Brainstorming is one of those activities that people like to talk about doing, but don't actually spend a lot of time on. It's one of those techniques that always sounds like a great thing, and something you really should do, but the few times you've tried it, it kinda fell flat. Turned into more of an excuse to get together and have lunch, and less of an actual idea session.
In this article, I'm not only going to show you how to fix that, but I'm also going to give you the top secret “creative exercise” I use when working with different groups. Sound good? Let's get started. In order to make your brainstorming sessions productive, do these things:
Change the Venue
If you want to think outside the box, you have to BE outside the box. That means getting away from your comfortable, staid surroundings. It doesn't matter where you go. You don't even have to spend any money on the venue. You could go to a park and gather around a few available picnic tables. The point is, get out of your own head by getting out of your comfortable surroundings.
Open With a Game
Creative exercises are games, at one level or another, and games are among the most powerful tools that businesses have. I know that sounds counter-intuitive, but it's not. Used correctly, games can transform your business. The one I use when working with a new group is simply called “The Stick Game.”
Playing The Stick Game is easy. Everyone sits around a table. The moderator starts. He clears his throat and takes a stick (or pencil, or anything) and taps the table with it while saying “I can play the stick game, can you?” Then passes the pencil to the next person. The moderator is the judge. The moderator decides if the next person is, in fact, playing the stick game.
In order to play, the next person who takes the stick MUST BEGIN by clearing his throat and speaking the line. Most people will focus on how you tap the stick on the table, or the modulation of your voice while speaking the phrase. None of that matters. What matters is that you begin the sequence by clearing your throat.
It might be the case that the pencil makes a complete circuit or two before someone else “gets it,” but that is when the fun begins. Once the first few start to “get it” they'll become the new judges and you're basically out of the picture except for watching the hilarity and frustration until everyone at the table “gets it.”
The point of the game is to underscore the reality that sometimes it is the thing you're inclined to overlook that makes all the difference. Give The Stick Game a try. You'll be amazed at the difference it makes.
Designate A Topic
Don't approach the brainstorming session with absolutely no idea of what you'd like to accomplish. It doesn't have to be a specific agenda. In fact, it's best if you don't get too specific. On the other hand, you need to know at least if you're brainstorming for new product ideas or for ways to save money on office equipment. You should have at least a general idea of what your focus will be.
Focus on Quantity over Quality
At the end of the day, it doesn't matter if many, or even most of your ideas are unworkable. The important thing about brainstorming is the opportunity to look at your business through a new set of eyes. To blue sky things and imagine a new world of possibilities. If your team comes up with a single workable idea every 3-4 sessions, it's a success. Don't worry if it doesn't happen straightaway. The creative process takes time. It'll happen.
Focus on the Positives
Devil's Advocates have their place, but the brainstorming session isn't one of them. This is about ideas. The possibilities. It doesn't matter if the idea isn't necessarily practical. Such assessments come later. This is about the process of no limits, blue sky creativity for its own sake, because that is where genius lives. That's where unexpected innovation lives. So write down every single idea that comes up, and rubbish nothing. The person who gets rubbished may fall silent, and not mention the world beating idea that is in their head.
