Creative Streak

Creating The Right Brainstorm Atmosphere

In his book Creative Thinking in the Decision and Management Sciences, James R. Evans points out that “intellectual playfulness” (that is, having fun) is one of the most critical elements of the brainstorm process.

Having fun or adding humour is important because it frees people from negative thinking, but at the same time, stimulates thinking that will go beyond the pedestrian. Humour allows people to have fun with the problem, or look to different solutions – often unusual solutions. This doesn’t mean to have a laugh-fest without purpose. It means allowing people to explore new avenues and thought in a risk-free environment.

In short: if it’s not going to be fun, forget it.

Some simple tips:

• Create the right environment by having food and beverages. Much like a car needs petrol to run, the brain needs fuel to stimulate creative thinking. Personally I prefer food/drinks which contain natural stimulants, such as caffeine or sugar. I get heaps of people who ask if they can serve alcohol. Generally no. Alcohol is a depressant, which means it slows down brain activity. But as someone who never turns away a glass of pinot noir (just in case any of you are thinking about holiday presents for yours truly), alcohol is a nice thing to add at the end of the brainstorm for celebration.

Solo Creativity, Part 1

Brainstorming is a group activity, but more often than not, people need to be creative when working alone, for three reasons: 1) not enough time to run a proper brainstorm, 2) the organisation or department is too small to invite others to a brainstorm, or 3) there simply aren't "creative people" around even if the first two requirements exist.

Thankfully, everyone has the ability to be creative regardless of how many people surround us. In fact, I could argue that your creativity might actually increase because you don’t have to worry about typical negative aspects of a brainstorm, like group think, negativity or cynicism.

In a two-part post (today and tomorrow), I’ve outlined ten ways which you can boost your solo creativity. Each is a variation on the basic theme of stimulating your creativity with mental or visual imagery, and all can be adapted to suit your personality, style and work environment.

As always, you should articulate the goal (what are you trying to solve?), and the need or problem (what’s preventing you from being successful?) Start with the tips below, but not necessarily in order. Write or draw your ideas on blank paper. (Be environmentally friendly and use old pages from your printer!) Don’t worry about how long you brainstorm. Sometimes it’s best to brainstorm for 10-15 minutes, return to a previous project, then return for another stretch of brainstorming an hour or so later on. You can keep this up for several days, returning whenever you need a mental break.

Solo Creativity, Part 2

Here’s the remaining half of yesterday’s post. Click here for Part 1.

6. Talk to someone who will use the idea.

My ultimate creative fiasco was the brainstorm where we came up with ideas for a new diabetes drug, then tried to sell the ideas to the client without talking with a diabetic. Our ideas were wholly off the mark. For solo brainstormers, find someone who will “use” the idea to brainstorm other ideas. I also find that it’s easier to sell the idea to my “client” because I’ve had more confidence that the target audience would participate and engage in these ideas. Another lesson from this trick: don’t we often think the only people we can talk to are inside the company? With due respect to confidentiality and intellectual property, sometimes it’s actually better to find someone else not associated with your problem or issue to brainstorm new ideas.

7. Ask a celebrity for help.

Again, focusing on the end-user is paramount to creating the right idea. Sometimes part of the fun is imagining the target audience as a real, historical or fictional celebrity. When brainstorming ideas to position a mid-priced car, I wondered how I might sell the car to Homer Simpson. When brainstorming ideas to launch a new line of cosmetics, I chose Kylie Minogue. When looking at ways of increasing patronage of an airline flight lounge for first-class travellers, I thought of Condoleezza Rice. For a premium liquor, James Bond. For sore throat lozenges, Whitney Houston. The additional attributes of any celebrity from any area of popular culture or news gives you ample elements to brainstorm.

Brainstorming in a Flash

When I first started facilitating brainstorms, you could describe them in three ways: big, formal and scheduled. Now, brainstorms are impromptu gatherings in a hallway or at a side table, people are chosen by random selection, and we’re together for no longer than 30 minutes.

If you’ve never tried this type of “in a flash” brainstorm, or want some tips to improve your next one, here’s some instructions and helpful tips.

Instructions

• Create a simple brief - one page or less - that includes these points:

1. What’s the (business) objective?

2. Who’s the target audience?

3. What’s the primary problem to overcome?

4. Here’s a key insights to consider …

Do I Need a Brainstorm Facilitator?

There’s lots of tasks when the “do it yourself” approach works a treat, and other times, not so much. For example, performing your own dental surgery isn’t a great idea.

Speaking of “great ideas” – should you “DIY” your own brainstorm? More exactly, should you facilitate your own brainstorm? In a word, NO.

As a brainstorm sponsor, you should spend your valuable time during the brainstorm doing constructive work, such as …

• By actively participating in idea generation,
• By listening and encouraging concepts and ideas you like, and
• By clarifying the purpose and direction of the brainstorm.

Or conversely, you should not perform “un-constructive” work – that is, any basic skill best done by a good facilitator – such as …

Want a Successful Brainstorm?

A few weeks ago, a client asked me to facilitate a brainstorm for a new product launch. Their only caveat was they didn't want to involve their agency: "They only come up with wild ideas."

Soon after, an agency where I frequently run brainstorms asked me to run a session to develop ideas for a client's new product launch. I asked if the client was coming to the meeting, and the response: "They only want safe ideas." 

I might have doubled my revenue by conducting separate brainstorms, but I figured client and agency would eventually realize they hired the same person for the same project.

These opinions aren't uncommon. In 2005, an industry newsletter reported clients felt 'creativity' was a 'highly important' attribute of their agencies, but generally gave them low marks. Later that year, the same newsletter reported one of the biggest areas of complaint by agencies of their clients was their unwillingness to implement 'good ideas.'