Braindrawing

When to use it

Use it when you have a group of people who prefer non-verbal methods of creativity.

Use it as a break from verbal creative methods (a different approach often helps).

Use it when you have space to pin up a number of flipchart pages on the wall (and space for people to walk about in front of them).

Quick

X

Long

Logical

X

Psychological

Individual

X

Group

How to use it

Prepare

Pin or tape up a number of flipchart pages around the room. About three to seven is usually adequate. Have enough flipchart pens so everyone can write on these. A mixture of colors is good.

Tell everyone what you are going to do.

Do the doodling

Ask people to go to one flipchart at a time and start or extend the doodles there. Do an example yourself to show this. The idea is that people do not fill the paper, but simply add to what is there, so the result is a mixture of everyone's doodles.

Stop the doodles when all flipcharts are reasonably full (but not overloaded) with doodling. This will not take long - only a few minutes normally.

Use the results as stimuli

Ask people what shapes they can see in the pictures, what it reminds them of and then how this can be brought back to create ideas to solve the problem at hand.

Capture the ideas on another flipchart and process afterwards in the normal way.

Example

I am looking for a job and ask some friends to come around and help me come up with some ideas. We use Braindrawing, and one of the pictures created is as below:

Some of the ideas that it leads to are:

• 
  
  Fish shape on left: 'Cast out the net to new seas'
• 
  
  Square eyes in middle: 'Look on the internet'
• 
  
  Curls on right: 'Ask the hairdresser (they talk to lots of people)'

How it works

Braindrawing works by providing non-verbal stimulus to the creative (and non-verbal) right brain.

Having the doodle done by everyone ensures that it is completely random, with a number of different elements. Mixed colours adds to the stimulation.

Read more ...

Like the above Article? then Share and Enjoy it

Digg Technorati Del.icio.us Stumbleupon Reddit Facebook

Brainstorming

When to use it

Brainstorming is probably the best-known creative tool. It can thus be used in most groups, although you will probably have to remind them of the rules.

It is best done using an independent facilitator who manages the process (so the group can focus on the creative task).

Typically takes around 30 minutes to an hour. Can be shorter or longer, depending on the difficulty of the problem and the motivation of the group.

Quick

X

Long

Logical

X

Psychological

Individual

X

Group

How to use it

Prepare the group

Although brainstorming is one of the oldest and most recognised creative tools, although surprisingly few people know Alex Osborn's original four rules, so do remind them (see next section).

Define the problem

Describe the problem for which ideas are wanted and ensure everyone understands it. It is very easy for people to head off in the wrong direction.

A good way of doing this is to write it down on a flipchart page and tape it to the wall.

Generate ideas

Ideas are now created and collected. This is usually done by people calling them out and the facilitator or scribe writing them down on a flipchart. This person should ideally be someone who can write both legibly and fast, as they need to keep up with the torrent of ideas.

It is useful for all ideas to remain visible to help trigger further ideas, so when the flipchart page is full, rip it off and tape it to the wall where everyone can see them.

All people should remember and follow the four rules of Brainstorming, as below. The facilitator should step in if any of these are broken.

1. No criticism or debate, which are convergent activities and can inhibit people from giving ideas.
2. Quantity over quality, because quality assessment is also convergent. It has also been shown that the best ideas arrive unpredictably spread out over time.
3. Freewheel, which means using one idea as a stimulus for the next. Like the 'Random word' tool, this helps you out of 'stuck rut' thinking, leading you in unexpected directions. It also encourages people to think about each others ideas.
4. Mutate and Combine, where 'Mutate' means to deliberately distort and modify existing ideas and 'Combine' means to deliberately try to build new ideas from combinations of existing ones. Again, these helps you out of ruts and makes people work better together.

Wild ideas are just fine in most brainstorming sessions. They keep things moving, stimulate deeper thinking and can lead to other ideas that may just work.

When facilitating this, ensure everyone follows the rules - it is very easy to get bound up in your own ideas - and also that all people can contribute. Watch the quiet ones in the corner - they often are the people who come up with really good thoughts that, if others hear, can lead to even better ideas.

When ideas start to wane, you can take a break and start again or move to reducing the list to those which will be taken forward.

Reduce ideas

Separate from idea generation is idea reduction. Sometimes this is best done another time, another day or even by another group. Usually, however, it is done immediately after the idea creation session.

There are a number of ways of reducing ideas such as everyone voting for favourites or just discussing and seeing what comes to the surface.

Example

Problem: How to reduce road accidents

Jim: Less cars

Joan: Less people

Jill: Teach people to be careful

Jack: Teach drivers to be careful

Jim: Make drivers more careful

Jill: Put dead people in the road

Jennifer: Put policemen at every junction

Jack: Put cameras at every junction

Joan: Put cameras in every car

...

How it works

Brainstorming works when people use each other's ideas to trigger their own thinking. Our minds are highly associative, and one thought easily triggers another. If we use the thoughts of others, then these will stop us getting trapped by our own thinking structures.

Giving out half-thought-out ideas or strange suggestions is normally socially frowned on and leads to people holding back in normal situations. Brainstorming deliberately gives permission to be 'stupid' and 'child-like'.

Read more ...

Like the above Article? then Share and Enjoy it

Digg Technorati Del.icio.us Stumbleupon Reddit Facebook

Attribute Listing

When to use it

Use Attribute Listing when you have a situation that can be decomposed into attributes - which itself can be a usefully creative activity.

Particularly useful with physical objects. You can use it elsewhere, too.

Highly rational style. Suitable for people who prefer analytic approaches. Good for engineering-type situations.

Quick

X

Long

Logical

X

X

Psychological

Individual

X

X

X

Group

How to use it

List attributes

For the object or thing in question, list as many attributes as you can. Thus, for example, a screwdriver has attributes of 'applies torque', 'metal shaft', etc.

It can also be useful to first break the object down into constituent parts and look at the attributes of each part in question. Thus you may break the screwdriver into the handle, the shaft and the tip. The tip then has attributes of 'fits screw', 'thin blade', etc.

Consider value of attributes

For each attribute, ask 'what does this give'? Seek the real value of each attribute. It is also possible that attributes have 'negative value' -- ie. they detract from the overall value of the object.

For example, the handle of a screwdriver being examined has attributes of 'hexagonal' which have the value of 'helps grip' and 'stops rolling on workbench', but has negative value of 'sharp corners'.

Modify attributes

Finally look for ways in which you can modify the attributes in some way. Thus you can increase value, decrease negative value or create new value.

Thus, for example, you could modify the attributes of the screwdriver handle to be 'comfortable grip' by adding a rubber sleeve.

Example

The attributes of a customer service desk include opening hours, friendliness of service and availability of literature. You could change the opening hours to weekends (but closed during low hours during the week). Friendliness could be improved by keeping records of people asking for help and then asking them later how things went. And so on.

How it works

Attribute Listing works as a decompositional approach, breaking the problem down into smaller parts that can be examined individually. All things have attributes which are sometimes overlooked. By deliberately focusing on these, you can find new ways to be creative.

Read more ...

Like the above Article? then Share and Enjoy it

Digg Technorati Del.icio.us Stumbleupon Reddit Facebook

Assumption-busting

When to use it

Assumption-busting can be used in most creative situations. It is particularly effective when you are stuck in current thinking paradigms or have run out of ideas. It is thus good for re-booting a flagging session.

Quick

X

Long

Logical

X

Psychological

Individual

X

Group

Duration:

Short. Can be instantaneous (thinking method).

Can also be used

Style:

Logical. You don't have to be a fluffy bunny to use this one. Good for engineers and accountants.

Individual or group: You can use it as a one-person thinking tool or the basis for a brainstorm-style session.

How to use it

Definition: Assumption = 'Assumed truth that is not questioned'

1. List assumptions

Look at the situation you are in with a close eye. What are the assumptions you are making about it? What seems so obvious that you would not normally think about challenging it?

List out the assumptions. Once you get going, you'll find you can't stop. And when you do, find the assumptions that are stopping you and challenge these.

Typical assumptions include:

• That it is impossible to do something--particularly within constraints such as time and cost.
• That something works because of certain rules or conditions.
• That people believe, think or need certain things.

For example I might assume that deliveries take a minimum of three days and that this is no problem for my customers.

Remember that everything is a belief. Even this statement. Even your interpretation of this statement. If you cannot find assumptions then you are assuming that they do not exist.

2. Challenge assumptions

Change your assumptive base. Assume that all assumptions can be challenged and overcome.

Ask 'How could this be not true?'

Ask 'What if we could do this twice as well in in half the time?'

Of course you will get assumptions about the challenge, so keep responding with new challenges to these assumptions too.

3. Find ways of making the challenge reality

This is, of course, just another assumptive challenge. It is easy in a creative session to play games of challenging assumptions. The real challenge it to make it happen in reality. So just use the same principle again.

It has very wisely been said that: 'It is better to get forgiveness than permission.'

Example

Situation: We cannot sell these new widgets over the internet.

Assumption: We do not have the technology.

Busting: We can learn. We can buy it in.

Assumption: Buying it in would be expensive.

Busting: You don't know until you ask. Get my teenage son to do it.

Assumption: Your teenage son would not do it professionally.

Busting: Look at these sites he did. He can at least do a trial site to prove the principle.

Assumption: It won't work.

Busting: A trial site would help prove this. 

How it works

In our everyday lives, we make an enormous number of assumptions about how the world around us works. Normally, this works just fine, but in creative situations it can blind us to many possibilities.

Assumption-busting works by deliberately seeking out and addressing these previously-unquestioned assumptions.

Read more ...

Like the above Article? then Share and Enjoy it

Digg Technorati Del.icio.us Stumbleupon Reddit Facebook

Art streaming

When to use it

Use it when you are are stuck and are stuck in a rut of constrained thinking.

Use when you need to find more ideas.

Use it when you are more introverted, and verbal streaming is too uncomfortable.

Use it when you are trying to be artistically creative and are creatively blocked.

Use it when you are not artistic too. It is the mental results that are important, not the artwork.

Quick

X

Long

Logical

X

Psychological

Individual

X

Group

How to use it

Go hide somewhere

Find a place where you can be alone for a good deal of time. Make it somewhere comfortable, where you can write. Take lots of paper or canvasses (old ones are probably a good idea) and a variety of paints, brushes, pens, pencils, spatulas and so on. You can also take modeling clay, wood, wire or other material with which you can create sculptures.

Create, non-stop

Now just paint away. Or model away. Or sculpt away. Do not worry about the quality of what you are doing. The goal is not to create artwork you will show or sell. Let your subconscious create whatever is on your mind. Just see what appears.

When a canvas is full or a model is complete, you can leave it and do another or start again with the same materials. The goal is to keep going rather than to create anything in particular. If you like what you have done, then put it aside, by all means. Just keep going.

When you are done, you can muse over what you have created, if you wish, and wonder what your subconscious is trying to say. Or you can just scrap it.

Example

I am feeling frustrated by creative problems at work. I get home and head for the garage and get out the wood and powertools. I spend the evening carving, cutting, sawing, chiseling, screwing and gluing. The result is a strange set of what could be called sculptures. By the time I go to bed, I'm feeling much better and some useful ideas are trickling through.

How it works

This approach works by giving the conscious mind something to do that allows the subconscious mind to free itself of what is concerning it. Worries and ideas can all come out in the artwork. And amongst the weeds, fruitful flowers of ideas can also pop up as you keep creating.

It is known that in brainstorming, that good ideas appear randomly as long as you keep going. The same is true in art. If you keep daubing long enough, good stuff will appear.

Read more ...

Like the above Article? then Share and Enjoy it

Digg Technorati Del.icio.us Stumbleupon Reddit Facebook