He Vertical thinking Is a very linear and selective method of thinking. Each step is precise, necessary and must be correct. Most of the time, vertical thinking must also follow a very straight and defined path; There is usually no way to get away from the thought process, nor should you skip steps. Vertical solutions are based on existing ideas or knowledge: solutions that others have carried out and with which they have succeeded.
Many psychologists claim that vertical thinking is the opposite of lateral thinking, which may include wrong answers, various ways of doing things, and jumping from one step to the other at random. Neither method is correct or wrong, since there is always room for both and both can be useful.
Vertical thinking is sequential
Methods of vertical thinking are essentially sequential in nature. You have to proceed step by step along a path. You can go from one step to another in a cluttered manner and then fill the gap or allow the stitches to join in a pattern. You can jump straight to the conclusion and then reason the path that led you there.
With lateral thinking, the validity of the conclusion can never be justified by the method that has been used to reach it. However, once the solution is reached, it will surely validate itself. When you reach a conclusion or a valid result, it does not matter much the way you have followed: if you have been following the steps in your order or other alternative ways.
Sometimes you have to be at the top of the mountain to know the best way to climb. Vertical thinking rises up the slopes of the mountain, usually from an obvious but tedious approach. The lateral thinking takes a helicopter to the top and then looks around to know the best way to climb.
Errors in vertical and lateral thinking
Vertical thinking and, without a doubt, the whole educational system are based on the principle that one should not err. The essence of logic is that one can not proceed through a step that is not justified.
The fear of making mistakes is the biggest barrier we can have when learning new ideas and methods. A step in a sequence may seem wrong when viewed from the present context but, once the step is carried out, the context changes and may then look like something successful.
Even a step that still seems wrong can help produce ideas or perspectives that lead to a solution that would otherwise not be achieved. Sometimes it may be necessary to cross an erroneous area because only after that you can see the correct route. Then, the wrong area is not included in the final path.
Lateral thinking and vertical thinking can be compared to building a bridge. The separate parts are surely not held until the structure is completed. Once you break the barrier of being afraid of making mistakes, you begin to have access to all kinds of thoughts and ideas that would otherwise have been rejected too soon.
Some of these thoughts will change from being ridiculous at first to being considered useful. Others will continue to be considered ridiculous but they can form the basis for creating other useful ideas. People usually try to avoid making mistakes about actions, but there is no reason to try to do everything right when we think.
The only time we need to make mistakes is when we reach conclusions and even then we must be prepared to accept that it is possible that we are wrong.
How is the method of vertical thinking and who uses it?
Most methods of vertical thinking are very useful in areas such as mathematics and science. These matters imply objective and very precise truths that can not be changed. For example, someone who is trying to solve the mathematical operation (21 + 3 - 2 + 10 - 1) must think vertically, since these operations require the use of a few steps in a specific order.
If you try to solve this problem in the wrong order, the answer will be wrong. Instead, the individual must add and subtract the numbers in the correct order to get the answer of 31.
The same is also true for scientific areas, since scientific concepts such as chemicals, time patterns and body systems must fit in a certain way to function or be understood properly.
There are many musicians who also use this way of thinking. Vertical thinking is often necessary for someone trying to compose a piece of music, especially when there are several voices and instruments involved. A person who thinks in vertical usually imagines how the different instruments would sound together.
This is not to say that a person who thinks side-by-side can not do this simply means that, thinking vertically, this task can be done more quickly and easily. On the contrary, many lyricists are lateral thinkers because their creative and provocative methods help them compose a more interesting poetry.
Vertical thinking vs. Lateral thinking
Lateral thinking is often seen as the opposite of vertical thinking. People who think side-by-side more often have more difficulty focusing on tasks that require steps whose order can not be altered, but also often produce interesting solutions to thorny problems.
For example, a lateral thinker who does not find something that he is looking for in his house probably will use for the same purpose something that resembles that object or fulfills a similar function, whereas a vertical thinker, if he does not find the object, will To ask one of the neighbor or go out to buy another one the same. Neither situation is wrong; They are simply different. Both methods can produce a satisfactory result.
You can not make a hole in a different place simply by digging deeper into the same hole. Vertical thinking is responsible for digging deeper into the same hole. The lateral thinking is in charge of digging the same hole elsewhere. The goal of both types of thinking is effectiveness.
Sometimes it is better to use vertical thinking combined with lateral thinking. For example, when assembling a shelf that comes in parts, the person who thinks in vertical understands how to put the pieces together precisely following the steps.
Imagine that the shelf does not fit well when all the pieces have been put. This person would probably consider buying a new shelf. The person thinking side-by-side may try to assemble the pieces in another way, in another order, skip the steps, adding a small piece... In other words, working together, they can discover different ways of achieving the same result.
Vertical thinking has a logical approach
The methods of vertical thinking are logical and their effectiveness is demonstrated: the results are the desired ones. However, with lateral thinking, this approach is different: it seeks to approach a problem through methods that are not logical.
This does not mean that people who think side-by-side make illogical decisions; Combine reasoning and imagination to arrive at the most appropriate solution. They use both critical and creative thinking skills to achieve the desired result. However, they do not have to think that the solution to which they arrive is the only possible, which they will always use thereafter; Always consider other possibilities.
Education, lateral thinking and creativity
Education has always focused exclusively on vertical thinking and continues to do so today. In most subjects, techniques that require vertical thinking methods are taught. For example, in mathematics, a sequence of steps whose order can not be altered is always required to solve a problem or equation. In language, to do a syntactic analysis, steps are also followed.
Lateral thinking deals with the creation of new ideas, while, as we have explained before, vertical thinking is responsible for the development and use of the same ideas. Education only teaches methods of vertical thinking because lateral thinking has always seemed impossible to teach, due to its non-methodical and freer nature.
It has been assumed that nothing can be done about generating new ideas other than waiting for them to emerge, and then they could be developed with vertical thinking. As a result of this attitude, the ability to think vertically tends to develop to a fairly useful level, while lateral thinking skills remain poor.
With the advent of computer technology, which will eventually take full charge of the vertical thinking functions of the human mind, there has been an increasing emphasis on lateral thinking and the more creative aspects of the mind.
In addition, the growing need for more ideas and the benefits of innovation, both in products and methods, have focused attention on creative skills. As a result of this, the creativity It has become fashionable and no longer conforms a heresy to assume that we can do things deliberately to encourage others to be creative. Maybe it does not take much more than enriching the environment in which creative activities can occur.
Because of all the attention you are being given, creativity is in danger of becoming a word of doubtful acknowledgment. Increased interest in creativity has given rise to a wide variety of theories, most of which are descriptive and based on empirical observations.
Many of these theories contain useful ideas, some of which are lined with confusing and unnecessarily complex concepts that betray the empirical nature of theories. The concept of creativity is beginning to be dubious because the emphasis has changed too much from the original attitude and definition.
conclusion
In real-world problem-solving situations, a combination of both approaches usually produces the best results. Due to its rigid and structured nature, vertical thinking tends not to include novelty in its methods, which is essential, for example, to find and apply innovative processes in business management.
It does not provide many opportunities to experience and deviate from the established course. However, vertical thinking helps to use details at every step of the process. On the other hand, lateral thinking could take more time when we want to solve a problem, since it involves making mistakes and learning from mistakes. When dealing with a problem, it is best to use both vertical and lateral methods, as they complement each other and can help to find the best solution.
Even when you are 100% sure that vertical thinking can help you solve a problem, keep in mind that you are closing the door to other solutions. It is always convenient to have more alternatives to a problem, so that you can choose the best and find the most appropriate solution.