. Negative Attitude 1. Attitude Adjustment
Focusing attention on List the positive outcomes
negative aspects of the and aspects of the problem.
problem or possible Realize that with every
unsatisfactory outcomes problem there is not only
hampers creativity. danger of failure but an
opportunity for success.
Block
2. Fear of Failure
One of the greatest inhibitors to
creativity is the fear of failure and
the inability to take a risk.
3. Following the Rules
Some rules are necessary, such as
stopping at a red light, while
others, such as you must take the
familiar route to work, (or most
efficient) shortest, hinder
innovation.
Blockbuster
2. Risk Taking
Outline what the risk is, why it is
important, what is the worst
possible outcome and, what your
options are with the worst possible
outcome and how you would deal
with this failure.
3. Breaking the Rules
Remove unnecessary constraints
imposed by the solution
requirements.
Block
4. Over-reliance on Logic
A need to proceed in a step-by-
step fashion may unfortunately
relegate imagination to the
background.
5. Belief That You Aren't Creative
Believing that you are not creative
is a serious hindrance to
generating creative solutions.
Believing that you can't do
something is a self- fulfilling
prophesy.
Blockbuster
4. Creative Internal Climate
Turn the situation over to your
imagination, your feelings, your
sense of humor. Play with insights
and possibilities.
5. Creative Beliefs
Encourage your creativity, by
asking "what-if" questions;
daydream, make up metaphors
and analogies. Try different ways
of expressing your creativity.
Divide into 3 different groups and discussion the following:
1. Students who are about to start FYP1:
◦ You have your own title but your potential supervisor forces you
to work on her title for your FYP. The title is in the area you’ve
never heard of or know, and it requires a skill you’re not
confident that you may have.
Question: Recognise your risk of taking up that title, and
identify how to overcome the fear of failure in your FYP.
2. Students who are between FYP1 and FYP2:
◦ You are in progress with your system design and development,
but you still feel that there’s a huge block between you and the
accomplishment of your system development.
Question: Recognise your mental blocks and identify how to
improve your creative abilities in overcoming those blocks.
3. Students who have completed FYP2:
◦ You received a job interview for the post of Business Analyst,
which requires to have knowledge in ERP-SAP and
programming. You are not so confident with the job, but there’s
a good chance you will get it.
Question: Recognise your mental blocks and identify how to
overcome those blocks.
Choose ONE of the following problems and answer the following questions. You
need to critically evaluate the scenario given and apply the knowledge you have
learnt in this topic:
1. You are given a field work assignment to conduct a survey on a fast food
restaurant. Recognise what are your risks and how to overcome those risks
creatively.
2. You are assigned for an internship in a company that you never knew, which
is an IT vendor. Explain the mental blocks you may have before joining the
company, and how you can overcome these.
3. You are assigned to an entrepreneurial firm as an intern, which you think
will require you to work on ‘everything’ with long hours. Identify your
mental blocks and discuss the ways to overcome these blocks.
4. You are hired to work as an intern in your campus, which you do not prefer.
Explain the risks you perceive to face during the internship, and how you
can overcome those risk.
5. You would like to continue your study in Master of IT, which is fully in
research, but you do not feel so right about the decision. Evaluate the
mental blocks or risks of taking up the master degree, and explain what you
can do about it.
(10 marks)

Submission requirements:
Not more than 5 pages (excluding appendix)
Times New Roman 12pt OR Arial 11pt, 1.5 spacing
Due: NEXT WEEK (Monday) 21 Jul 2014 before 12pm
Submit by hand