What gets inspected gets improved. What’s tracked becomes transformed. Find ways to assess proposals and ministries through multiple angles of vision. Listed below are two ways I frequently use to reflect, rethink, and reinvent, and to make better decisions. Try both approaches in the near future!

Each hat is a different color, representing a different evaluation task. Assign leaders within your group a color, asking them raised questions about the proposal or program being discussed through the lens.

White Hat (symbolizing available or missing information)

• What information do we have?
• What information do we need?
• What information is missing?
• What questions should we be asking?

Red Hat (symbolizing feelings, intuition, or emotions)

• What energizes us about this proposal?
• What’s our gut instinct about the plan?
• What are our feelings about what we’ve discussed so far?
• How do we sense others would respond to this idea?

Black Hat (symbolizing caution)

• What will this cost us in the way of time, money, and human resources? 
• What are the possible downsides to this proposal?
• Who else has done this? How did it work for them?
• Is this the best use of our resources?

Green Hat (symbolizing energy, growth, and life)

• What do we like about this idea? 
• How might we build on what’s been proposed? 
• What other possibilities are we overlooking?
• Who else should we talk to for more ideas?

Blue Hat (symbolizing the need for process)

• What are the steps for moving forward if we decide to act? 
• Who is responsible for each step?
• Who else needs to know about the decision we’re making? 
• How will we get the word out to people? 
• What criteria will be used to determine if we’re successful?

Yellow Hat (symbolizing optimism and possibilities)

• What are the good points about this proposal?
• What are the benefits for moving forward?
• Who would benefit from this program or ministry?
• How would people experience these benefits?