Verbal or written expressions without main points and disorder are usually unconvincing and even reduce the efficiency of communication.

Structural thinking can help us build a structure that is convenient for communication. When we need to express our core ideas, this structure will help us to think and express in a well-founded and coherent way.

The core theory of this book comes from barbara minto's The Golden Pagoda Principle, but it is more in line with the thinking characteristics of China people.

1. Structural thinking is the core skill that everyone needs.

Structural thinking is the basic way of thinking of professional people. The reason for this is the following：

First of all, structural thinking is the basis of all work.

Secondly, many professional positions have higher requirements for structural thinking.

Thirdly, managers with structural thinking ability can think from multiple angles and deeply analyze the causes of problems when facing work tasks or problems.

2. Improve the working efficiency of the whole organization by unifying standards.

First of all, structural thinking can build a unified standard of thinking and expression.

Secondly, structured thinking can improve the management efficiency of the whole organization.

In addition, in China enterprises, structural thinking is especially needed, which is a way of thinking and expression of "dividing first and then". Structural thinking emphasizes the framework before the details, the summary before the concrete, the conclusion before the cause, the importance before the secondary.

3. It is of great significance to improve the quality of the whole people.

First of all, traditional education lacks special training in thinking.

Secondly, structural thinking helps to improve national quality.

1. Emphasize the thinking process of "sum up first and then divide"

Structural thinking refers to a method of analyzing things comprehensively and clearly from multiple aspects from the perspective of structure.

Structural thinking is the basic law in the field of human thinking, which is internalized as thinking and externalized as expression.

2. Pyramid structure is an effective training tool

As a rational way of thinking, structural thinking can be cultivated through acquired tool training. Pyramid structure is an effective tool to enhance our structural thinking. The following picture shows the thinking mode of pyramid structure.

In the vertical structure of the pyramid, each group's point of view must be the summary of the next level; In the horizontal structure, the viewpoints of each group do not overlap each other and have a certain logical order. This constitutes a rigorous structure. By training our thinking ability in this way, when we encounter problems, we can clear the direction and lock the information we need from a lot of complicated information in the shortest time.

3. The combination of horizontal and vertical three-dimensional thinking

Structural thinking has two kinds of thinking structures, horizontal and vertical, which is a three-dimensional thinking.

It takes three stages and five steps to establish structural thinking.

The first step is to clarify the core concepts of structural thinking.

The core idea of structural thinking includes four basic characteristics and three steps of receiving information in a structured way.

Here, "structured receiving information" means having structured thinking when receiving information.

The second step is to make the finishing point and set the theme according to the goal.

The third step is to draw a map and stratify the vertical structure.

The fourth step is to plan the strategy and choose the order of the horizontal structure.

The fifth step is to draw pictures and carve beams to demonstrate image expression.

The premise of thinking training is to show the hidden thinking process.

The four characteristics of structural thinking power are four basic principles derived from the golden pyramid principle.

The four characteristics of structural thinking power: conclusion first, bottom-up unity, classification and grouping, and logical progression can also be refined into four key words: argumentation and analogy. Among them, the first two features are between the longitudinal structure and the last two features are between the transverse structure.

1. On: the conclusion comes first.

When you express your opinion or offer a plan, first show the conclusion, then go deep into the details, and use the other person's thinking and reasoning to enhance your persuasiveness.

2. "Certificate": the above is unified.

In structural thinking, there should be a central theme sentence.

3. [Category]: Classification and grouping

The total score, the sum of the total score and the first two structures are all applications of structural thinking. Learning classified expression can make our thinking and communication more efficient.

4. "Comparison": logical advancement

After completing the step of "classification and grouping", we still need to organize the ideas among the groups in logical order.

Step 1: Determine the facts, reasons and conclusions in the information.

Find out which information is based on opinions and which is based on facts, and distinguish which information based on opinions is a conclusion and which is a reason to support the conclusion, and distinguish them.

Step 2: Find the correspondence between facts and opinions and draw a structural diagram.

Find out the corresponding relationship between these facts and opinions, and draw the pyramid structure according to the corresponding relationship between facts, reasons and conclusions.

Step 3: Summarize everything in one sentence.

The famous "30-second elevator rule" is the origin of the concept of "summarizing the theme in one sentence".

Being able to summarize the main contents in one sentence must be based on a clear structure.

Template: Based on _ _ _, this paper explains _ _ _ _ _ _ _ from several aspects.

Structural thinking ability emphasizes the first frame, then details, first summary, then concreteness, and then conclusion, which is a typical goal-oriented thinking mode. Therefore, in order to build a convincing pyramid structure, we must first make clear the goal and theme, and lead out the theme in an effective way.

So, how to set the theme according to the goal?

(1) Set goals and make our expression targeted.

(2) Set the theme and make our point clear.

(3) Design the preface to make our expression more attractive.

You need to set the scene before you determine the goal.

The ABCD goal method requires that each goal should meet the ABCD standard:

An "actor" represents the audience; B "behavior" stands for behavior, that is, what tasks or behaviors are expected of the audience; C "condition" stands for condition, under what conditions; D "degree" represents the degree, and what standard or level is reached.

For example, as a senior sales manager, he wants to share his rich experience with sales staff clearly with structured thinking. His goal can be set as: under my guidance (that is, condition C), the new salesman (that is, audience A) can accurately (that is, degree D) summarize the key elements of telemarketers' success from my story (B).

We should think about two issues from the theme:

First, you should persuade the other party to accept your point of view;

Second, how to package this view to make it more attractive.

First of all, we must determine the conclusion, a conclusion based on goals and viewpoints;

Secondly, the packaging theme needs a theme that can touch people's hearts. You can give full play to your imagination, but you should pay attention to the following three basic principles: simplicity, accuracy and benefit (from the other party), all of which are indispensable.

A tool of structural thinking-topic selection matrix can help you straighten out the perceptual factors when choosing a topic: put the topic in the first column, and grade each dimension of each topic from the three dimensions of "simplicity, accuracy and benefit", so that each topic will get a total score, just choose the one with the highest score as the topic.

Of course, this is not to teach you how to become a title party, but to emphasize that any expression should serve its goals. If this conclusion is simple and accurate, and you can successfully attract the other party from the perspective of their interests, then your expression has been half successful.

Starting with a preface, we can vividly describe it as telling a story with a preface.

It contains four elements: s is the scene, c is the conflict, q is the question, and a is the answer, which is called SCQA for convenience of memory.

S (scene) is a big background and needs to be sung by the other party. The other party must have a "yes, you are right" reaction after listening to it. Only by recognizing the scene can the story continue to develop;

C (conflict) refers to the question of what has changed under this background. It is necessary to break the sense of security given to each other at the beginning and confirm the problems faced;

Q (question) is how to solve this problem under this background, which is also a problem that will be concerned from the other side's point of view;

A (answer) is the solution based on this problem.

SCQA Storytelling Method I * * * has four modes, namely, standard mode, straight to the point mode, highlighting anxiety mode and highlighting self-confidence.

Standard Style: Situation+Conflict+Solution

Cut to the chase: solution+situation+conflict

Highlight anxiety: conflict+situation+solution

Highlight self-confidence: problem+situation+conflict+solution

If you are the representative of a bank in charge of real estate business, you need to report your work strategy to the leader at the weekly meeting of the department. If SCQA mode is adopted, there are the following preface expressions:

Standard formula: s-c-a

In recent years, the Bank's real estate business has developed rapidly. However, with the increasingly obvious differentiation trend of the real estate market, the risk management pressure faced by the Bank's real estate business has obviously increased, and differentiated credit policies should be determined according to regional differentiation.

Straight to the point: a-s-c

According to the regional differentiation, we should determine the differentiated credit policy. In recent years, the Bank's real estate business has developed rapidly, but with the increasingly obvious differentiation of the real estate market, the risk management pressure faced by the Bank's real estate business has obviously increased.

Outstanding anxiety: C-S

With the increasingly obvious differentiation trend of the real estate market, the risk management pressure faced by the Bank's real estate business has obviously increased. In recent years, the Bank's real estate business has developed rapidly, and differentiated credit policies should be determined according to regional differentiation.

Highlight self-confidence: Q-S-C-A

How to promote the rapid development of real estate business under the premise of ensuring the controllable entity risks? In recent years, the real estate business of banks has developed rapidly, but with the differentiation of the real estate market, the trend has obviously increased. Therefore, it is necessary to determine differentiated credit policies according to regional differentiation.

If there is no special need, it is suggested to use the standard formula to design the preface. Because standard style has an advantage in communication: if you say something easy to recognize from the beginning, communication will be smoother. If you say "conflict" at the beginning, then there may be a real conflict between the two people who communicate.

Our brains have two abilities at the same time:

One is the ability to decompose the target after knowing it, and find out the answer from it in various ways;

The other is the ability to aggregate all kinds of information and draw correct conclusions or solutions.

Corresponding to the above two abilities is the vertical thinking structure in the pyramid structure.

There are two ways to build a pyramid structure from a vertical structure:

One is to build a pyramid structure from top to bottom, which is called "question and answer decomposition";

The second is to build a pyramid structure from bottom to top, which is called "generalization and aggregation".

If we use the method of structural thinking, it can help us attract each other's attention and convince each other when expressing our views. This method is called "question and answer decomposition". That is, as mentioned in the above article, after knowing the goal, our thinking starts from the goal and decomposes the goal in various ways to find out the answer.

"Question-and-answer decomposition" is a way to imagine yourself talking to others.

Decomposition by answering questions can achieve two purposes:

First, the expression will be very attractive, because the content is what the other party cares about;

Second, the expression must be very convincing, because the other party has answered all the questions they care about.

There are two steps to adopt the method of "decomposition question and answer":

The first step: imagine the problem and start from the other side's point of view.

Step 2: Answer the questions and think about the answers in advance.

The way to "break down the question and answer" is to imagine the problem from the other person's point of view, and the biggest difficulty in this step is whether you can put yourself in the other person's shoes.

5W2H principle. Namely:

What: What is it? Do what? What's the purpose?

Why: Why? Why are you doing this? What is the reason? What is the reason?

Who: Who will do it? Who is in charge? Who will bear it? Who will finish it?

When do you start? When will it be finished? When is the best time?

Where: where? Where to do it? Where to start?

How: how? How?

How much: How much? What is the completed quantity? What is the pass rate? How much is the charge?

Always use 2W 1H (why, what, how).

First of all, your answer must be a conclusion, which meets the requirements of "conclusion first" and "unity above everything else";

Secondly, your answers at every level need to be conclusions.

Finally, remember that "the new medicine in the old bottle", the so-called old bottle, refers to each other's thinking mode. You should put what you want to express in the other person's bottle according to the classification, so that he can recognize your point of view more.

Our minds also have the ability to aggregate all kinds of information and come up with correct solutions. It requires us to build a pyramid structure from the bottom up, so it is called "generalization and aggregation".

The process of "summarizing and aggregating" is divided into three steps:

The first step is to collect information.

The second step is classification.

The third step is to summarize.

When our goal is particularly clear, we use "question and answer decomposition".

When we don't have a goal, it is suitable to adopt the method of "summary and aggregation".

These two methods must be used simultaneously.

The first step is to determine the theme;

The second step is to think as much as possible based on the theme divergence;

The third step is to condense ideas into useful results.

The horizontal structure is called "deductive syllogism", which means that there must be a major premise first, then a minor premise, and finally a conclusion can be drawn.

Clearly listing the main points is called induction, and targeted persuasion is called deduction.

Deduction is a demonstration and reasoning method to understand individual and special phenomena from general theoretical knowledge. Its common structure is the deductive syllogism we just mentioned: major premise, minor premise and conclusion. There are two forms of deductive argument, one is standard and the other is common. Deductive syllogism is standard, and phenomena, causes and solutions are common. The following mainly talk about two deductive forms:

1. standard form: the basis of rational thinking, which makes the expression very convincing.

Whether a reasoning can reach a reasonable conclusion depends not on the ideological content of the premise and conclusion, but on their ideological forms.

Deduction is put forward to clearly distinguish the factors of "ideological form" and "ideological content" in reasoning.

2. Common expressions: the most common and practical expressions.

This logic is a common deductive structure, that is, first talk about the phenomenon, then analyze the reasons, and finally draw a conclusion.

The focus of horizontal inductive argument lies in how to classify things and how to make hidden thinking visible.

Induction refers to the method of summarizing general concepts, principles or conclusions from many individual things.

The human brain can automatically classify some things with the same characteristics.

Therefore, the "classification and grouping" in structural thinking is in line with the thinking mode of human brain.

Psychologist George A Miller found that the human brain can only hold seven memory items at a time.

When using inductive classification, things can be classified from three aspects: time, structure and importance.

Time sequence refers to analyzing problems in time sequence. The time sequence is characterized by one after another.

Structural order refers to dividing a whole into different parts.

Sorting by importance refers to having certain common characteristics and contents, and sorting by importance. The order of importance is characterized by horizontal comparison.

When using these three methods, we should pay attention to ensuring that each group of ideas uses only one classification method.

The golden rule of structural thinking: MECE (exclusive collective exhaustion). Its Chinese meaning is "mutually independent and completely exhausted", that is, an important topic is accurately and concisely classified, and the core of the problem is grasped, so as to solve the problem. It is a very important principle put forward by barbara minto in the Principle of Golden Pagoda.

"Mutual independence" means that the classification of complex problems should be in the same dimension, but different.

"Completely exhausted" means comprehensive and thorough.

There is a method called "2× 2 matrix method". According to the 20/80 rule, for any matter and any problem, two or more core elements can be found, and each element can find the corresponding principal contradiction. It is found that this main contradiction can be summarized into eight types, namely, reason and emotion, internal and external, cost and income, product and market, change and stability, understanding and ignorance, priority and competition content and process. Combining the main contradictions of these two elements, we can draw a 2×2 matrix, which allows us to analyze the problem comprehensively, which is completely in line with MECE principle. With this matrix, we can divide what we do every day into corresponding matrix areas and take different measures for different matrix areas.

1. When you need to convince the other party, use deduction.

When you need to convince the other party, or feel that the other party may have resistance, it is better to use deduction.

The following two situations are very suitable for deduction.

Need to prove the necessity of the conclusion. For example, if the situation is stated through the major premise and the minor premise is a comment on the situation, then the conclusion can be the inevitable result. But if you use this method, once the other party doesn't accept your "major premise", the later argument can't be carried out.

The audience is repulsive. For example, if the other party disagrees with my point of view, it will be very convincing if you prove it by deduction.

2. Use inducement when the other person is concerned about the solution.

When the other party pays attention to solving the problem, induction is more appropriate.

If your plan is clear, such as 1, 2, 3, you must use horizontal induction to demonstrate. If the other person only pays attention to your specific measures, it can also save the other person's time to speak clearly.

Clear thinking and powerful expression are the ultimate goal of learning to use structural thinking.

First of all, we should learn the selling points of packaging. Selling point is the theme we want to express. Packaging the key points you need to remember in words can make your memory simpler, clearer and more vivid.

The first method is analogy, which compares our topic to a more interesting thing.

The second method is quoting, that is, quoting advertisements, songs or famous sayings for packaging.

The third method is integration method, that is, packaging through the integration of colors, characters and numbers.

Structured thinking is the basis of visual expression, and visual expression is the perfect presentation of structured thinking. Structural thinking first helps us to build a framework to think clearly, and visual expression is to explain the problems we think clearly.

First of all, please stay away from the computer when you are pregnant.

Secondly, put the complete pyramid structure into PPT.

The most intuitive embodiment of applying structured thinking to PPT is that an overall model can be established. It should be noted here that every page of PPT should also be a pyramid structure, and it should also conform to the four basic characteristics of structural thinking, and the title of every page of PPT should be a topic sentence with a central idea. Here is a detailed introduction to the four basic characteristics of structural thinking. The concepts used in each page of PPT are as follows:

1. "On"-Conclusion 1: Each PPT only expresses one view, and it should appear in the title.

As the core concept of structured thinking, "conclusion first" requires every PPT to put forward its own point of view, otherwise it will be difficult for the other party to understand what you are saying.

Don't put the contents of Word files directly into PPT.

2. "Certificate"-the above is the whole: the theme of each page of PPT is a summary of the following points.

3. "Class"-classification and grouping: The main points of each page of PPT should be independent and complete, and there should be no omissions or intersections. Here we need the construction method of horizontal structure in structural thinking, and classify the content points in PPT, which is in line with MECE principle.

4. "Comparison"-logical progression: the main points in PPT on each page must be organized in a certain logical order. Logical expression can help the other person understand what you want to convey.

For example, make a PPT of "product sales", and the pages on the right are packaged in chronological order, which is easy to understand and remember.

Secondly, you can also use images for visual display.

When you encounter something that is difficult to express clearly in words, you can consider making a data chart. By visualizing numbers, you will find that information will become concrete, accurate and convincing.

Finally, remember that practice is the only criterion for testing truth! Go and practice.

Thinking mode is more important than knowledge itself.

(End)