If you are frustrated with old brainstorming techniques, why not try some new ones. Invite some energetic, enthusiastic idea generators around a table, and I bet you can come up with hundreds ideas for your next project, if you follow theses tips.
These are just some of the tips from a proprietary system for idea generating or brainstorming developed for BrainReactions by Darin Eich, Ph.D. If you are interested in a BrainReactions training on Idea Generation please contact us.
1. Quantity leads to quality, so don't judge your ideas while you're saying them. Wait until after the brainstorming to do that. Judgment-free spaces lead to the best brainstorms.
2. Good questions are the generators of great ideas. If you are brainstorming for one challenge, try to come up with 10 questions that will generate ideas. For example: "What are ideas for new ways to brainstorm?" and then "What are ideas for tools we can use for brainstorming?" Start with wide or easy questions and funnel down to more specific and difficult questions. If you use this approach you should be able to come up with 100s of ideas.
3. Go Wide. Take your ideas in different directions. What are different attributes of your question/issue? Attributes could be method, message, material, technology, design, etc. We call these different attributes buckets.
4. Go deep. Fill those buckets with as many ideas as possible, and get as specific as possible on certain ideas.
5. Use your surroundings for inspiration. Look at objects, pictures, words, or a combination of the 3 to come up with new ideas.
6. Ask "What would _____ do?" Try to answer the question if you were Google, Madonna, a six-year-ol, or The Green Bay Packers or any other person or organization.
7. Have fun! Make it a game. Make it a competition. Take some time to be silly to be silly. It will get those creative juices flowing.
Want more tips? We have lots of them, but you will have to contact BrainReactions and find out more about our BrainReactions Innovation Tools workshop. BrainReactions is an outside innovation firm in Madison, Wisconsin. We often generate over 700 ideas in a 2.5 hr session for our clients, and we always have fun doing it. We often teach on brainstorming, outside innovation, and Gen Y. We are available for key-note speeches and internal trainings.
4 comments:
Brain Storming is a poor tool to generate a large number of ideas. Personally I have tried this on several groups - and most often they run out of ideas after 20-30 ideas.
To generate 1000's of ideas, it is beneficial to use tools/methods such as problem reversal, Lotus Blosssum, Transform, Random stimulation etc.
Arun, I am sorry that you have not had much luck with brainstorming. I believe brainstorming is a process of people generating ideas together or by oneself, not a tool. I also believe that you can use tools, like the tips I provided, or mind-mapping and so-on, to aid one's idea generation.
As far as group brainstorming goes, I have first-hand knowledge that groups can brainstorm hundreds of ideas an hour if they have the right training and a good facilitator.
At BrainReactions, we often generate 1000 ideas in 2.5 hours. We later analyze the ideas and find hundreds of quality ideas and trends that companies can utilize to make products, packaging, and marketing messages.
Julia,
I agree that with good facilitation & training one can generate lots of ideas. As a facilitator - after training, I have seen a group of 30 people generate 500 ideas in just under 20 mins.
To generate ideas I first ask the team to do general brainstorming. But this gives only 20-30 ideas. Next I train the group to use various tools - Transform, Lotus Blossom, problem reversal etc. and then ask then to brainstorm using these tools. This time, they get hundreds of ideas in a short time.
The key to generate ideas is to train the mind. For an untrained mind, brainstorming will generate only few ideas.
I have found that training the mind to think creatively, and then using thinking tools is the only way to generate lots of ideas. Idea generation also requires good facilitation skills.
Perhaps we can agree that brainstormers need some type of training or tools to optimize their idea generation.
BrainReactions' tools are simple and creative and can be integrated into daily problem solving without using any computer programs.
I think there is a time and place for both methods. Keep up the creativity!
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