1. Ignite

Direction: The function of a goal in Zoom Thinking is not merely to get something but to structure the process.

Reflection: We can only improve our thinking if we learn how to observe it.

Feeling: Thinking is a physical activity, and every thought generates a subtle “felt sense”.

Dumbness: By intentionally adopting “beginner’s mind” we clear the path for new thinking.

Chaos: As we face the data mass involved in any new thinking project, we should respect and protect its initial disorder.

1. 
   

2. Sweep

Distilling:  “The art of the gist” is the key to successful handling of the data mass.

Zooming: Rapid change in the focal length of mental perception is the skill that gives Zoom Thinking its name.

Scanning: We can assimilate the data mass many times over from various focal distances, and at various speeds.

Clustering: Once we have adequately scanned the data mass, we create categories to group it.

Weighting: Not all categories or groups are of equal importance, and the same goes for their contents.

3. Delve

Framing: Whatever we think about has multiple contexts, though in any particular case we tend to see only one.

Empathy: The ability to observe the same object from multiple points of view enlarges the thinking process.

Questioning: Instead of looking for a better answer we should often be looking for a better question.

Negation: A special kind of attention is required to notice what is missing — as Sherlock Holmes well knew.

Reversal: Working back from a hypothetical outcome, or reverse engineering an existent reality, is often the best way to move forward.

4. Expand

Disruption: As soon as a pattern of thought settles down, it needs to be shaken loose.

Wholeness: Discovering connection between apparently disparate objects can generate new and useful wholes.

Spontaneity: There comes a point where the entire Zoom Thinking process is thrown aside, and the mind surrenders to its own spontaneous movement.

Invention: The art of invention is the art of listening to the silence where new things are hiding.

Emptiness: Ultimately the silence itself becomes its own reward: we expand from Zoom Thinking to no thinking.

Below is an overview of the four Zoom Thinking Maneuvers, with a brief explanation of each component.

The process allows for maximum freedom in the selection and use of Maneuvers and their components.

There is no attempt here to explain how the Zoom Thinking process is conducted: the aim is to simply indicate a few of the underlying concepts.