Brainstorming — back to basics

This piece was written as a proactive reflection, after running a short design course at the University of the Arts London. While developing the course content, I framed brainstorming as one of the 20+ tools we would be using, while running the session however, it was clear to me that each tool needs a skillset and a level of confidence to be used effectively. This article connects the novice experience with the fundamental skills to practice to make the brainstorming tool work and will be my blueprint for future sessions.

Brainstorming seems so basic, the term is thrown around studios and offices often, but really knowing when and how to use it well is a real skill. There are so many ideation resources out there it can make your head spin. I put this together after noticing that explaining brainstorming rules to novice groups still felt pretty abstract.

There are notes of fear for sure, coming up with ideas can feel intimidating, especially in a group of people you may not know. The blow is softened online with the camera off but still, the evidence of the hesitation is there right on the Miro board, your name hovering over that blank post-it. I noticed the interfaces getting in the way of the free flow of ideas, typing, or trying to draw on your mousepad, it even takes time to learn how to use a stylus, so overall working on paper feels much simpler.

The context and tools matter for sure, but before we even start ideating, the slide of rules comes up on the screen, and even though they are explained, often what good looks like is invisible. Here is my attempt at explaining them, step by step. I’m using IDEO’s 7 Simple Rules of Brainstorming as a framework to build on.

Before we start (and this is often covered) we need to have a moderator and a timekeeper. These roles are really important because they set the structure and pace of the activity.

1. Defer Judgment

Creative spaces are judgment-free zones — they let ideas flow so people can build from each other’s great ideas.

Although many of us try hard, none of us are judgment-free. In this setting, however, the skill to hone is looking for the small sparks which make you think generatively. A negative reaction can be turned into something productive if not clouded by judgment.

Post-it: Planting a hedge between a cycle lane and the road in Leeds.
Gut reaction: “That will never work there is no space” — the idea gets dismissed.
Skill: Ability to look beyond the words and doodles. There is no hedge, but maybe a natural or organic barrier between people sharing a road — this thought is generative and makes you bypass the hedge altogether

Fig 1 — LEFT: Someone draws a hedge to separate a cyclist from traffic. CENTRE: Another person makes a judgement, perhaps in their mind. RIGHT: This is a way of flipping the judgment into a generative thought, what is the hedge is not a hedge but a natural barrier — what could this barrier be made of? Insert more ideas here…

2. Encourage Wild Ideas

Embrace the most out-of-the-box notions. There’s often not a whole lot of difference between outrageous and brilliant.

An interpretation of wild that works for me is, what you put down on paper can defy the laws of physics. This is because the ideas are actually, just fragments of concepts that will be constructed later. So really the word ‘idea’ is somewhat problematic, let’s think of them as idea fragments from now on.

Wild idea: A flying bike.
Skill: This sketch could be dismissed as not feasible. What if you write it down? The bikes don’t touch the ground, there is no ground… could this be an elevated path for bicycles and other micro-mobility vehicles? This feels closer to reality, and is generative, makes you ask questions…

Fig 2— LEFT: Someone draws a flying bike. CENTRE: Someone frames it with words. RIGHT: Someone builds a ramp for bikes to ‘fly’ above the street level.

3. Build on the Ideas of Others

Try to use “and” instead of “but,” it encourages positivity and inclusivity and leads to tons of ideas.

This is true, ideation is not a test, it’s about collaboration, so whether you see someone’s sketch and are inspired to add to it or you want to ‘add a build’ (this means adding a generative comment to an idea fragment you heard in a share, see Fig.2) you are encouraged to do so. You can also draw inspiration from people and things that are not in the room. You are allowed and encouraged to sketch or note down things that already exist, they can be a key part of analogous inspiration, and cross-pollination of ideas is a key part of uncovering new concepts.

4. Stay Focused on the Topic

Try to keep the discussion on target. Divergence is good, but you still need to keep your eyes on the prize.

This is hard if you don’t know what the prize is. Ideation means you are in a position of creating something that doesn’t yet exist so that prize may be a bit fuzzy. Giving yourself guard rails may help if the moderator doesn’t help with this at the start. It’s important to say that this skill comes with practice, it’s very easy to think of something great that may pull your mind into a wonderful rabbit hole of your new side project or business venture. The key here is self-awareness, and here is a hack which may help while you’re working on that skill.

Problem: Ideas are sticky and they will stay in your mind unless you get them out, so write them down or sketch them out quickly, park them and get back to the task at hand.
Workaround: Set a space on the side of your table or digital board called ‘Idea Park’, put all those rogue thoughts in there and get back to them after the session is over. Having a title of your challenge topic visible is also a good way to remind yourself what you’re doing.

Fig 3—LEFT: Write down your topic and keep it visible while ideating. CENTRE: Make separate post-its for each idea fragment, a sketch, a few words… try not to write down more than five, but enough so that you can remember what it’s about. When you talk about the post-its you can build on the thought and others can capture more detail. RIGHT: If you think of something great but it’s off-topic, put in to the side in your allocated ‘Idea Park’

5. One Conversation at a Time

This can be difficult — especially with lots of creative people in a single room — but always think about the challenge topic and how to stay on track.

This point should really be last if my interpretation of the process is correct. Once the time is up everyone will get a turn to talk through their doodles. What you write down in haste may no longer make sense so people need time to articulate the meaning of their scribbles. As they externalise their thought processes, the listeners have an opportunity and responsibility to help clarify and strengthen the idea fragments. Each thought is like a brick, and how those bricks are put together will define the outcome: a bridge, a house, a sidewalk, the same building materials, different results.

Fig 4—LEFT: If you think about your ‘idea’ as a brick, it may be easier to be prepared to look for other ‘bricks’ you can use to build something great. CENTRE: The same bricks can be rearranged to build many things. RIGHT: So keep that generative spirit with you throughout the brainstorming session (and after too).

6. Be Visual

Use coloured markers and Post-its. Stick your ideas on the wall so others can visualise them.

We now live in a hyper-visual society, everyone makes beautiful social media posts and takes multiple pictures throughout the day. The tools we use are simple so effective, it feels somewhat brainless.

Putting pen to paper is very different. Every stroke you make is permanent and well, may look less perfect than what’s in your mind, this is when the panic sets in. So many times people in brainstorms start their idea share by saying ‘I’m not good at drawing’ (which is painful to hear since mark-making is a primal human activity, but more on that in another article).

Here are some ideas which may be helpful:

1. Practice: Try sketching before the session, everything will help, spend 1 minute at breakfast drawing your coffee cup for a week, so simple and it will make a huge difference.
2. Shortcuts: If making the visuals is hindering you, write down a ‘shortcut’ to your idea, for example: Your idea is to get children to cycle to school in groups for safety. You can write down a reference to ‘critical mass’ or the ‘walking school bus’ — both of these things already exist and can serve as an inspiration, use them to story-tell during the share.
3. Twists: Write down something people are already familiar with and add your twist to it. For example: Bike gear library—everyone knows how a library works, your twist is changing the context. A simple drawing could be a library card.

Once you get over your fear, however, it’s important to say that visuals are open to interpretation, which makes them perfect as generative idea fragments. A sketch of a walking school bus can act as a catalyst for idea generation.

Fig 5—LEFT: The walking school bus is something done in Japan, and making this simple note is enough for you to storytell around during the share. CENTRE: Drawing the bus adds more entry points for idea generation, and practically it is easier to find when you are looking at a board with 100 post-its on it. RIGHT: Draw something that people are already familiar with and add a twist.

7. Go for Quantity

Crank your ideas out quickly. For any 60-minute session, you should try to generate 100 ideas.

Again these are ideas or thought fragments not finalised concepts. They will come together into a wobbly thing which will need a lot of work. Having said this, the numbers in this statement make me feel like it would be impossible to achieve, an hour of ideation straight and 100 ideas seem impossible, that’s only 36 seconds per idea!

Let’s break this down. A typical ideation session would run in small sprints, there would be an introduction, plus a few idea generation mini sprints. If working with people who are fairly new to the process using a more restricted framework can work well, like Cazy 8s, this means 8 ideas in 8 minutes, which feels more accessible as the number is smaller. So let’s say you do four sets of Crazy 8’s, you will end up with 32 ideas, and if you’re in a group of three, you will most likely surpass the 100 mark since every time you share, more ideas will be generated.

If you get stuck: a simple word association exercise may be helpful: bike, wheel, skid, rain etc

Fig 6—If generating 100 ideas in 60 minutes makes you sweat, try to break the session down into smaller chunks. If you get three people in the room and run the Crazy 8s activity four times, you will get there.

In conclusion

It’s important to remember that even though brainstorming is just one of the design process tools, it gets better with practice, and outcomes are also affected by who is in the room and how comfortable the participants are with the tools they’re using. It’s the moderator’s job to ensure the right people are there, that all voices are heard and ideas are captured in a way that can be referred back to, shared with a wider group, and be a catalyst for a first prototype.

And remember, when participating in a well run brainstorm:

1. You will know why you’re there
2. You will be adding idea fragments to a bigger concept
3. You have a responsibility to listen actively to other people and build concepts together
4. You will not be judged on your drawing skills or ideas, however, both sketching and articulating thoughts are skills which you can practice before arriving
5. You have to be self-aware to stay on topic
6. You will follow an iterative process, and if done well, you will have something to prototype at the end