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The Leader's Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills: Unlock the Creativity and Innovation in You and Your Team
Lateral thinking can help you transform your ability to generate ideas, unlock the creative potential of your team and make your organization more innovative. With a lively, energetic and practical approach, The Leader's Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills will teach you dynamic, up-to-date techniques to unleash the creative energies of your people and show you how to put the techniques to work immediately. Lateral thinking can turn your organization around and make you a better leader.
In The Leader's Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills, highly acclaimed author, trainer and presenter Paul Sloane demonstrates how the lateral leader develops the vision, culture and processes that transform a regular business into an innovation hothouse. This book is packed with real-life examples, practical methods and lateral thinking exercises that you can put to work today.
206 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2003
About the author
Paul Sloane
80 books48 followersPaul Sloane read Engineering at Trinity Hall Cambridge. He came top of Sales School at IBM, became MD of Ashton-Tate UK, VP International for MathSoft and CEO of Monactive. He now writes, speaks and gives workshops on lateral thinking in business, creativity, innovation and leadership. He is married and lives in Camberley in Surrey. He has three grown-up daughters. He is a keen chess and tennis player and he plays keyboards in a rock band, the Fat Cats. He has written a series of lateral thinking puzzle books, many co-authored with Des MacHale, published by Sterling Publishing. They have sold over 2 million copies and been translated into many languages. He has also written two management books, published by Kogan Page, and many articles for blogs and websites. He manages the Lateral Puzzles Forum where puzzlers can set and solve lateral puzzles.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 14, 2026
Takeaways from reading the book:
Define the purpose
Page 23: Stewart Butterfield, creator of Flickr and Slack: "You need to have clarity of purpose which can be communicated to other people."
Analyze the problem
- Pages 50: Five Whys method. Keep asking why until you understand reasons for the problem.
- Page 78: Fishbone analysis: Write down on the main bones the main causes of the problem. On the bones of each main bone, write down causes of a cause.
- Page 82: Lotus blossom method: Alternative to fishbone method. Write each main cause of a problem in the center of each flower. In small blossoms around the center of each main cause, write causes of the cause.
Focus on opportunities instead of problems
Page 125: To strengthen innovative thinking in meetings, focus on opportunities instead of problems.
Ask questions
- Page 45: Are we in the business of selling pens or gifts?
- Page 45: Why do we do this? What is the purpose?
- Page 45: How do we make this happen?
- Page 46: What has been astonishing for you in the first two weeks that you have worked for this company?
- Page 46: Ask the question that Andy Grove and Gordon Moore at Intel ask, "If we were kicked out and the board brought in a new CEO, what do you think that he or she would do?"
- Page 48: Why do we do it this way?
- Page 49: How do we become even better?
- Page 49: How can we cut our inventories in half?
- Page 50: How do we cut our costs by 25%?
- Page 133: Ask questions to customers to find out what they need.
- Page 134: Ask employees.
- Page 89: When something unexpected happens, get curious. Find out why it happened. It can maybe open up to opportunities. This was how Sir Alexander Flemming discovered penicillin. He noticed that a mould had been growing in a dish, and that the mould had rejected bacteria.
Observe
Page 133: Watch what customers do to find out what they need.
Copy
Page 133: Copy ideas of others.
Combine
- Page 7: A church combines prayer meetings with aerobic exercises classes.
- Page 61: Combine two ideas. Example 1: Creating the printing press around 1450, Johannes Gutenberg combined the flexibility of coin punch with the power of a wine press. Example 2: U2 did a concert with Pavarotti - combining two different musical genres.
- Page 133: Combining a suitcase and wheels created more value for customers.
Eliminate
Page 133: To innovate, try eliminating. Example 1: Telephones eliminated the cord. Example 2: IKEA eliminated the assembly stage from production phase and shifted it to the customer. Example 3: Dacia eliminated non-essential features such as infotainment.
Adopt, adapt, improve
- Page 66: Adopt, adapt, improve. Example 1: A person adapted the ballpoint pen to create the roll-on deodorant. Example 2: Ballet dancers practice in front of mirrors. What if we adopted this practice in other areas as well to give us continuous feedback?
- Page 135: Adapt a product to new use. Example: Frisbees used to be round, stamped‑metal containers used to bake and sell pies by the Frisbie Baking Company in Connecticut, USA. Students and workers would eat the pie, then throw the empty tins for fun across lawns, parking lots, and beaches. Entrepreneur Walter Frederick Morrison observed this behaviour, then designed purpose‑built plastic discs that flew better than the original pie tins.
Use social media
Page 135: Many early adopters use social media and may help with ideas.
Invite users to participate
- Page 8: In the 1920's Michael Cullen created the first supermarket in New Jersey, USA by introducing self-service. He asked what would happen if customers find products themselves in the supermarket and pay at the end. Earlier, shop employees had served customers.
- Page 134: Use open innovation. Example: With an open innovation intermediary, Nivea created the "invisible for black & white" deodorant that reduces stains on clothes. Success factors: Listening to needs of users and involving them in research & development rather than just marketing.
Develop a new product that replaces an old product
Page 5: When Gillette launches a new product, they are already working on a new product to replace it. Intel also works like this.
Keep trying
- Page 85: WD-40 is a widely used oil. Chemists tried 40 formulas before the product turned into a success.
- Page 85: The game "Angry Birds" has been a large success for the Finnish game developers, Rovio Entertainment. They developed 51 games before the big success, Angry Birds, came.
- Page 99: As James Dyson worked on creating a new type of vacuum cleaner, he built more than 5,000 prototypes.
Invite the person with a good idea to lead an innovation initiative
Page 110: At Google, good ideas, which people suggested on the Internet, are discussed in Friday meetings. Usually, the person, who came up with an idea, is put in charge of turning the idea into reality.
Develop ideas
Page 83: Through the Toyota suggestion scheme, people create more than 2 million ideas every year. Over 90% of the suggestions are implemented.
Use creative thinking methods
- Page 56: Mind mapping. Write a central topic in the middle. Add branches.
- Page 58: Put yourself in the shoes of the customer.
- Page 58: Do the opposite. Example: What if a preacher turned Sunday sermons into interactive events?
- Page 69: Break the rules method. Example 1: One of the rules of soccer is that you cannot touch the ball with your hands. It was the deliberate breaking of this rule that created the game of rugby. Example 2: An old rule in mining is that data about exploration and reserves is not openly shared due to fear of hostile takeovers. Rob McEwen broke this rule by making all information about the Red Lake mine openly available on his website and offering prizes for people who predicted the best places to drill for gold. Soon, scientists and geologists solved the challenge. As a result, the mine produced 10 times the gold it had previously produced at much lower cost.
- Page 82: Cogitate method. Let the cause of a problem or an idea sit in your mind for some days while doing something else.
- Page 134: Do brainstorms.
Select good ideas
Page 91: Tesco uses this method to select good ideas: Is the idea better for customers, simpler for staff, and cheaper for Tesco?
Testing methods
- Page 99: Creating a prototype helps people to see, touch and feel the idea. That opens up for comments that can help improve the idea.
- Page 100. Working on understanding and defining the structure of DNA, nobel prize winners Francis Crick and James Watson built models that helped them visualize the double helix structure.
- Page 103: Encourage people to share what they learned from experiences they had which were not successful in the first try. Example 1: Founder of Honda, Soichiro Honda: Success represents that 1% of your work that results from the 99% that is called failure. Example 2: 3M invented a glue that did not stick. This experience later turned into a large success, the Post-it note.
- Page 113: Get feedback from users and other external people to learn about needs. Example: SBB Kundenstimme.
Measure innovation
- Page 123: How many products or services did you bring to market last year?
- Page 123: What proportion of total sales comes from products or services launched in the last two years? The average number for companies across the EU is 20%.
Other research from the book
- Page 2: Lateral thinking means approaching business challenges from new directions in order to see better solutions.
- Page 5: Peter Drucker: Every organization has to prepare for the abandonment of everything it does.
- Page 5: Gary Hamel: Most organizations know how to get better but do not know how to get different.
- Page 7: Swatch created a different approach to watch design: Low-cost, high-tech, artistic and emotional.
- Page 11: Lateral leaders focus on creativity and innovation of a team.
- Page 15: Peter Drucker: The temptation in business is always to feed yesterday and to starve tomorrow.
- Page 19: Although efficiency improvements are important, innovation is more important. Think, for example, of how the car replaced horse-drawn carriages or how the computer replaced the typewriter.
- Page 27: Creative people think they are creative. Less creative people do not think they are creative.
- Page 32: Creativity decreases under time pressure.
- Page 40: Find out what experts advise and try doing the opposite.
- Page 53: In developing the assembly line, Henry Ford asked, "What would happen if instead of workers moving to cars, cars moved to workers?" This enabled the mass production of cars at a much lower costs.
- Page 121: Peter Drucker: Innovative efforts should not report to line managers that have responsibility for ongoing operations. The new project is an infant, and infants belong in the nursery. Executives in charge of existing businesses will have neither the time nor understanding for the infant project.
- Page 123: If you want more innovation, you do not want a team of lookalikes who think alike. You want a mix of skills, experiences, backgrounds, and attitudes.
- Page 130: People, who work on an innovation initiative, should be given stock options linked to the longer term success of their project.
To be updated.
Define the purpose
Page 23: Stewart Butterfield, creator of Flickr and Slack: "You need to have clarity of purpose which can be communicated to other people."
Analyze the problem
- Pages 50: Five Whys method. Keep asking why until you understand reasons for the problem.
- Page 78: Fishbone analysis: Write down on the main bones the main causes of the problem. On the bones of each main bone, write down causes of a cause.
- Page 82: Lotus blossom method: Alternative to fishbone method. Write each main cause of a problem in the center of each flower. In small blossoms around the center of each main cause, write causes of the cause.
Focus on opportunities instead of problems
Page 125: To strengthen innovative thinking in meetings, focus on opportunities instead of problems.
Ask questions
- Page 45: Are we in the business of selling pens or gifts?
- Page 45: Why do we do this? What is the purpose?
- Page 45: How do we make this happen?
- Page 46: What has been astonishing for you in the first two weeks that you have worked for this company?
- Page 46: Ask the question that Andy Grove and Gordon Moore at Intel ask, "If we were kicked out and the board brought in a new CEO, what do you think that he or she would do?"
- Page 48: Why do we do it this way?
- Page 49: How do we become even better?
- Page 49: How can we cut our inventories in half?
- Page 50: How do we cut our costs by 25%?
- Page 133: Ask questions to customers to find out what they need.
- Page 134: Ask employees.
- Page 89: When something unexpected happens, get curious. Find out why it happened. It can maybe open up to opportunities. This was how Sir Alexander Flemming discovered penicillin. He noticed that a mould had been growing in a dish, and that the mould had rejected bacteria.
Observe
Page 133: Watch what customers do to find out what they need.
Copy
Page 133: Copy ideas of others.
Combine
- Page 7: A church combines prayer meetings with aerobic exercises classes.
- Page 61: Combine two ideas. Example 1: Creating the printing press around 1450, Johannes Gutenberg combined the flexibility of coin punch with the power of a wine press. Example 2: U2 did a concert with Pavarotti - combining two different musical genres.
- Page 133: Combining a suitcase and wheels created more value for customers.
Eliminate
Page 133: To innovate, try eliminating. Example 1: Telephones eliminated the cord. Example 2: IKEA eliminated the assembly stage from production phase and shifted it to the customer. Example 3: Dacia eliminated non-essential features such as infotainment.
Adopt, adapt, improve
- Page 66: Adopt, adapt, improve. Example 1: A person adapted the ballpoint pen to create the roll-on deodorant. Example 2: Ballet dancers practice in front of mirrors. What if we adopted this practice in other areas as well to give us continuous feedback?
- Page 135: Adapt a product to new use. Example: Frisbees used to be round, stamped‑metal containers used to bake and sell pies by the Frisbie Baking Company in Connecticut, USA. Students and workers would eat the pie, then throw the empty tins for fun across lawns, parking lots, and beaches. Entrepreneur Walter Frederick Morrison observed this behaviour, then designed purpose‑built plastic discs that flew better than the original pie tins.
Use social media
Page 135: Many early adopters use social media and may help with ideas.
Invite users to participate
- Page 8: In the 1920's Michael Cullen created the first supermarket in New Jersey, USA by introducing self-service. He asked what would happen if customers find products themselves in the supermarket and pay at the end. Earlier, shop employees had served customers.
- Page 134: Use open innovation. Example: With an open innovation intermediary, Nivea created the "invisible for black & white" deodorant that reduces stains on clothes. Success factors: Listening to needs of users and involving them in research & development rather than just marketing.
Develop a new product that replaces an old product
Page 5: When Gillette launches a new product, they are already working on a new product to replace it. Intel also works like this.
Keep trying
- Page 85: WD-40 is a widely used oil. Chemists tried 40 formulas before the product turned into a success.
- Page 85: The game "Angry Birds" has been a large success for the Finnish game developers, Rovio Entertainment. They developed 51 games before the big success, Angry Birds, came.
- Page 99: As James Dyson worked on creating a new type of vacuum cleaner, he built more than 5,000 prototypes.
Invite the person with a good idea to lead an innovation initiative
Page 110: At Google, good ideas, which people suggested on the Internet, are discussed in Friday meetings. Usually, the person, who came up with an idea, is put in charge of turning the idea into reality.
Develop ideas
Page 83: Through the Toyota suggestion scheme, people create more than 2 million ideas every year. Over 90% of the suggestions are implemented.
Use creative thinking methods
- Page 56: Mind mapping. Write a central topic in the middle. Add branches.
- Page 58: Put yourself in the shoes of the customer.
- Page 58: Do the opposite. Example: What if a preacher turned Sunday sermons into interactive events?
- Page 69: Break the rules method. Example 1: One of the rules of soccer is that you cannot touch the ball with your hands. It was the deliberate breaking of this rule that created the game of rugby. Example 2: An old rule in mining is that data about exploration and reserves is not openly shared due to fear of hostile takeovers. Rob McEwen broke this rule by making all information about the Red Lake mine openly available on his website and offering prizes for people who predicted the best places to drill for gold. Soon, scientists and geologists solved the challenge. As a result, the mine produced 10 times the gold it had previously produced at much lower cost.
- Page 82: Cogitate method. Let the cause of a problem or an idea sit in your mind for some days while doing something else.
- Page 134: Do brainstorms.
Select good ideas
Page 91: Tesco uses this method to select good ideas: Is the idea better for customers, simpler for staff, and cheaper for Tesco?
Testing methods
- Page 99: Creating a prototype helps people to see, touch and feel the idea. That opens up for comments that can help improve the idea.
- Page 100. Working on understanding and defining the structure of DNA, nobel prize winners Francis Crick and James Watson built models that helped them visualize the double helix structure.
- Page 103: Encourage people to share what they learned from experiences they had which were not successful in the first try. Example 1: Founder of Honda, Soichiro Honda: Success represents that 1% of your work that results from the 99% that is called failure. Example 2: 3M invented a glue that did not stick. This experience later turned into a large success, the Post-it note.
- Page 113: Get feedback from users and other external people to learn about needs. Example: SBB Kundenstimme.
Measure innovation
- Page 123: How many products or services did you bring to market last year?
- Page 123: What proportion of total sales comes from products or services launched in the last two years? The average number for companies across the EU is 20%.
Other research from the book
- Page 2: Lateral thinking means approaching business challenges from new directions in order to see better solutions.
- Page 5: Peter Drucker: Every organization has to prepare for the abandonment of everything it does.
- Page 5: Gary Hamel: Most organizations know how to get better but do not know how to get different.
- Page 7: Swatch created a different approach to watch design: Low-cost, high-tech, artistic and emotional.
- Page 11: Lateral leaders focus on creativity and innovation of a team.
- Page 15: Peter Drucker: The temptation in business is always to feed yesterday and to starve tomorrow.
- Page 19: Although efficiency improvements are important, innovation is more important. Think, for example, of how the car replaced horse-drawn carriages or how the computer replaced the typewriter.
- Page 27: Creative people think they are creative. Less creative people do not think they are creative.
- Page 32: Creativity decreases under time pressure.
- Page 40: Find out what experts advise and try doing the opposite.
- Page 53: In developing the assembly line, Henry Ford asked, "What would happen if instead of workers moving to cars, cars moved to workers?" This enabled the mass production of cars at a much lower costs.
- Page 121: Peter Drucker: Innovative efforts should not report to line managers that have responsibility for ongoing operations. The new project is an infant, and infants belong in the nursery. Executives in charge of existing businesses will have neither the time nor understanding for the infant project.
- Page 123: If you want more innovation, you do not want a team of lookalikes who think alike. You want a mix of skills, experiences, backgrounds, and attitudes.
- Page 130: People, who work on an innovation initiative, should be given stock options linked to the longer term success of their project.
To be updated.
December 12, 2021
This is one of my favourite books in recent time!
September 10, 2026
I really enjoyed *The Leader’s Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills*. What stood out to me is how practical and easy to apply the ideas are. Paul Sloane does a great job of showing that creativity isn’t just about having good ideas it’s about learning how to look at problems differently.
The examples and exercises made the book engaging, and I found myself thinking about how some of the techniques could be applied in everyday work and decision-making. A useful read for anyone looking to become a more creative thinker and a better leader.
The examples and exercises made the book engaging, and I found myself thinking about how some of the techniques could be applied in everyday work and decision-making. A useful read for anyone looking to become a more creative thinker and a better leader.
May 23, 2017
Read the full review at my blog https://wp.me/p89tYT-9Q
Most companies are built for continuous improvement, rather than for discontinuous innovation.
What is the book about?
“The Leader’s Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills” is written by Paul Sloane, author of many books on lateral thinking and management.
“The Leader’s Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills” is a book whose goal is to give us the lateral tools and techniques to transform our organization into a powerhouse of innovation. Lateral Thinking, a term coined by Edward de Bono, is solving problems through an indirect and creative approach, using reasoning that is not immediately obvious and involving ideas that may not obtainable by using only traditional step-by-step logic
Read the full review at my blog https://wp.me/p89tYT-9Q
Most companies are built for continuous improvement, rather than for discontinuous innovation.
What is the book about?
“The Leader’s Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills” is written by Paul Sloane, author of many books on lateral thinking and management.
“The Leader’s Guide to Lateral Thinking Skills” is a book whose goal is to give us the lateral tools and techniques to transform our organization into a powerhouse of innovation. Lateral Thinking, a term coined by Edward de Bono, is solving problems through an indirect and creative approach, using reasoning that is not immediately obvious and involving ideas that may not obtainable by using only traditional step-by-step logic
Read the full review at my blog https://wp.me/p89tYT-9Q
April 3, 2023
This book aims to provide leaders with a set of skills to help them think creatively and generate innovative ideas. It is structured around a series of case studies, each of which highlights a particular lateral thinking technique and provides examples of how it can be applied to different situations. It is a useful resource for leaders who are looking to develop their creativity and problem-solving skills. Its practical focus and well-chosen case studies make it a valuable addition to any leader’s toolkit. Business leaders and managers interested in learning innovative and creative ways of thinking may benefit from the book’s content significantly.
March 26, 2021
Ngày nay, nhiều CEO, giám đốc và quản lý cấp cao tập trung hơn vào việc cải tiến hiệu suất kinh doanh, với mong muốn thúc đẩy công việc vận hành trơn tru hơn và dịch vụ cung cấp cho khách hàng được tốt hơn. Họ làm việc hết sức chăm chỉ và nghĩ rằng mình đang làm rất tốt, nhưng thực tế chưa hẳn là như vậy. Bởi lẽ, cải thiện từng bước trong kinh doanh là không đủ. Ngoài việc nâng cao chất lượng hoạt động kinh doanh hiện tại, người lãnh đạo cần phải dành thời gian tìm kiếm những cách thức hoàn toàn mới nhằm đáp ứng nhu cầu của khách hàng. Họ nên lựa chọn, áp dụng những cách thức khác biệt và tốt hơn, giúp công ty đạt được các mục tiêu trong quá trình hoạt động. Họ nên khởi xướng những sáng kiến mới mẻ, táo bạo, dù cho thực tế một số sẽ thất bại và một số khác sẽ thành công. Nhưng hơn hết, họ phải khuyến khích, trao quyền cho nhân viên, chấp nhận áp dụng những phương pháp liều lĩnh và sáng tạo để tận dụng những cơ hội mới.
July 18, 2020
I was excited to read this book, but it didn't deliver. It was full of quotes, examples and and stories of Jack Welch, Alexander Graham Bell, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Intel, etc. Authors need to stop regurgiating these stories. So few books these days have orginal content and this is one of them. As I was reading it, I found my mind saying "please stop repeating these same old tired stories. How many more times will I need to read these *@ examples? Write something original!!!".
Edward de Bono wrote about how to unlock your creativity using lateral thinking. This author wrote about how to be completely unorginal.
Edward de Bono wrote about how to unlock your creativity using lateral thinking. This author wrote about how to be completely unorginal.
May 15, 2026
Great read. Fostering innovation goes beyond creativity and into reality. Practical tips. Definetely spoke to my heart.
March 5, 2008
Ada cerita lucu dengan buku ini.
Buku ini saya beli waktu di S'pore pas jalan bareng istri, beberapa bulan after married. Biasanya kalo ke S'pore (my favorite place), saya kudu musti beli "sesuatu" yang bikin saya happy, namun kali ini gak banyak yang saya dapatkan. Walhasil saya ambil aja beberapa buku sekedar buat oleh-oleh, mostly management books karena profesi saya yang konsultan manajemen.
To be honest, sepulangnya buku ini gak pernah benar-benar saya baca, hanya beberapa halaman aja, dan tersimpan rapi bersama buku2 manajemen lainnya yang belon pernah terbaca.
Sampai kepada suatu saat saya mendapat pekerjaan di konsultan asing yang sedang menangani BNI, otomatis saya spend much more time in the bus untuk sampai ke BNI Dukuh Atas. Mulailah saya gunakan waktu di bus untuk "membayar hutang" buku-buku saya tadi, ini terjadi pada tahun 2006, 3 tahun kemudian.
Ternyata.... isi buku ini remarkable, dan saya menyesal telat membacanya. Buku ini berisi bagaimana kita dapat menghasilkan keputusan melalui tindakan yang "diluar jalur pikiran orang biasa", memaksa kita untuk benar-benar "think out of the box" ... secara drastis.
Lateral Thinking sangat recommended buat mencari terobosan-terobosan baru.
Positifnya lagi, memaksa saya membaca buku-buku yang belum sempat saya baca, takut kehilangan kesempatan itu
Buku ini saya beli waktu di S'pore pas jalan bareng istri, beberapa bulan after married. Biasanya kalo ke S'pore (my favorite place), saya kudu musti beli "sesuatu" yang bikin saya happy, namun kali ini gak banyak yang saya dapatkan. Walhasil saya ambil aja beberapa buku sekedar buat oleh-oleh, mostly management books karena profesi saya yang konsultan manajemen.
To be honest, sepulangnya buku ini gak pernah benar-benar saya baca, hanya beberapa halaman aja, dan tersimpan rapi bersama buku2 manajemen lainnya yang belon pernah terbaca.
Sampai kepada suatu saat saya mendapat pekerjaan di konsultan asing yang sedang menangani BNI, otomatis saya spend much more time in the bus untuk sampai ke BNI Dukuh Atas. Mulailah saya gunakan waktu di bus untuk "membayar hutang" buku-buku saya tadi, ini terjadi pada tahun 2006, 3 tahun kemudian.
Ternyata.... isi buku ini remarkable, dan saya menyesal telat membacanya. Buku ini berisi bagaimana kita dapat menghasilkan keputusan melalui tindakan yang "diluar jalur pikiran orang biasa", memaksa kita untuk benar-benar "think out of the box" ... secara drastis.
Lateral Thinking sangat recommended buat mencari terobosan-terobosan baru.
Positifnya lagi, memaksa saya membaca buku-buku yang belum sempat saya baca, takut kehilangan kesempatan itu
August 15, 2016
Essential reading in today's vuca world. Innovation has now become a need for survival and this classic gives you golden nuggets in every single page to light the fire in you.
January 16, 2014
Lots of ideas. A bit disjointed in presentation.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews