What is divergent thinking? You’ve likely heard the phrase: “Think outside the box.” But what does that actually look like at work—and how can you train yourself or your team to do it, consistently?

Today we get into the practice of divergent thinking: how to intentionally generate a variety of ideas to solve problems creatively and effectively.

Divergent thinking is a creative problem-solving process where you deliberately generate multiple solutions—often from different perspectives, without judging ideas too quickly.

You’ve probably used it before without realizing: in a brainstorm, when you jotted down every wild idea, or when you had to improvise under pressure.

Let's dive in!