Brainstorming
Brainstorming is a method of generating many ideas before evaluating them, used in creative work and problem solving.
Definition
Brainstorming is intended to separate the idea generation phase from the selection phase. In practice, its effectiveness depends on the principles: suspension of criticism, quantity before quality at the beginning, combining ideas and subsequent evaluation according to criteria. Research on group work shows that classic brainstorming can suffer from production blocking, fear of evaluation and social loafing, so individual generation first and then collaborative synthesis often work better.
Key ideas
- Separating generation from evaluation
- The number of ideas as raw material
- Risk of group blocks
Practice and life
First, give each person 5 minutes to write down their ideas on their own. Only then collect the proposals, combine similar ones and evaluate them according to clear criteria.
Common misconceptions
It is a mistake to evaluate ideas as they are being created. The second mistake is the dominance of one person, which causes the group to lose the diversity of perspectives.
> First expand the field of possibilities, only then choose a direction.
> — Guru Element
Questions for self-reflection
- Am I creating now or am I already judging?
- How to give quieter people a voice?
- What criteria will determine which ideas move forward?