Getting people in a room and forcing them to be imaginative isn’t exactly conducive to being creative is it?
Not sure about you, but we hate it when we are pulled into a creative brainstorm and forced to come up with crazy ideas and concepts of how to grow the business or get greater brand awareness. Being forced to come up with ideas at the drop of a hat simply doesn’t work, your mind is limited to the ideas it can generate if it is thrown into panic, or others are bouncing ideas around.
Shall We Have a Brainstorm?
© Tilholm | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos
Collaboration on the other hand seems a more encouraging way to allow people to come together and generate ideas without time and situational pressures.
We at Powwownow have found that collaboration is the most effective form of generating ideas. These ‘brainstorms’ are free creative co-working groups, which encourage members to share ideas and brainstorm. People can share ideas, ask for help, or just listen. We have a topic for the meeting and each person thinks independently prior to this. Allowing each team member to generate individual ideas at their own pace, allowing the greatest ideas to be bought to the table.
Ideas can be shared before collaboration, creating a focus to the discussion when it takes place. Not only does it allow focus points, it provides more structure to the group and means that ‘going off on a tangent’ happens less frequently.
Ideas are much more likely to be accepted by the group if everyone feels they have had a part to play in the decision making process, this kind of collaboration allows people with different personalities to shine. Someone might have great ideas, but to articulate them in a group is daunting and therefore would much rather put them down on paper – allowing different methods for ideas to be expressed means that the best can not only be brought from the team, but also for the business.
What collaboration, brainstorming techniques do you use as a business? What has been successful?