EDWARD DE BONO'S MESSAGE
5th January 1997

North American psychology is obsessed with 'what is'. There are all sorts of questionnaires and measuring instruments to place people into categories, quadrants, boxes etc. etc. He is intuitive. She is judgmental. He is innovative. She is adaptive.

Once you set up a discriminating questionnaire you can define it ever more precisely. That is the attraction for psychologists: measure and precision.

Can a fat man ride a bicycle?

If we run a race between a fat man and a thinner man it is probable that the thinner man will win. The race is a test of 'what is'. If we now provide the fat man with a bicycle then the picture changes. While the fat man is learning to ride the bicycle, the fat man will do even worse than before. But when the fat man has learned to ride the bicyclethen he will go further and faster than the thinner man on foot.

This is the difference between 'what is' and 'what can be'.

I have been far more interested in 'what can be' than in 'what is'. I have been more interested in devising thinking 'tools' that can be learnt and used rather than in measuring natural abilities.

Tools such as the Six Hats and the deliberate tools of lateral thinking can be learned and used. They can show five-fold increases in thinking productivity.

That is far more exciting to me than measuring relatively small differences in 'what is'.

Mathematics is a designed system with which we achieve great effects. It is not a matter of measuring natural mathematical ability.

Having said that I am not much in favour of categories let me suggest some (tongue in cheek) categories for Internet users. Here they are:

FUNNELHEADS: These are information addicts. They browse on information just as a cow browses on grass. The information is funneled into their heads. They know a lot. If a situation arises which needs such knowledge they can respond. The thinking skill aspect may be low and may be neglected. There is the belief that knowledge is enough.

TITTYHEADS: These are people who want to be entertained and tittilated. At every moment there is a passive anticipation that something out there should be exciting and interesting. Such people need stimulation because what is otherwise going on in their heads may not be particularly interesting. They may be victims of the culture of passive entertainment.

ED-HEADS: This was a term invented in Indianapolis (possibly by Wes Anderson) to describe those interested in my work because they were interested in constructive and creative thinking as a skill. A skill that could be developed, used and enjoyed. These are the people I want to join the Edward de Bono Creative Team_TM. These are the active heads as distinct from the passive heads of the other two categories.

THE TEAM

People are continuing to join the Team. Their submissions to the problem 'What is wrong with Democracy?' is very encouraging. I only want people who are creative and strongly motivated. One of the prime reasons for setting a subscription and also setting different levels, was to discourage those who are not sufficiently motivated. The lowest level of subscription is so low that anyone can afford to join - if they have the motivation.

Commercial problems will only be circulated to those who are registered team members. From time to time other problems may be made available to anyone.

The problem to consider the faults in the system known as 'democracy' closed on 1st January. Very soon the task will be set to tackle these faults and suggest ways of overcoming them.

HUMOUR

In the next message I shall consider humour which is the most significant behaviour of the human brain - because it indicates a self-organising system. How is humour generated? Is it possible to make jokes, on demand?

Edward de Bono