In the past few decades, psychologists and business people alike have discovered that successful problem solvers tend to use the same type of process to identify and implement the solutions to their problems. This process works for any kind of problem, large or small.

The Creative Problem Solving Process uses six major steps to implement solutions to almost any kind of problem. The steps are:

To help you maximize your problem solving process, here are a few types of mental blocks that can interference with your plans. Most blocks to problem-solving fit into the following categories.

EMOTIONS: Emotional blocks can include anything from a fear of risk taking to a tendency to judge or approach the problem with a negative attitude.

DISTRACTIONS: Too much information, irrelevant information, or environmental distractions can prevent a productive brainstorming session.

ASSUMPTIONS: If problem solvers assume there is only one correct solution, they will be unable to generate additional ideas. Assumptions also become mental blocks from stereotypes or perceived boundaries where none exist.

CULTURE: Culture defines the way we live and limits the ideas we may generate or consider. However, not every culture is the same. Sometimes the cultural blocks are unnecessary, and sometimes we do not consider cultural limitations when we should.

COMMUNICATION DIFFICULTIES: If we cannot communicate our ideas in some way – speaking, writing, or pictures – these communication difficulties can block our progress in generating ideas.