An excellent, problem-solving mindset

Source: Hiphop Village

When we solve difficult problems, hypothetical thinking is the most basic and commonly used thinking method.

Solving almost any problem requires one or more assumptions to be made, and then carefully verified.

Hypothetical thinking is a scientific thinking method that assumes, explains, and explains the causes, universal laws, or causal relationships of things based on known scientific principles and certain factual materials.

The assumptions made by people for a certain purpose are only preliminary assumptions about the causes and regularities of things, so they are speculative in nature.

The knowledge he provided to people was not conclusive and reliable, and it still needed scientific argumentation and practical testing.

Therefore, the establishment of the hypothesis cannot be separated from the verification of practice.

Generally speaking, the application and operation of hypothetical thinking is carried out in three steps:

1. Assumptions.

Before making a hypothesis, in order to solve a certain problem, it is necessary to collect a few factual materials and existing scientific principles related to the problem, mobilize the existing knowledge in your brain, and give full play to your creative thinking ability.

Preliminary assumptions and assumptions are made about the problems, laws, and essences that need to be solved, that is, assumptions are made.

2. Argumentation.

If it is only a preliminary guess or assumption, the next step is to use the relevant theories and as many empirical test materials as possible to conduct extensive verification, so that not only can the hypothesis be enriched, but also the hypothesis can be revised so that it tends to be applied by rational thinking.

3. Draw conclusions.

After argumentation, conclusions can be drawn to verify or disprove the hypothesis.

Let's explain it as a case

During the Tang Dynasty, in order to stabilize the border relations, Tang Taizong decided to marry Princess Wencheng to Songtsen Gampo, the monarch of Turug.

It is rumored that before Princess Wencheng's marriage was confirmed, four envoys from all over the world proposed marriage to Tang Taizong on behalf of their respective monarchs.

So, what strategy did the Tibetan envoy rely on to win this marriage?

Tang Taizong faced a difficult choice, so for the sake of justice, he designed five puzzles to test his intelligence, hoping to decide the fate of the princess through a competition.

Lu Dongzan, the envoy representing Songtsen Gampo, the king of Tibet, was also one of the four contenders in this game.

Two particular puzzles are impressive. In the first question, the eunuch presents a nine-curved pearl with nine curves inside, and the challenger needs to use a slender silk thread to pass through it.

Emissaries from other countries tried in vain to thread it manually, but all without success.

At this time, Lu Dongzan had an idea, and he ordered someone to catch a large ant, delicately tie the silk thread to it, put it into the bead hole, and at the same time coated the other end with honey. The ants are quickly drawn over and successfully carry the silk thread from one end to the other.

The second problem is even more tricky, as there are 100 mares and 100 ponies in the stables, and the messengers need to find out the mother of each pony one by one.

The messengers try to open the fence in the hope that the pony will return to the mare naturally, but it is not that simple. The mare does not react to the approach of the pony, and the pony plays on its own. The first three envoys had to guess by the patterns on their horses.

Then it was Lu Dongzan's turn. He ordered his servants to quarantine the ponies for a day and forbade them to give them water to drink.

The next day, as soon as the fence opens, the thirsty ponies run to their mothers in search of milk.

Lu Dongzan thus succeeded in finding the mother of each pony.

With such wisdom and strategy, Lu Dongzan won the competition and also contributed to the reconciliation between Princess Wencheng and Tubo.

Lu Dongzan's cleverness lies in the fact that he first assumes that every problem is solvable.

First of all, the first question -

Hypothesis: The silk thread will go through nine bends like long eyes, and go out smoothly from the other end.

Argument: What can make a silk thread perforate automatically? It should be small, have eyes, and induce movements?

So he thought of ants, and using honey to lure them.

Conclusion: With ants, you can make the silk thread go through nine bends like long eyes.

Secondly, the second question -

Hypothesis: The pony will automatically run to the mare.

Argument: What is the way to induce those ponies to run to the mare automatically?

Lu Dongzan thought of the nature of ponies, that is, to eat milk.

As long as they are hungry for a day, they can get the pony to find the mare to drink milk.

Conclusion: If the pony is hungry for a day, the pony will automatically run to the mare.

This kind of hypothetical thinking helped Lu Dongzan push forward from the result, so as to successfully solve the problem.

This method of thinking in which you come up with some assumptions in order to solve a problem and then question them is hypothetical thinking.

The main characteristic of hypothetical thinking is that there is a purposeful questioning, and since the goal is clear, it is naturally easier to find a solution to the problem.

Of course, the above explanations and examples are just hypothetical thinking simplicity and daily application. Strictly speaking, there are six steps to hypothetical thinking:

1. Ask a question: Identify the problem that needs to be solved or the phenomenon being studied.
2. Hypothesis: Based on existing knowledge and experience, one or several possible explanations or conjectures, i.e., hypotheses.
3. Design experiments: In order to verify the correctness of a hypothesis, an experiment or observation protocol needs to be designed.
4. Collect data: Collect relevant data through experiments or observations.
5. Analyze data: Analyze the collected data to verify the correctness of hypotheses.
6. Draw conclusions: Based on the results of data analysis, draw conclusions, verify or disprove hypotheses.

Friends with undergraduate and graduate degrees from key universities should be particularly familiar with this method, because it is the basic method of writing essays.

But is this method useful only for academic research?

No. Hypothetical thinking also has a wide range of applications in business, education, politics, and other fields.

For example-

• In the business field, entrepreneurs can make assumptions and develop business strategies based on market trends and consumer needs;
• In the field of education, teachers can design more effective teaching programs by assuming students' learning needs and interests;
• In the political sphere, policymakers can formulate policy assumptions and formulate measures based on social issues and public opinion.

In conclusion, hypothetical thinking is an important way of thinking that helps us better understand problems, predict the future, and make decisions.

By mastering the methods and techniques of hypothetical thinking, we can better deal with complex problems and challenges.

For me, hypothetical thinking is often used in daily work, it can solve a lot of problems, and if you are interested, you can learn and deliberately train this method. (The most in-depth deliberate training is to go to graduate school...) ）