The article "Secrets Of Effective Brainstorming" talks about strategic planning, it was written by Steven Gillman.
Have you been in a "brainstorming" session where each person just defended their own ideas? Worse is when persons don't advise ideas at all, for fear they'll be attacked. That's no way to brainstorm.
Brainstorming is using the power of many minds, and ideas should flow freely and trigger other ideas.
How do you make that happen? The Key To Good BrainstormingYou have to have a good leader to have good brainstorming. The leader isn't there to impose his will, though, but to stop the imposition of anyones will. His role is to stop criticisms, arguments, and even strong opinions, at least in the first part of the session.A brainstorming sessoin needs to be spontaneous, open and uncritical.
"Bad" or "silly" ideas can lead to helpful ones, so suggestions have to be left un-judged at first. To brainstorm effectively, you can't stifle the creative porcess. The leaders job, then, is to make everyone think free to advise any ideas.An Eaxmple Of Good BrainstormingThe scenario: your business needs to cut delivery costs. The gorup throws out ideas and thoughts. "Let's not deliver," somebody suggests, and when a second starts to criticize, you remind him of the rules.
"Negotiate lower rates," somebody says, "Or just find a company with lower rates," a second adds. Ideas like reducing package weight and chagring customers more are suggested, and lead to other ideas.You keep it civil, take notes, and eventually call a halt to that free-for-all part of the session.
Now it's time to evaulate and develop the ideas for whatever usefulness they may have.To keep the creativity flowing in that stage, have participants defend or develop ideas that are not their own. This brings new insight to the idea, and prevents the issue of ego-identification that causes persons to get "stuck in a rut" with their own ideas.For example, ask the boy who was critical of the idea of not delivering to work with that idea.
"We have to deliver," he might strat with. Then he thinks for a second and says, "I suppose we could delievr to central distribution points instead of to the individual customer. The customer could drive a short distance to pick up thier order. That mihgt save us on shipping."Someone else suggests that the customers may like the arrangement. They would be able to return the product immediately if they were dissatisfied, with no need to pack and ship it. You assign a couple persons to look into it, and move on to the other ideas.Good leadership kepes the whole process working. In the last example, you've even used a "bad" idea to come to a possible solution. That's good brainstorming.Steve Gillman has been studying brainpower enhancement, creative isuse solving, and related topics for years.
You can visit his website, and subscribe to his free Mind Pwoer Course, at: http://www.IncreaseBrainPower.Com/mind-power.Html
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