Many stories from innovators, industry leaders, and other influencers in the technology space start with a simple idea that came from the most regular piece of inspiration that you can imagine. Patagonia, for example, was created because a mountain climber didn’t want to deface the mountains on his climbs anymore; fast forward a few decades, and Patagonia is a very well recognized high-end outdoor fitter and retailer. No matter if you’re in retail, screenwriting, or you’re in electrical engineering, brainstorming is a key part of the process and can be an integral step in making innovation possible.
However, understanding the power and potential of brainstorming is only part of the battle. Not every environment is conducive to brainstorming. We’ve all had experiences where either our own idea or someone else’ thought is shut down immediately. It’s a demotivating and demoralizing experience and can actually hinder creative-thinking, reduce productivity, and create a negative working environment in general. Knowing how to create a healthy and welcoming environment that allows for successful and open brainstorming can improve employee morale, increase employee engagement, and even lead to continual innovation.
“The ability to generate ideas — and implement them efficiently — is crucial for the long-term success of businesses, yet few take the time to create a culture that truly fosters creativity and innovation. The first step to establishing such a culture within a professional environment is to learn how to brainstorm effectively.”
– Kayla Matthews, Author, Focus –
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Creating an Open Space
One of the most important aspects in creating an environment conducive to brainstorming is making sure that the people involved understand and acknowledge that they are in an open space. Creating an open space takes dedication, participation, and a little bit of monitoring. Individuals need to feel comfortable speaking their thoughts aloud and presenting their ideas without fear of retaliation or ridicule. Having an open space in which you can conduct brainstorming sessions is important because it allows for people to take chances.
“It’s important to acknowledge that not every idea is going to be perfect or completely flushed out and ready to bring to market when you’re brainstorming. I mean, that’s the whole idea behind the brainstorming session in the first place. You’re just trying to get the ball rolling. You can’t look for perfection during the brainstorming phase.”
– Max Schwartzapfel, CMO, Fighting For You –
Letting team members take chances and allowing them to be open with their thoughts is integral to fostering a successful brainstorming culture. If ideas and dart-throws and thinking out loud is discouraged, brainstorming sessions will never yield the types of solutions that are game-changing or industry-innovating.
“You have to be open to ideas as a leader. Ideas from everyone in your organization. Employees are the most valuable asset any brand has, so open your ears, and hear what they have to say.”
– Andrew Chen, Chief Product Officer, Videeo.live –
Encouraging Creative Thinking
In the same vein as creating an open space, creative thinking should be more than allowed; it should be encouraged. This is because creative thinking can stimulate areas of our brain that allow us to be more free and imaginative with our problem solving. In turn, when employees bring their highest level of creativity to the brainstorming session, it yields more ideas which can be built upon and eventually lead to major solutions or innovations.
“Brainstorming is like 75% creative thinking and problem solving for us. We’ll even try to play little games at the start of a brainstorming session just to get the creative juices flowing a little bit. Easy stuff, like word-association and things like that.”
– Joshua Chin, CEO, Chronos Agency –
Creative thinking can be stimulated in more ways than one. In fact there was even a study conducted by Northwestern on the impact of starting a brainstorming session off by having participants share an embarrassing story. This seemed to facilitate both open communication among participants, as well as encourage creative thinking and problem solving.
“I think the important thing, whether people are sharing embarrassing stories, or you start with a game, or you do something else weird to start it off, is that you set the tone of uniqueness. People respond to that, and it leads to their own unique contributions to the following discussions.”
– Omid Semino, CEO and Founder, Diamond Mansion –
Allowing Fluidity and Flexibility Within the Structure
Brainstorming should always feel free-flowing to some extent. However, this isn’t always achievable in the context of a modern day organization in which the brainstorming session itself is scheduled amongst a day full of internal and external meetings or any other myriad of daily organizational tasks. Having some level of structure for your brainstorming session is inevitable. However, you can design flexibility and fluidity into that structure.
“If the conversation is flowing in one-direction, don’t force it back the other way because that’s hindering the creative energy. Instead, try to let it naturally flush itself out and see where it leads. You may be surprised by what you learn and what ideas emerge.”
– Scott Annan, CEO, Mycube Safe –
Allowing brainstorming sessions to be fluid will also make them feel more organic and give participants a better sense of both control and contribution. Designing a very non-rigid structure for your organization’s brainstorming sessions can truly help facilitate your team’s ability to successfully deliver and exchange ideas.
“Each of our teams hosts a brainstorming session weekly, but the leaders are allowed to run those sessions however they see fit. They know their team members the best, so they should have the ability to design the sessions in such a way that they feel will be beneficial to the organization as a whole.”
– Ryan Azimi, Director of International Development, ETIAS.com –
What we can Learn From Improv; ‘Yes, and’
Brainstorming doesn’t always have to be so serious. As proven by that Northwestern study on the impact of sharing embarrassing stories. In fact, it can even pay to get a little bit silly with your brainstorming from time-to-time. Wayne Brady and the rest of the cast on ‘Whose Line is it Anyway?’ carved a special place in the hearts of millions for improv-comedy. In fact, today there are even business-improv-classes which teach business professionals some of the fundamentals of improv, and how to apply them in the course of their professional lives. One of these vital lessons is, ‘yes, and’.
“There is a lot we can take away, as business professionals, from actors and improvisers. The ability to command a crowd, speaking with confidence, and not wavering in the face of the unexpected. These lessons can be quite valuable for a business person.”
– John Cheng, Co-Founder and CEO, Baotris –
‘Yes and’ is a rule in improv that is technically about responding to an idea, but conceptually is about the energy exchange that occurs between two scene partners. The ‘yes’ represents acknowledging the truth of the other person in the conversation, while the ‘and’ is how you build upon what they’ve just presented.
This can be a very useful tool in brainstorming sessions that fosters healthy and productive conversation.
“Taking one’s idea and then building on it, and then having someone else jump in and continue building on it; it’s a snowball effect. Everyone is bringing the best of their knowledge to the table and it results in some really amazing ideas.”
– John Berry, CEO and Managing Partner, Berry Law –
Documenting Takeaways and Creating Follow-Ups
Finally, when it comes down to it, brainstorming is still a business-operation or task. As such, the ideas that are presented and the solutions that emerge from productive brainstorming sessions need to be documented. Otherwise all the hard work and open conversation that occurred will go unpursued and no progress or innovation will be made.
“The note taking process is integral, and in today’s day there are so many ways to tackle this. You can record the session, have someone take notes, or just jot down the key takeaways and follow-ups at the end of the session.”
– Woody Sears, Founder, Autio –
In addition to documenting the discussion and any key takeaways, responsibilities for the follow-up tasks also need to be delegated and assigned. Taking care of this immediately after a brainstorming session can make sure that the ball isn’t dropped and that things move forward.
“It’s really important to close out the brainstorm with a plan of action to move forward and follow up on the ideas that came about. Otherwise, all that time was for nothing.”
– Brianna Bitton, Co-Founder, O Positiv–
Final Thoughts on Brainstorming
There are many ways to facilitate a brainstorming session, and there are many ideas, innovations, and creative solutions that can emerge through the regular implementation of productive brainstorming. Figure out the best brainstorming strategies for your team, from starting off with an activity that opens up the flow of conversation, to fostering open communication, and encouraging creative thinking. Your organization will almost certainly be bettered by effective brainstorming.
“Brainstorming can be powerful, but it involves more than pulling your team into a room and asking them to share their two cents. It requires a basic understanding to figure out your strategy.”
– Atlassian –