p.3 This book will teach you to create solutions to your toughest, even impossible, problems.
You will learn the techniques implicit in the solutions of history's greatest problem solver, Albert Einstein... Tough
problems of all kinds can be resolved because one universal principle is at the core of learning to think like a genius: you've
got to break the rules.
p.4 "Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ from the prejudices
of their social environment. Most people are even incapable of forming such opinions." - Albert Einstein
p.5 The real obstacle when we are faced with an impossible problem is inside us. It is
our experiences, mistaken assumptions, half-truths, misplaced generalities, and habits that keep us from brilliant solutions.
The great new ideas, the vital solutions exist. They are just outside of the prevailing thought. Otherwise
someone would have found them already. You must break the rules to solve impossible problems.
p.6 People willing to break the rules solve impossible problems. They are usually newcomers to the
field, without the baggage of years of precedent.
p.10 Thinking like Einstein works because the biggest obstacles to solving tough problems are in
our heads. Breaking rules is hard. This is why there are so many smart people but so few Einsteins.
p.16 Einstein acquired the knowledge of his day without becoming its slavish acolyte. It was a tremendous
advantage... Einstein did much of his best thinking when he was completely isolated from the rest of the scientific
community. While he worked at the patent office, no one directed his physics research. There was
no tenure committee to intimidate him. No department head reigned in his wild ideas. He didn't attend conventions
to learn what everyone else was thinking. Einstein was free to create great solutions. And he did.
p.17 Novices are the best rule breakers. It is easier to break a rule that one has just learned.
p.27, 28 A problem statement focuses your mind. Just as the focused beam of a laser can
slice through metal, your mind can slice through the toughest problems if it is focused. Your problem statement is
that focus... Begin with a brief problem statement. Condense it to a few nouns and verbs that are essential to the
problem. Use twenty-five words or less... After describing the problem, briefly record why it must
be solved. Problems with compelling needs get solved. If you don't need to solve it, it really isn't a problem. Finally,
record a next step for each problem
p.29 "Perfection of means and confusion of ends seem to characterize our age." - Albert Einstein
p.29 No problem is impossible to solve, although some tasks may be impossible to do.
p.33 Einstein rarely let established ideas limit his freedom to consider new solutions.
He even ignored his own theories. If you are to solve your impossible problem, you must ignore your limitations too.
Forget that there isn't enough time or money. There never is. Forget about egos, attitudes, or tradition.
You can't solve a problem if you let these obstacles get in the way.
The next step in creating an enabling problem statement is to identify the limitations and
ignore them.
p.34 "Mere precedent is a dangerous source of authority." - Andrew Jackson
p.35 Many people are reluctant to simplify a problem because it seems like cheating. It is.
You are trying to break the rules that are making your problem impossible, and simplifying the problem is an important
step.
p.47 People worry about creating stupid ideas, so they develop concepts using old thinking that
hasn't worked, but sounds sensible. This is a good way to avoid ridicule, but a bad way to solve problems. To create
a brilliant solution, you need new ideas. And most will sound absolutely stupid.
p.59 A seed idea alone will not give you a solution. It is only a starting place for creating
useful ideas. It is a different thought, not a better thought. But as you explore the idea, play with it
and find out what is interesting or insightful about it. The seed idea frees your natural brilliance to create a solution.
This is idea synthesis.... Idea synthesis expands a thought into ideas that may be solutions.
p.60-67 I use six techniques to synthesize a good idea out of a seed idea... Humor...
Any attempt at thinking about a problem in a radically new way demands a good sense of humor... Visualize...
Make a picture of the problem you are trying to solve, or even better, three pictures. Problems are best
viewed from multiple angles.... Characteristics... Every seed idea has characteristics that can lead you
to scores of new ideas... Break your seed idea down into its components... Applications... Try using the
seed idea as the solution... Force the seed to be part of the answer... This gives you new ideas and perspectives
that can evolve into a solution... Metaphors... Metaphors link concepts that otherwise are dissimilar. We
can use these linkages to create new patterns of thinking by linking one idea to another, and yet another until a new concept
is formed... Combinations... Try combining your seed idea with other concepts.
p.65 "Without this playing with fantasy no creative work has ever yet come to birth. The debt we
owe to the play of the imagination is incalculable." - Carl Jung
p.73 "We need to hear some wilder ideas about this problem." - Robert Oppenheimer...
"The absurd is only too necessary on earth. The world stands on absurdities." - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
p.96 "One tries to make the plans fit the circumstances." - George Patton
p.120 How would you flagrantly break your rule? Don't worry about being clever or cunning. Just
break the rule.
p.131 You've got to break the rules to solve tough problems. Be bold. Be creative. Be unconventional.
Create solutions that assume you can break the rules.
