In today's agile world when we have defined budgets, time is less, urgency to deliver solution to clients, we can't compete against our rival competitor because they have bigger market share, bigger budgets.All this drives us to think differently and change the game and "brainstorming" can do it right for us.
In other words, brainstorming is all about thinking, creating, and identifying outside the box to come up with scrupulously scrutinized and pragmatic ideas. It is all about knowing what's working, what's not and what can be better. It's a tried-and-tested tool many managers use with their teams to generate ideas and path breaking solutions.
Brainstorming is a problem solving technique using lateral thinking approach, and it ought to be beyond normal ways of thinking. It encourages people to come up with thoughts and ideas that, at first, seem a bit crazy. Some of these ideas can lead to creative solutions, while others will definitely spark even more ideas.
Here goes "35" super tips for brainstorming!
1. Understand giving up to the problem is not the solution, which means there is no option to quit.
2. Group brainstorming is considered ideal to filter the best ideas and then develop it.
3. A key principle of most brainstorming meetings is the absence of negative criticism and to encourage people to come up, since no one wants to volunteer ideas that get shot down.
4. Don't score, competition kill creativity; you don't want fear of getting ruled out to stop your team from contributing through their ideas. This also improves the contribution of introvert team members.
5. There should be no fear of failure, if we are not prepared to be wrong, we will never come up with anything great.
6. Often we are our worst idea censorship, trust me, there are no bad ideas at all.
7. When creativity is under the gun, it often ends up getting killed, it needs a conducive environment.
8. Remember before entering for brainstorming meeting that we have a problem to solve; and that it's a critical meeting and not a fun place to be in.
9. If the right idea doesn't evolve, do not haste, later revisit the problem again.
10. Broadly define lines of objectives, parameters and disclosures about the subject, just to ensure there is a solution at the end.
11. Exaggerate the problem multiple times to test your solution or idea.
12. Build on ideas of others, often an idea suggested by one person can trigger a better idea.
13. Set a deadline to freeze at a solution with ideally 7 to 10 milestone stages, these are generally the evolution steps of the Idea or solution.
14. Invite random criticism about your solution from every possible person, discount judgment and criticism during brainstorming.
15. Let thoughts fly from multi dimensions and meeting not restrained to a one-dimensional output.
16. Best comes when there is friction, like between people, different departments and geographies, harness it.
17. Identify, what's driving the problem? What's driving the competition? What is the need for the solution? Why is there a need now? What if we don't? As you uncover the drivers, you begin to catch a glimpse of possible solutions.
18. Often, human mind goes for low hanging fruits during brainstorming, be aware.
19. Be aware, during brainstorming a silent cognitive bias comes into play, unknowingly we get trapped; after the first set of idea is evaluated many concepts afterwards are likely to be evaluated on a relative merit.
20. Too often we let our mind go million miles and think 'outside of the box', even before considering the simple known facts. For example, if you are a Web Design And SEO Company and looking for a revolutionary solution it will only come from the digital marketing arena.
21. Apply divide and conquer rule, task your team for individual brainstorming, then work in smaller teams before the grand finale.
22. Consider role playing, and make people represent the client to define the different barriers you need to navigate around; this is to better requirement understanding.
23. Take help of simulated tricks, few people to act as customers and try to reject the idea by all possible means, repeat this at every stage of the product.
24. Sometimes, start from what won't work at all, the bad ideas first; strikeout a list of odd one's first to let the fantastic, creative ideas fly.
25. Another pattern is to come up only with the worst ideas, really terrible ones, and then prime your team to turn those into decent, good, viable & buy-able ideas.
26. Leaders should pipe down else people will feel compelled to give their "buying in" & "consent" probably at the expense of their creativity.
27. Embrace a playful atmosphere for brainstorming to enhance abilities of participants to think, being creative, solve problems, and form positive meaningful connections with group.
28. Do not hesitate to hybrids at all, with any possible permutations and combinations.
29. Think of your idea in a different time, what if this was 15 years ago, just like in 2001 if you were a digital marketing company, what strategies you would have devised to better sales for your Google Adwords Manager.
30. Do imagine your idea with your competitor and how he would tackle it, just to get a fresh angle.
31. Consider for once your problem as the gap to be bridged, you are at point(A) and you want to get to point(B). Try writing the necessary steps to unwind the theory.
32. It happens at times we are complacent within; do try to look and get inspired from outside.
33. Do a SWOT analysis for a final decision making; it's used to stimulate collaborative analysis.
34. Go with your gut feel, when the right solution or idea is around the corner, your 6th sense will prompt, keep your other 5 senses awake.
35. Introspect and reintrospect before going with the rolling out of the idea or conceptualizing.
Try holding brainstorming sessions in rooms that aren't regular meeting rooms. If you can't change the room itself, try changing something about the room to stimulate the brain, and if you have the luxury choose the creative room of your office. Brainstorming should be a safe haven for playfulness, experimentation, and a dose of nonsense to get the creative juices flowing.
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