Thinkertoys: A Handbook of Creative-Thinking Techniques (2nd Edition)
Written by: Michael Michalko
Editorial Reviews:
THINKERTOYS will teach you how to generate new ideas for businesses, markets, sales techniques, and products and product extensions. Packed with fun and practical tools and exercises, it outlines 30 practical linear and intuitive techniques that can be used by individuals or groups to tackle and solve business problems in fresh, creative ways.
Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating:
Summary: I like it
Comment: I was taking a class at University named "Creative Thinking"; and I started to like the subject, so I decided to find a related book at Amazon.com
This book was one of best rated, so I ordered one. I have been reading it for a couple of days and until now all ideas are easy to understand and they encourage you to be creative and not think in the box.
This book is great for people who would like to open their minds.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Highest Recommendation
Comment: i just got this a few days ago and my first impressions, without actually trying any of the techniques, were that it wasn't looking very practical. but the author cautions not to just go through each technique (among dozens) in the order presented but to try a couple that look like they might interest you most and play around with them and then go on from there.
so after scanning awhile i saw what is supposedly salvadore dali's image generation method. yeah right, i thought. well, that worked the first time i tried it. and i sketched it out and it didn't look like a dali, but it was the most imaginative sketch i've ever come up with. it was a man riding through the air on a hobby horse above a pavilion tent. and he was thinking about how glad he was that he didn't crash into the tent. i added more adults in the air playing with childrens' toys (jump rope, pogo stick, tricycle etc.) and the children down outside the pavillion wanting their toys back. beats going out to the park and 'copying' as van gogh called it.
so next i took those words associated with the image and i plugged them into a technique that looked to me like one of the most impractical in the book. and i got an idea that i've been looking for. that idea rendered a cool poem. most of the examples in the book look to be "business/career challenge" oriented but at least some of these techniques will also inspire raw creativity. be creative about using the toys.
take it from a skeptic. this stuff rocks. but you have to actually use it, not just read about it. i'm so thrilled that i have this book. YAY!
Customer Rating:
Summary: An Essential Guide for Creative Thinking
Comment: This book, together with my treasured Roger von Oech books, sit prominently on my bookshelf when working on a variety of problems - software development, film production, creative writing for scripts or novels, and developing opportunities in this mediacentric age. These books break open your mind from the restrictive fences imposed on our thinking by the conventional world that we are surrounded by. These fences need to be torn down. If you are an older person (probably older than 30!), then your thinking will become ossified. Just like using your muscles, you need to rework your brain and your thinking with effort to create opportunities and connections to emerging technologies and new developments.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Good breadth, insufficient depth
Comment: As a consultant, I am regularly engaged in combined sessions with clients. This book gives an excellent overview of the tools and techniques to use, but is more broad than deep. For me, it works fine. For someone who wants to do very specific creative activities, it doesn't give enough examples and practical application.
Customer Rating:
Summary: The Best "Toys"
Comment: I have about 400 books in my library and Thinkertoys (with Thinkpak) is the best book I've read so far. The book is full with creative tools and puzzles to play with. The book comes to me at the right time since I am about to start my own business and the book provides a lot of insight, ideas and techniques. Thank you Mr. Michalko for creating the "toys".
Dewey Decimal Number: 650.019
EAN: 9781580087735
ISBN: 1580087736
Label: Ten Speed Press
Manufacturer: Ten Speed Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 394
Publication Date: 2006-05-15
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Studio: Ten Speed Press
 | Format: Paperback List Price: $19.95 Our Price: $13.57 Your Save: $ 6.38 ( 32% ) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Average Customer Rating: |
Editorial Reviews:
THINKERTOYS will teach you how to generate new ideas for businesses, markets, sales techniques, and products and product extensions. Packed with fun and practical tools and exercises, it outlines 30 practical linear and intuitive techniques that can be used by individuals or groups to tackle and solve business problems in fresh, creative ways.
An updated edition of the best-selling business creativity book, with more than 30 brainstorming techniques and hundreds of creative-thinking tips and tricks. Revision includes new techniques, examples, and sections on group brainstorming and endgames.
If you like "Thinkertoys: A Handbook of Creative-Thinking Techniques (2nd Edition), you might also like ...
Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating:
Summary: I like it
Comment: I was taking a class at University named "Creative Thinking"; and I started to like the subject, so I decided to find a related book at Amazon.com
This book was one of best rated, so I ordered one. I have been reading it for a couple of days and until now all ideas are easy to understand and they encourage you to be creative and not think in the box.
This book is great for people who would like to open their minds.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Highest Recommendation
Comment: i just got this a few days ago and my first impressions, without actually trying any of the techniques, were that it wasn't looking very practical. but the author cautions not to just go through each technique (among dozens) in the order presented but to try a couple that look like they might interest you most and play around with them and then go on from there.
so after scanning awhile i saw what is supposedly salvadore dali's image generation method. yeah right, i thought. well, that worked the first time i tried it. and i sketched it out and it didn't look like a dali, but it was the most imaginative sketch i've ever come up with. it was a man riding through the air on a hobby horse above a pavilion tent. and he was thinking about how glad he was that he didn't crash into the tent. i added more adults in the air playing with childrens' toys (jump rope, pogo stick, tricycle etc.) and the children down outside the pavillion wanting their toys back. beats going out to the park and 'copying' as van gogh called it.
so next i took those words associated with the image and i plugged them into a technique that looked to me like one of the most impractical in the book. and i got an idea that i've been looking for. that idea rendered a cool poem. most of the examples in the book look to be "business/career challenge" oriented but at least some of these techniques will also inspire raw creativity. be creative about using the toys.
take it from a skeptic. this stuff rocks. but you have to actually use it, not just read about it. i'm so thrilled that i have this book. YAY!
Customer Rating:
Summary: An Essential Guide for Creative Thinking
Comment: This book, together with my treasured Roger von Oech books, sit prominently on my bookshelf when working on a variety of problems - software development, film production, creative writing for scripts or novels, and developing opportunities in this mediacentric age. These books break open your mind from the restrictive fences imposed on our thinking by the conventional world that we are surrounded by. These fences need to be torn down. If you are an older person (probably older than 30!), then your thinking will become ossified. Just like using your muscles, you need to rework your brain and your thinking with effort to create opportunities and connections to emerging technologies and new developments.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Good breadth, insufficient depth
Comment: As a consultant, I am regularly engaged in combined sessions with clients. This book gives an excellent overview of the tools and techniques to use, but is more broad than deep. For me, it works fine. For someone who wants to do very specific creative activities, it doesn't give enough examples and practical application.
Customer Rating:
Summary: The Best "Toys"
Comment: I have about 400 books in my library and Thinkertoys (with Thinkpak) is the best book I've read so far. The book is full with creative tools and puzzles to play with. The book comes to me at the right time since I am about to start my own business and the book provides a lot of insight, ideas and techniques. Thank you Mr. Michalko for creating the "toys".
Technical Details
Binding: PaperbackDewey Decimal Number: 650.019
EAN: 9781580087735
ISBN: 1580087736
Label: Ten Speed Press
Manufacturer: Ten Speed Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 394
Publication Date: 2006-05-15
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Studio: Ten Speed Press
