The Six Thinking Hats and Writing!
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I was recently having a conversation with a client who is a non-fiction writer, and as we chatted, I began to think about how the six thinking hats can also be a great framework for a writer - especially one who is finding difficulty making progress in their writing project.
There are many things that might be preventing you from progressing with your writing. (And if this is you - take my quiz! I explore some of the tendencies that might be getting in your way, and how you can get past them and get to writing!) For me, I know when I am struggling to make progress, it can sometimes be perfectionistic tendencies that cause me to try to edit as I go, keeping me stuck on a passage or paragraph, or leaving me feeling disappointed with my writing when it doesn’t sound as polished as I imagine it should, and failing to hit publish (and sometimes hit delete!)
What is the six thinking hats framework?
The six thinking hats can be used by individuals or groups for decisionmaking and brainstorming, allowing you to look at a problem in 6 different ways, and explore or consider different perspectives without judgement. It was created by Edward de Bono, a Maltese physician, psychologist and philosopher, and there is also a book by the same name.
I can’t remember where I first heard about the 6 thinking hats, but I loved the idea of taking different approaches to a problem, and using the metaphorical putting on of hats (or doing it literally if you’re into hats) to signify a change of perspective.
How can I use the hats as a writer?
One of the things about a hat is - you can only wear one at a time. (I mean - you can do what you like but for the purpose of this exercise let’s go with one at a time!) And I think that is one of the great things about using this framework. I also think that the best way to describe my take on how you can use this framework in your writing is to go through each hat colour, what it means and how you can take that approach to your writing.
The hats and their colors are represented as follows:
The blue hat
The blue hat is the big picture - where you consider all factors and the important priorities. When in blue hat mode as a writer, you can be thinking about your writing project as a whole, or even larger - you can be thinking about your goals and desires as a writer.
If you are writing a book, you could be thinking about who it’s for, where they are currently and how your book will speak to them in their current situation.
You could consider how you want your book to make them feel, or the transformation it provides. This could be a summary of your proprietary framework that your book is about, or a list of the personal stories you plan to include in your memoir. This could be a writing schedule that sets you up for writing success. Or even bigger picture, you could think about the legacy you want to leave as a writer, and the goals you have - from seeing your book on a bestseller list, to seeing your byline in Forbes, to speaking on a larger stage.
The white hat
The white hat is facts and information. When you are in white hat mode, you can get concrete on what information you already have, and what research you might need to do for your writing project.
Do you need to research 1920s Germany for your novel, to find out what meals people were having?
Do you need to learn about book marketing and building an audience for your business book? Do you want to know about the hero's journey, or take a storytelling course before you work on an epic fiction? White hat is a time to take stock and prepare for your project.
The red hat
The red hat is feelings and emotions. When you are in red hat mode, you can focus on your emotions without judgement, or without needing to justify them.
This might be a great time to get your journal out, and journal about any fears you have around the writing process.
You can also journal out your writing dreams and how you’ll feel when you see your byline out there. There is no need to worry about being rational or logical here - your feelings are yours and so many writers have some fears around sharing their work, or judgement from others, so that last thing you need to do is judge your own feelings. Freewrite or use journal prompts to get your feelings out of your head when you are in this mode.
The green hat
The green hat is new ideas and creativity. I like to have the green hat as the “GO” hat where you get to create - without judgement.
You can put down any ideas that you have, write anything you want, and you are not allowed to edit or criticise yourself.
When you give yourself the space to write freely without editing, you may find that ideas flow that might not otherwise appear. In green hat mode you can try writing in a different style even if you don’t think it will “fit” your project.
Maybe you write a poem or a song about an idea or a topic to push your creativity. Maybe you switch from third person to first person and see how it flows and feels. Or you switch to the voice of another character from your story. Maybe you take a humorous approach to a serious topic. The way I like to use this hat is to set a timer and just write without editing myself for a set period of time. If you have a tendency to edit yourself, maybe start with 5 minutes and then extend it as you get accustomed to the idea of writing freely.
The black hat
The black hat is for negative feedback. This is where you can apply your critique and judgement when wearing this hat.
You can seriously consider what isn’t working - and that could be from your writing schedule, to the writing software you are using.
Or you could edit the work itself, going back to change wording or refine ideas.
Knowing that there is a time and place for your inner editor to do their work can make it easier to slip into the other modes and wear the other hats - particularly the green hat.
Remember that you only wear one hat at a time so you can’t wear this hat when you are wearing any of the other hats. If I could make a few suggestions - when you are wearing the Black hat, set a timer again so that you don’t spend all day picking your piece apart. And always keep a “dump” file or folder, and when you make any cuts, drop them in the dump file instead of deleting them completely.
Words phrases and ideas that don’t make it into your project might be great ideas for a social media post, or might go into another project. Or it could be a prompt or idea for something else entirely. So remember that no writing is wasted - even when you are applying that critical eye to your work.
And lastly only go back over a piece of writing once until you get to the end. You can make forward progress while wearing the green hat, edit that section when you are wearing the black hat, and then put the green hat on again to move onto the next part of the project - the next chapter or blog post, or the next stage of the project.
The yellow hat
The yellow hat is the optimistic hat for positive feedback. This is where you can celebrate your wins, and also give yourself pats on the back for the progress that you have made.
Every bit of writing is progress. Maybe you read a couple of articles for research.
Maybe you mapped out the next section of your book, or brainstormed a bunch of ideas for your launch. Maybe you finished a piece and shared it in your writing group!
Maybe you had a good journaling session or a pep talk from a fellow writer. Learning to celebrate and setting aside time for that is also an important part of the writing process.
And there you have it! As I mentioned before, give yourself time wearing each hat, only wear one hat at a time, and use these different lenses to give you fresh eyes on your writing project, or find a new perspective on your writing.
And if it helps, find a way to tangibly remind yourself which hat you are wearing!
You could actually get different coloured hats and wear them!
Or you could have a post it note that you stick on the corner of the computer, or change the profile of your google chrome browser.
You could have a different music playlist to represent each “hat” or use a different coloured pen or journal if you are writing by hand.
There are endless ways to use the six thinking hats framework as a writer, and I hope that this has given you some ideas.
Happy writing!
And I send you big love from a not so small island.
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