March 2003 87th Issue

Instrument Donation

In a ceremony to supply classical Thai musical instruments, the Hua Hin Rotary Club joined with the government’s lottery agency to celebrate Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn’s birthday by donating the instruments as part of a special project to encourage the ancient musical arts. The celebrations coincide with the Rotary’s 100th anniversary.
The picture shows Rotary President K. Wanna Choksuchat and the town Mayor Khun Jira Pongpaiboon

Part Four - Thinking Skills
By Bill Gould
This month we continue our journey towards better decision making. Thank you for all the positive feedback on the series. We will keep them coming.
In this article we will present the three Lateral Thinking skills introduced in the last installment, the CAF, PMI and OPV. Do not mistake simplicity for weakness. These seemingly easy skills can do a lot to enhance your decision making process and literally changed my life as soon as I started applying them. They can be used interchangeably or independently.
The first of these skills is the CAF (Consider All Factors). The CAF is not unlike brainstorming, the major difference being that we are going for quantity rather than quality. It is a shotgun thinking skill in which the broader the aim the better. The purpose is to consider ALL the factors, or at least as many as possible within the time limit and that is the next point. The CAF is designed to work best under time restrictions, as are all these skills. You can begin with three minutes, decrease the time to two minutes, and then even a minute. What you will discover is one of the most interesting phenomenon I have ever seen. The output actually increases as the time factor is decreased. When working with groups, it never fails.
Applying a CAF when you have a decision to make or a problem to solve minimizes the possibility of ignoring what could be a major factor. We have all had the experience of saying, "If only I had thought of that!"
How many factors can you come up with when considering the concept of making a table? How about changing careers? Or making a major life changing decision? This is an important skill, one that is often omitted from the initial thinking process that accounts for many mistakes and not a few regrets.
Sit down now and start playing with this skill. It will only take a couple of times before you have the hang of it well enough to share with someone else, preferably another human being alive and capable of providing insights and input. Practice at first on simple concepts and then make up a Personal Action Plan (See previous article.) and apply it to that particular decision you need to make or plan you are working on or problem you must resolve. You will guarantee your chances of making a better decision immeasurably!
The PMI (Plus / Minus / Interesting) is the second skill and serves an entirely different purpose. This one focuses our thinking in a way no other thinking skill I have ever learned does. And that is the key to success in applying this skill, focus. Equal time and energy and focus applied in each of the three directions. Every situation has its share of good and bad factors. This skill helps you sort them out but there is an added dimension here that makes it so valuable and that the time spent in the Interesting part of the skill. Here is where creative thought is welcomed and the key question for the day is "What if?" This is where you search for innovative solutions and play with ideas. No commitments. No Judgments. Sometimes, the wilder the better.
If you are considering a course of action, it is not too late to do a PMI on it. In the Plus section, ask yourself, "What is good about this idea? Why do I like it" Why will it work?" Devote three minutes to list as many positive factors as you can. In the Minus section, shift your focus 180 degrees and ask yourself, " What is bad about this idea? Why won't it work? Why don't I like it?" Again, go for quantity. In the third part, ask yourself, "What if? Perhaps, instead of this we could try . . .? Maybe we could . . ." You get the idea, I am sure.
The PMI is great for expanding the parameters of our perception, a keystone to becoming a better thinker. It also serves to bring us options we would never have otherwise considered that actually work better than the ones we would have. Remember the Law of Requisite Variety that states the more options from which I have to choose, the more likely I am to make a better choice? Well that's what is at work here.
For practice, the PMI can be applied to virtually any concept or situation. Do a PMI on the concept that all taxi cabs should be red. That can be a really interesting concept to play with and also serves to illustrate how universally applicable these skills are. Now apply it to something in the real world and watch the results. They can be quite amazing. How many times have we been heard to exclaim, "If only I had thought of that!"?
The OPV (Other Points Of View) is the third thinking skill. This one serves to expand our thinking process outside ourselves to consider those within our sphere of influence or who might be affected directly or indirectly by the decision. As such, it is probably the most powerful of the three. How many times have we made decisions and been surprised at how others responded to them in a negative way we did not expect but could have had we taken the time to more carefully consider their possible reactions? How many time have we echoed in a dark room, "If only I had thought of that!"? This skill can be particularly powerful in relationship issues or negotiating or sales and marketing or managing people.
A good example of an opportunity to use an OPV would be in the concept that a young boy and girl want to get married. You could do an OPV on each of them and then on the parents, etc., as far out as you wanted to go. The key to success in applying an OPV is to become the other person. Speak as if you were saying their thoughts. Always use the first person. Assume their identity.
These are the three fundamental thinking skills. I want to point out an interesting underlying theme that has been developing in the previous articles and will continue to build throughout future one. Notice how the process starts on the inside and expands outwards to include others? This is a fundamental design factor in Transformational Thinking. We teach that all change is an inside/out do-it-yourself job. Transformational Thinking is designed as a philosophy to be inclusive as opposed to exclusive and this is where it starts to emerge.
You have all the tools you need at this point to become a better thinker. If you missed any of the previous articles, see the note below. Now we are going to start applying that thinking to the real world and this is where it starts to get really interesting. We are going see how these and other skills can show us how to improve the quality of our reality regardless of our starting point on the journey. This again, demonstrates the universal applicability of Transformational Thinking, another of its inherent design factors.
From this point on in this series, we enter the playground of the mind. We will consider various factors of reality like change and relationships and connections and will play with them. As you will see, however, this will lead us to some rather interesting and valuable discoveries along the way, gems we shall reach down and place in the mental collection bag for later sorting out. We are stepping through the doorway of our "normal perception" and entering a reality which exists only in our minds. Believe it or not, this is where we create our own future but that will come in due time. For the time being, let's just get used to the surroundings. We are going to create a Thinking Place and that is where we shall meet.
You design your own. After all, it is your mind. Your Reality. Think of a setting in which you are totally comfortable and in which you find it very easy to get into the here and now. It can be a memory or from your imagination. I have several I use. (Diversity is one of the guidelines to becoming a better thinker, remember?) There is a cave in a mountain that I visit, a particular underwater reef in the Red Sea, a cove in a Massachusetts forest, an island in the Bahamas, many others. You can revert to any age mind set, too, or change from adult to child and back again at will. It is your world.
Dedicate some time each day to building your Thinking Place. Get familiar with it. Explore every detail and, where there are none, supply them. This is also an ancient technique used to teach meditation so we know it works. This Thinking Place is a free-thinking zone. No rules. Anything goes. This is where you come to play with ideas. This is also where you bring your heavy decisions in order to be better able to temporarily suspend the emotions and judgment. This is a peaceful and serene place. A good place to bring your moments of celebration. It is a happy place. There is no need for it to be otherwise. Leave your ego and emotional baggage at the door. They will be waiting for you should you choose to collect them on your way out. Doing so brings about a transformation in the environment of your Thinking Place that is almost imperceptible. That is when you know you have arrived. I know of no other system that can clearly show you how to manage that step in awareness raising. It is actually quite simple using this approach.
Another interesting sidelight effect of this technique is that the increased awareness of the here and now eventually reaches a point where you are creating your own thinking places from the reality you are experiencing here and now but that is much later in the process.
As you will see, one of the keys to better thinking is increased awareness in the here and now. That is exactly what the Lord Buddha taught thousands of years ago. All we are doing is applying it in a different area and it works amazingly well.
That's enough for you to work on until next month. Until then, keep your thinking free.
You can contact us with your comments or questions at (032) 514-417 or e-mail me at billgould2002@netscape.net. We can also provide you with e-mail copies of previous installments in case you missed them. Please indicate the word Observer in the subject section of your e-mail.

Super Bowl Party

Noi and Bill the owners down at Long Beach Bed and Breakfast in Phu Noi, hosted a First Animal Super Super Bowl party.
The Canadian gang came down and took over the guesthouse and had a fine time. After a barbeque rib and perogie dinner, serious cribbage was played and the eventual winner was Craig from the U-Turn bar. His winning glee was soon shattered when he realized that kick off was at 6:15 a.m.
All were present at that unaccustomed hour except for one particular lady who shall remain nameless except she is Craig's main squeeze. There was a vicious rumour circulating, that beer was served at that hour, this of course is absolutely untrue. Only Winnipeg red eyes and bloody Marys were in evidence. A fun game was had by all except for Bill who contributed to Bob & Susie's (co owners of Dolphin Bay Resort with Gary and Neapha) retirement fund due to the flaws in the referee's judgment and his visual impairment.
Following a breakfast of beef fillet and eggs, the mob dispersed, some to lick their wounds and others to enjoy the fruits of their wagers. Overall a great time was had by all and all are looking forward to next years duel.

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