BRAINSTORMING SPECIAL How to Become the One That
Everybody Looks Forward to Hearing Your Ideas
Brainstorming is a matter of throwing out
ideas and hoping they stick. You don’t have to evaluate the ideas before
presenting them, but rather allow them to flow like a stream of consciousness
until you come up with something that works as a single solution. But sometimes
we can only generate a few ideas, even after a long period of time. Other
times, we are full of possible solutions, but it turns out none of them are
actually effective. This is why it’s vital to understand how brainstorming
works so we can do it successfully.
Individual Brainstorming vs. Group Brainstorming: The Winner Is…
Most people assume brainstorming in a group
is the best way to come up with numerous ideas. Some companies even require
group brainstorming sessions among their employees. The more opinions you have,
the more likely you are to find the right solution. Right? Not necessarily.
Studies have found that individual brainstorming is more effective than group
brainstorming:
The empirical evidence clearly indicates that subjects brainstorming in
small groups produce fewer ideas than the same number of subjects brainstorming
individually…The role of social inhibition receives particular attention also
in terms of suggestions for research.
This means the lack of success when it comes
to group collaboration is largely due to the fear of sounding silly voicing
ideas in a group; We censor our thoughts and only share the ones we think worth
mentioning. In many cases, there tends to be a dominant voice in a group
brainstorm who limits the potential by setting criteria. This can immediately
hinder the group’s creativity, as it causes everyone to overthink and doubt
themselves.
Diffuse Mode vs. Focused Mode: Pick the Right Tool at the Right Time
Though brainstorming is all about abstract
ideas, there are ways to organize those thoughts as they come to you. One of
these strategies is to use Focused or Diffuse thinking, depending on the
scenario. Focused thinking is exactly what it sound like – focusing. This is
easier to do in a solo brainstorming session, as there are automatically less
distractions. Diffused thinking is all about distractions, making it more ideal
for a group collaboration.
Consider a flashlight. You can have a concentrated beam of light that
only illuminates a small area very brightly or you can have a less concentrated
beam that illuminates a much broader area with a dimmer light.
Focused thought allows your brain to analyze
specific information and only work with what you allow yourself to use. Diffuse
thinking multitasks with the presented information and doesn’t worry about
getting too deep with any of the possible solutions. In keeping with the
flashlight analogy, remember: Both flashlights will take you out of the
darkness, but which one you use is solely dependent on whether you want a broad
view of your path, or a narrow route.
5 Ways to Make Brainstorming More Effective
Whether working alone or in a group, there
are steps to take in order to achieve success in brainstorming:
Have a clear objective before you start
brainstorming
Many people have the misconception that no
boundaries should be set for brainstorming, but that’s false; even if you are
happy to generate tons of ideas, they may end up being useless if they’re not
helpful in fixing the problem.
Let’s say you are working on an annual
fundraiser that seems to have declined in community participation recently. The
objective would be to find out why the
numbers are declining, not how to
generate excitement about the event once more. Though both elements are
important, you can’t come up with ideas about revamping the fundraising event
until you determine the cause of disinterest.
Give yourself a time limit
The shorter the better. Sit down with a pen
and paper or a tape recorder if you prefer to say your ideas aloud. Keep an eye
on the clock or the timer and begin to list off ideas. Allow them to flow out
and don’t worry about analyzing them yet. Keep listing ideas that come to you
until your time is up.
Be specific with the number of ideas you want
to generate
Before you begin brainstorming, decide on a
realistic number of ideas you want to come up with. This doesn’t mean all of
the ideas have to be useful in the end, only that they exist.
Don’t duplicate your thoughts
If you’re coming up with many similar points,
you’re only deceiving yourself when it comes to your success. Using the
fundraising example from point one, let’s say you come up with the
following: People are no longer
coming because they don’t like the event. The event is boring, so people don’t
have any interest in coming. These are only two versions of the
same thought. Always keep in mind that quality and quantity are equally
important in brainstorming.
Imagine that you are someone else
How would they think? Does this mindset
present solutions you wouldn’t have otherwise come up with? For instance, if
your best friend is very creative and approaches things in ways you would
typically shy away from, put yourself in their head space. What kind of
right-brained ideas would they come up with as an explanation for a decline in
fundraiser attendance? Once you’ve created a list, you can revisit it in your
own mindset and narrow the focus.
Looking Ahead
Whether brainstorming on your own or in a
group, if you take the steps outlined in this article, you set yourself up for
success, not frustration. Some of you reading this may think, “but I don’t
really have to brainstorm at work. I feel like we all collaborate pretty well.”
If that’s true, that’s awesome! But consider being aware of your daily life and
the problems you are sometimes faced with. Do you ever run through a list of
possible solutions? If so, you’re brainstorming without thinking about it.
Don’t be afraid to incorporate the tips you learned by reading this. Just
because it’s your life and not your company doesn’t make problem-solving any
less important.
References
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http://www.lifehack.org/571425/how-brainstorming-more-effectively?ref=mail&mtype=daily_newsletter&mid=20170420&uid=687414&hash=707e797f7e757e6d794c856d747b7b3a6f7b79&action=click
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