PO

PO is a tool perfected by Edward De Bono and is a word used to protect delicate new ideas from destruction.

PO1

PO1 is used to protect an impossible idea from immediate destruction. The tool used here to protect the idea is intermediate impossible.

Example: Parking on Mount Road becomes a problem due to over crowding and lack of adequate parking space. You can use an intermediate impossible here: Drivers should be encouraged to park only on weekends.

This can lead to the idea to provide parking spots for car on different days of the week. So each car would receive special facilities only on certain days of the week. This would encourage car pooling and a shift of leisure time activities to times when the congestion is less. The intermediate impossible helps to put a fence around an idea which is impossible, thus allowing it to develop without immediate attack

PO2

PO2 is very similar to attribute matching. They help us to put together dissimilar ideas and expert solutions from different fields. Example: If you would like to get fresh ideas on education compare it to a motor car. The attributes of a motor car are,

1. It moves
2. It should be regularly filled with fuel
3. It can carry people
4. It provides a good view of the country
5. It has four wheels

Aplying some of the ideas to education will ensure that we get a whole group of creative ideas like educational programme should put different types of people together in close proximity (as in a motor car) and enable them to share ideas in a time bubble away from others. Education should provide regular inputs from an outside source (like fuel).

PO3

PO3 is a tool to generate alternatives. When a system is working well, as a matter of routine, PO3 should be used to encourage thinking of 10 alternate ways of doing it better. This is an important and interesting tool to prevent stagnation.