Wood Tales Inc., a furniture company, was facing declining sales. In a brainstorming session, the company's product development team was asked to think about how a chair would be used from the perspective of four$-$year olds. After several creative ideas, the team came up with the idea that a chair could be used as a ladder, a table, or a shoe rack if it could be dismantled and rearranged. Hence, the company was able to commercialize its multi$-$purpose chair. This method of seeking novel alternatives to a problem is referred to as $\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_.$