What is Brainstorming, are we Doing It Wrong?

Key Takeaways

brainstorming is one of those business terms that's gained a lot of popularity recently it can be a powerful tool used for coming up with ideas if done the correct way however some people are doing it all wrong so what is true brainstorming and how can your team use it most effectively brainstorming is an old advertising term coined by ad exec Alex F Osbourne in 1939 he noticed his employees were having a difficult time coming up with ideas for ad campaigns rather than having his team work as solo thinkers he put them in groups and realized the quantity and quality of ideas significantly improved but he didn't just sit a group down in a room with a bowl of pretzels and say go Osbourne claimed it as 1948 book your creative power that two principles are crucial to contribute to idea t'v efficacy and that is that everyone must defer judgment and strive for quantity alongside these two principles were four general rules of brainstorming go for quantity withhold criticism welcome wild ideas and combine and improve ideas quantity breeds quality the greater the number of ideas the greater the chance of thinking of an effective solution withhold criticism in brainstorming criticism of ideas generated should be put on hold instead participants should focus on extending or adding to ideas by suspending judgment everyone will contribute more ideas welcome wild ideas to get a good long list of suggestions don't make boundaries to the ideas based on budget or feasibility sometimes the craziest ideas become creative solutions to complex problems combine and improve ideas brainstorming has to address one specific question sessions trying to solve for multiple questions can be ineffective instead of inserting judgment or criticism work through ways to build off each other's ideas and solutions it's important to realize that there is a right and wrong way to brainstorm as a group if performed correctly brainstorming can be a huge asset to any team when solving problems no matter how small big or complex the problem seemed a proper group brainstorm session will lead to a creative solution you [Music]