Each hat represents a distinct direction of challenging the problem.
White Hat - Information - during the white hat discussion, only the facts are presented.
Red Hat - Emotions - everyone shares their gut feelings without any justification for them.
Black Hat - Discernment - cautious thinking, what could go wrong.
Yellow Hat - Optimism - discuss the benefits.
Green Hat - Creativity - time to present the oddball ideas, with little criticism.
Blue Hat - Direction - The chairperson wears the blue hat and can direct the discussion into a different mode.