Overview
Is your creative flow stuck? Are you in need of an imagination boost? Is your brainstorming effort tapped out? Get unstuck with these six fun and creative ways to brainstorm ideas. In this short video developed by the marketing agency Vertical Measures, spark your ingenuity to move yourself from the land of lackluster to innovation Nirvana.
What You’ll Learn
After completing the work on this page, you will be able to:
- List six ways to generate fresh ideas
- Recall how to implement one or more of these methods for a fun and imaginative brainstorming process
- Utilize these techniques to get the creative juices flowing and foster better solutions
Watch the Video
Dig Deeper
After watching the video, try the following:
- Think about a problem in need of a creative solution.
- Choose one or more of the six methods to brainstorm possible solutions to the problem. You can do this on your own or with other people.
- Reflect on the results.
- Share these brainstorming techniques with a colleague or a work group.
Still Hungry?
Here’s more to spark your thinking on this topic:
- How does the best brainstorming happen? Check out this advice in The Muse article “8 Tips for Brainstorming Like the Best of Them.”
- Feeling stuck in front of a whiteboard with no ideas? Learn better ways to brainstorm in this HubSpot article “15 Creative Exercises That Are Better Than Brainstorming” and the Zapier article “Better Brainstorming: The Most Effective Ways to Generate More Ideas.”
- Did you know that there is a “father” of brainstorming? Find out who it is and how the concept was developed at Wikipedia Brainstorming. Similarly, if you are looking to generate mass ideas or want to know if your solution is a good one, consider crowdsourcing as described in Wikipedia Crowdsourcing.
- Want to host a brainstorming session? Here are some helpful rules for Brainstorming by IDEO U. Tip: bring plenty of colorful post-its!
- Learn how a simple phrase like “how might we” transforms problems into innovation opportunities in this Design Kit from IDEO U.
- Working from home these days? Or part of a remote team? In this HBR article, learn How to Brainstorm – Remotely.
These are interesting techniques that I would like to try by myself and with others to brainstorm. I have used mind mapping in the past, but the doodle technique and randomness are new and unexpected ways of being creative I am willing to try. Overall, this is an effective video to share techniques, however, my lower rating is based on the bored and monotone voice of the narrator. If you want people to be creative, you must get them excited! The narrator makes me want to fall asleep instead of making me feel jazzed and energized to brainstorm creative solutions.
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