Divergent thinking is a thought process or method used to generate creative ideas by exploring many possible solutions. It is often used in conjunction with its cognitive colleague, convergent thinking, which follows a particular set of logical steps to arrive at one solution, which in some cases is a "correct" solution. By contrast, divergent thinking typically occurs in a spontaneous, free-flowing, "non-linear" manner, such that many ideas are generated in an emergent cognitive fashion. wikipedia 
Exercises to practice divergent thinking. page
Explore the difference between convergent and divergent thinking. Reference Being Creative Inside and Outside the Classroom Talk about divergent thinking as "garden-variety creativity".