- Topics: [[Creativity]], [[Problem-solving]] --- **Think of four things – then pick the forth one.** ## Source - "Think of four things – then pick the forth one. The first 3 are what people always think of first." – a problem solving technique from [[Heather Jones]]. - "The first few ideas you come up with are going to be the same things the reader thinks of, and will be the lowest-hanging fruit" – [[Heather Jones]] ## Summary - A creative problem solving technique that explores [[Breadth]]. - The purpose is to ==discover the boundaries of one's imagination==. ## Notes - "Picking the fourth" is a creative problem solving technique that Heather shared with me. - It reminds me of the [[5 whys]] – an iterative interrogative technique used to discover the root cause of a problem. It's similar because it is an exercise that forces you to think deeper about something, beyond the initial impression or idea. Unlike the 5 whys, which focuses on deconstruction ([[Depth]]), picking the fourth attempts to explore alternative paths on the same plane ([[Breadth]]). - In other words... - The purpose of the "5 whys" is to ==discover the depths of one's understanding or intent==. - The purpose of "picking the fourth" is to ==discover the boundaries of one's imagination==. ## See also - [[5 whys]]