58 Good thinking in action

You can also use scenarios as a Magnetizers: remember back to Pr. Cialdini and Pre-suasion?¹ if you know that someone has an alternate view you can use your knowledge of the alternate view to mention that view.

With your carefully prepared comparison of your view based on your good reasoning, structure and framing, you can give the main points of the alternate view. You use cognitive language to tell the alternate side of the argument. Then using your understanding of the power of emotion and your Why, What, How principles you shift the focus to your argument. You keep your audience and your key stakeholders magnetised to your argument. You apply the Association mechanism by using powerful imagery and perhaps some mystery.

You are practising the art of good thinking!!

When you create your scenario story, you focus on the key variables and you create alternative or contingencies that include unfavourable and favourable futures.

Now it is time to practice building a scenario. Of course, there is a huge body of practice and literature about the whole art and science of scenario building, planning, and thinking.

In the Art of Good Thinking we want you to use the process to enhance your reasoning and logic and to be able to build cohesive and well-structured arguments based on critical and creative thinking.

You have been asked to assess the options for a new express way linking two outer suburbs of a large Australian city. The express way will have eight lanes, four lanes each way. The two main variables are price and access. Access relates to whether or not some lanes will be for high occupancy vehicles only which have been designated as ‘restricted access’ lanes.

You have been asked to consider two options for each variable. Here are the decision points for variable:

We have also created a short video to help with this exercise:

Here is a visual representation of the scenario options. This is the framework for your scenario:

Once we have our variables that set the overall scene we have to start on the stories within the framework. We know that we will have four overall stories that form the foundation of our scenario:

Next, we might create an emotive name or title for each of the quadrants, or story cells, of our scenario template:

Now you would build your stories to provide richness for each of the decision quadrants. You would use your research from your General Steps process and anchored by the emotive name of each of the story cells.

After your extensive research you might have built a solid argument for each of the four story cells. However, you might also have decided that you would be recommending Option B, restricted access so that some lanes will only be for high occupancy vehicles, and there would be no toll.

Your audience members are spread over each of the four story cells.

You need to create four stories to communicate the nature of each of the options and then also prepare an argument to support each of the story cells.