Serious Creativity: Using the Power of Lateral Thinking to Create New Ideas (1992)
“
Instead of striving to be right at high cost, it will be more appropriate to be flexible and plural at a lower cost. If you cannot accurately predict the future then you must flexibly be prepared to deal with various possible futures.
— Edward de Bono
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "Instead of striving to be right at high cost, it will be more appropriate to be flexible and plural at a lower cost. If you cannot accurately predict the future then you must flexibly be prepared to deal with various possible futures." in the context of "Serious Creativity: Using the Power of Lateral Thinking to Create New Ideas (1992)" to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "Edward de Bono" (Quotes)
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Tags
About Edward de Bono
Edward Charles Francis Publius de Bono (19 May 1933, in Malta – 9 June 2021) was a British physician, author, inventor, and consultant. He was most famous as the originator of the term lateral thinking (structured creativity) and a leading proponent of the deliberate teaching of thinking in schools.
About Edward de Bono
Edward Charles Francis Publius de Bono (19 May 1933, in Malta – 9 June 2021) was a British physician, author, inventor, and consultant. He was most famous as the originator of the term lateral thinking (structured creativity) and a leading proponent of the deliberate teaching of thinking in schools.
View all quotes →