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creative problem solving techniques workshop
1 day

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HandHeld Computers

creative problem solving workshop - 1 day

Brainstorming

Brainstorming is synonymous with idea generation. It involves one person acting as a scribe writing down ideas called out by a small group of people who are adhering to certain brainstorming rules. It was developed in the late 1930s by advertising executive Alex Osborn.

As part of the Mental Athletics programme I included a module called Interactive Creativity Tactics. Of course it incorporated a personal 'brainstorming' tool which mirrored the real process including:

  • Warmup - a vital activity to get the mental muscles working, invoke humour and help to offset judgemental interference.
  • Rules - these must not be ignored, otherwise you are simply having a discussion
  • Storm - the idea generating part boosted by setting 'quotas' and a tight time limit
  • Sleep - a time to leave the problem for awhile (have a tea break, go for a walk) and return to produce your 'best' ideas?
  • Stuck - a time to reexamine assumptions, to spot traps that hinder idea generation
  • Review - a time for reflection on how it went

Preparation
Never start a brainstorm without exploring the challenge first. Expose the assumptions, find the real challenge within the hierarchy of challenges, make sure it is not too broad.

If the same people who work with the same problems everyday meet and discuss these problems using the same language and procedures the outcome is always predictable. Sameness breeds more sameness. Seeing the world with old eyes only helps produce old ideas.
Arthur B. VanGundy

Warmups
Pick a favourite from below and say why

  • vegetable
  • planet
  • letter of the alphabet
  • coin
  • age group
  • road
Your Best experience of customer service; worst experience of customer service
You are a door,carpet,window,roof,table,TV,book,pencil - describe what happens in a typical day
Draw a picture of the Bathroom of the future - 100 years hence
Use fantasy questions such as:
  • what if we worked at night only
  • what if we were deaf
  • what if we eat once a week
  • what if there was only 4 hours of sun a day
  • what if we were paid to stay at home and work was pleasure
  • what if there were no cars
  • what if we didn't have tv or radio
  • what if we grew younger each day
  • what if there was only one sex
  • what if we only lived 20 years what if we lived to 200 years

Independent facilitator
When group brainstorming always remember to have an independent facilitator who should strive for equal participation. Try to bring fresh blood with new eyes into the meeting.

VanGundy Study
This study by Arthur B. VanGundy, Ph.D., a US creativity expert, compared idea generating by brainstorming and brainwriting and how to improve idea productivity. It used six, four persons groups for the former and four four person groups for the latter idea generating for 45 mins. It concluded:

  • Deferring judgement improved productivity by 73%. (52 ideas v 30 ideas).
    Note: Dr Robert Weisberg studies suggest that critical groups are superior in terms of quality and that withholding judgement does nothing to enhance creativity!
  • Brainwriting with interaction produces almost 3 times as many ideas as brainwriting without sharing. (120 v 45 ideas)
  • The use of unrelated challenge stimuli as idea triggers dramatically increases idea productivity to average 310 ideas from 30