TWiQ Hot Take: Quality Professionals don't spend enough time on learning to think
24 Apr 2026
In this moment:
TWiQ — This Week in Quality
Quality Professionals and testers are continuous learners, but knowledge is only as good as its application.
The quality of software is only as good as the quality of thinking that goes into its design, creation, and testing.
Without taking time to understand how we think, learn to think in different ways, or have techniques, heuristics, or mnemonics, etc. we are doing ourselves and our craft a disservice.
This is how we retain value in an 'AI can do everything' world.
Thinking techniques:
Reframing: Change these
The quality of software is only as good as the quality of thinking that goes into its design, creation, and testing.
Without taking time to understand how we think, learn to think in different ways, or have techniques, heuristics, or mnemonics, etc. we are doing ourselves and our craft a disservice.
This is how we retain value in an 'AI can do everything' world.
Thinking techniques:
Reframing: Change these
- Meaning: what else could this mean?
- Context: where else could this be useful?
- Learning — what can I learn from this?
- Humour: what’s the funny side of this?
- Solution: what would I be doing if I’d solved the problem? Can I start doing any of that right now?
- Silver lining: what opportunities are lurking inside this problem?
- Points of view: how does this look to the other people involved?
- Creative heroes: how would one of my creative heroes approach this problem?
Mind mapping or visualisation: (most should be familiar with these)
Theorising or insights:
Use scientific theory to gain insight and form theories
Ady Stokes
Freelance Consultant
He / Him
MoT Ambassador. Currently semi-retired and freelancing. I am, amongst other things, a writer, speaker, and accessibility advocate. Leeds Chapter Lead. MoT Certs curator and article editor for WonderProxy. Testing wisdom, friendly, testing songs and poems. Great minds think differently. STEC and SQEC Certified. Struggling to write a book about testing mindsets and thinking's application in software development.
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