Finding out new and innovative ideas is important for the growth and success of any team and organization.
While the brainstorming process rightly perceives the exciting and creative, it is important to understand how to get the framework and idea generation process for empowering the group to generate the results.
To understand how to do it, and what you need to know, here are the easy brainstorming games, activities, and exercises.
Brainstorming ground rules
Brainstorming is no doubt the creative process that should encourage fresh thinking, team cohesion, and co-creation.
But without having the right framework and guiding rules, the idea generation session can be short. When it goes wrong, it can be frustrating. The participants might go off-topic or have unstable ideas.
Here are some of the rules that you should focus on when you are going for the brainstorming :
Create The Space Which Is Safe And Supportive
Encouraging bold ideas and free-thinking, for this, you need to create a space where everyone feels heard, safe, supported, and shares their ideas.
As a facilitator or team leader, it’s my responsibility to lead the way and set the example by being encouraged and positive.
Defer The Judgments
Ideas beget ideas, and it’s most effective when everyone is generating their ideas without having any kind of fear of being judged and even bad ideas are welcome.
Defer judgment on ideas during the brainstorming in initial and ensure prematurely shot down or feels like they said something which should be on the table.
Encouraging The Ideas Which Are Wild
Innovative and creative solutions often come from unexpected places.
Encouraging the group to think of something which is out of the box and generating wild, big ideas can help in making the brainstorming process effective.
Aim For The Better Quality
The core ethos is to think about the ideas, not the quaint. There are no bad ideas, so it’s free to come up with everything that you come up with.
Focus on creating as many ideas as you can without having any judgment before choosing the best ones.
Allowing The Team To Preparation
While the target here of brainstorming is to be spontaneous and happens in a moment.
It can especially help the participants to have opportunities or preparation. Bringing ideas that are new or some research to the workshop or ideation session to help it become a success.
Building The Ideas Of Others
Together, the collective is smarter and better when it comes to generating ideas instead of being alone.
It’s important that you are being positive and building on ideas of what others have and not only will find an effective way of brainstorming.
Timebox Activities
It’s important that there is a balance of freedom, and results might get tricky.
While it can be tempting to do the brainstorming activities over and over without taking breaks, this is not going productive and continuing exercise should not end and can end up messing up the agenda.
Stay Focus On The Process
Ensuring the focusing problem statement or scope for doing the brainstorming session should be clear and keep everyone focused.
While this can help you in improving and encouraging creativity, it also ensures to finish the ideas that are usable and don’t diverge from the whole scope.
One conversation At Time
Part of creating the environment is supported by ensuring the ideas which have space for developing means for meaning the moment to share.
Ensuring the discussion which is productive by having one single conversation at one time, and paying attention to everyone.
Mixing The Individual And Group Work
Like any process the group, brainstorming can be effective and balance the quiet solo work with group work as well as discussion.
This gives the moment for reflecting as well as developing the sharing of the enrichment for developing the generation process. Also, it gives an ample amount of opportunity to everyone to contribute.
Make Sure To Be Visual
Some ideas are committed but are more effective along with images and using sketches.
Enabling to be fast creating thinking in a live or online setting, you can use the post its images and drawing.
This can help in tapping into the varied skill set of the team but also for the resources for idea generation in the future.
Make Sure You Are Following The Process
Brainstorming and ideation when you have no structure or framework can end up being chaotic and potentially by not giving up the results that you are looking for.
Use an idea generation process or the technique like those who are in the post of ensuring for creating the ideas, sharing the best ones, and making sure it develops successfully.
Create The Habit Of Documentation
Collect and document the ideas that you get while brainstorming, using the posts, whiteboards, or taking notes.
That can be a great way to develop the idea and make something more usable.
Documenting the session can help you in ensuring to avoid covering too much of the same ground in future sessions.
Follow Up
Brainstorming ideas is not the end of the process, so when you are moving toward developing as well as implementing the ideas, make sure everyone is in the loop and taking the part in stages.
Ideas For Fun Brainstorming Games, Activities & Exercises for Students
Brainstorming can be a great idea for encouraging the team members to share the best ideas for creating solutions that are new and innovative to the given issue.
The key to creating effective brainstorming is to pick the warm-up exercise for creating huskies lowing and engaging the different perspectives.
Here are some of the ideas that you can consider for picking the brainstorming activities, exercises as well as games.
Brainstorming Games, Activities & Exercises includes :
Start With Draw Something
The first method that can be a good start is to start with something to draw. The idea generation can be a fun process and also help in encouraging creative thinking.
Drawing can be great for starting and help in being creative.
To start, you can set the timer for one minute and ask everyone to draw something that can be simple and abstract.
Multi-Purpose Items
This is a fun activity that can help encourage people to have an open mind and come up with creative ideas.
You can start by breaking the group into small sets of people. You can provide them with ideas such as paper clips or clothes bags.
Set the time for 1 – 3 minutes. And come up with the uses that should be different but with the same item.
Play The Popcorn
Well, this brainstorming technique encourages people to have the free flow method so they come up with different ideas much more quickly.
This is a good idea for the initial ideas that you can use in the later activities.
To start this, you need to :
- Find the purpose for the problem, and make sure it’s specific.
- Give them the thinking time, usually, it is only for one minute.
- Designate the note taker for writing the ideas
- Have people who can call out and encourage the ideas along with adding these ideas.
- Once you have no ideas at all, go back to the list and choose the best one that can be explored.
Brain Writing
One of the most effective techniques that you can get for brainstorming is to generate as many solutions that can be possible,
Make sure that everyone has time to say this. It might take some to get the constraints, it will be less than ideal if you have a room full of people.
Make sure you have a small group so everyone can participate.
Rapid Ideation
Well, it is also known as rapid writing or rapid ideation; it is similar to the popcorn method but in a structured way.
Well, to do this, you need to :
- Setting out the problem which is central.
- Set the time limit of between 3 – 5 minutes.
- Have the team or person write down the ideas they can come up with.
- Once the time is up, compare the notes and look for similar ideas which are common in themes.
Do The Mind Mapping
Well, the mind map is a connected form in the visual form of free association.
So when you are doing the mind mapping, the idea here is to go with the feeling connection, which is traced visually.
To start this, you need to do :
- Here you will need to have the whiteboard and markers, this is for the outlining whiteboard.
- Start by writing down the questions which are core.
- You can also set the timer. However, it is optional.
- You take turns when it comes to calling out the questions and ideas which are related to the core issues.
- Draw the line between the core ideas and each related point.
- Continue with that for finding out the related and core
- Keep going until time runs out, or you have enough ideas generated.
The 5 Why
The next you can consider is the one of most powerful techniques when it comes to brainstorming as it gets to the heart of the real problem.
To do this, you need to :
- Choose a group, and make sure it is a small group.
- Take a piece of paper or a whiteboard, so you can write down the problem in the top corner.
- Reward the problem, so you should ask the why and write down the answers.
- Then regarding that answer, ask why again.
- Repeat for five whys.
- then you should discuss what you learn from the cause of the problem.
Walking brainstorm
Well, walking brainstorming is a useful tool that you can consider if you have enough space. It includes a conference room etc. This tool is good for addressing complex issues and problems for ensuring that everyone gets the opportunity to share their point of view.
For this, You have to:
- Start with setting up stations around the room
- at each station, consider the separate aspect of the larger issue
- Keep Sticky notes at each station
- let the people work individually between 2 stations and write down the ideas using the sticky notes at each station.
- Make sure you are allowing enough time for everyone to attend the station.
Idea napkin
Idea napkin is a balance between generating a lot of ideas much faster and keeping some depth to them.
- To do this, you need to provide an index card to everyone. Then set a time limit of 5 minutes only. Everyone writes their ideas and elevates their pitch.
- Make sure each person is writing the ideas to the group.
- If you have a larger group then break them into smaller groups to do the task.
Consider Using The Partner For The Brainstorming
Working with the larger group and considering breaking into you can be a great approach for brainstorming.
Each individual will get there to solve the different aspects of the problem or work on the same issue.
Collaborative Brainwriting
To involve everyone in the ideation process, collaborative brainwriting can be a great way while it provides time to make sure the creativity flows in its natural state.
Chat Waterfall
This one is ideal when you are working with remote groups as there are high chances ideas get lost quickly in the flow of written chat conversation.
- To do this, Start with a group of 5 to 10 people.
- Set up video chat for the group.
- Consider the theme for the session
- Set the timer for 2 minutes for everyone to think quietly
- Let everyone type the best ideas into the written chat.
Six Question
This method allows you to consider different angles. It is also a popular approach that can help in addressing big problems.
- Start withdrawing 6 Point stars using a whiteboard
in the Center, write the core Topic.
- Around the point, start with who, what why, when, and where as well as how
- Now try to answer each of the questions
- If you have enough artist paint, it can be assigned to each individual.
Lotus Bloom
Lotus Bloom is a technique that helps in searching for more innovative ideas and building with its suggestion to find a better one.
You need to break groups into 3 to 10. draw a grid of nine squares In the center of the paper, or you can use a whiteboard.
Now write down the center square. try to fill out the eight squares with the heading the relatable ideas and repeat this at least 2 or 5 times to get the promising ideas.
What If
This approach is great for having while getting perspectives in a different way on land issues, especially if you are feeling stuck.
- To do this, you need to set up a problem statement that asks for water and then makes scenarios on your own.
- Explode different questions that could be answered.
- Keep going until you have enough ideas
Writing Off Hand
This method can be helpful when you are thinking about a non-dominant half of your brain, and it can be a fun way to generate new ideas.
- To start with, you are going to need to identify the core issue which you need to address.
- Provide everyone with paper and a pen.
- Put a timer and set it to three to five minutes.
- Let everyone write down the ideas but let them use the non-dominant hand
Reverse Assumption
The reverse assumption is a method that challenges what you think and believe that you know about the idea. this method can be used when you are working alone or alone or online
- write down the problem using a piece of paper or whiteboard which can be online or offline.
- Now write down the solution for what you think about the problem.
- challenge the idea by adding the different assumption
- Make sure to continue until you have no assumptions in your mind
Storytelling
This method can be good for product development or marketing teams as it involves telling a narrative about the issue and discussion regarding working through this case.
- When doing this, you need to explain the problem that needs to be solved.
- you’re going to need a group which consists of at least 7 for 15 members.
- Now you need to designate a storyteller in each and every group.
- The storyteller begins by describing a narrative that can be fictional.
- Other members may ask questions, point out their objections, or suggest their own ideas to add to the narrative.
- Next is to write down the summary regarding the story and let the group progress on the issue.
- discuss what you learned and ask for feedback
Free Association
this method is simple, Head focus is on what comes to mind, and for this activity, the participant has to write down whatever they are thinking about, no matter how unrelated it might seem
Role-Playing
The next one is role-playing. It can be used for understanding the appearance of a customer or user.
- For doing this, we need participants to represent each role.
- You need to act according to a scenario.
- Treat the problem like it is real but make sure to be creative or ridiculous, so you do want it in other ways.
- Those who are not into roleplay can interject their ideas for their comments.
- Once it’s done, discuss with everyone what they learn about the problem.
Sticky Note Map
sticky note map is a free mind mapping version which is great if you have members who are quiet in a group.
- Here they have to write the core Idea or tissue which should be in the center of a whiteboard.
- Provide sticky notes to everyone who participated in this group.
- Let the group members write their ideas using the stick-in and then added to the board.
- Here they have to make sure that what they are doing is between their Idea and the idea is related to the problem
Drawing The Issue
This one is a reversed brainstorming where the participants had to draw pictures of what represents the problem according to them.
- Provide all the parts spent with a marker and sheet of paper. Begin by stating an issue that is General, for example; it can be having bad customer reviews.
- Allow everyone to take 5 minutes to draw the representation of what is causing the problem.
- Discuss the solution.
Eight In Eight
Well, this version of this method can be applied to small groups, or it can be online.
For doing this:
- You need to have a group of 8 people
- Make sure each one has their drawing application of paper along with a pen or marker with them.
- Start a 1-minute timer and let everyone draw what is causing the problem.
- Arrange the drawing according to the central issue
- Fit one of the problem representations at the center and put it in a 3 x 3 grid.
- Start with a 1-minute timer, and everyone must draw a solution to the problem.
- complete the second exercise for eight more problems
Imagination Storming
This one can be considered If you are using phone calls instead of video chat. Imagination storming is a great method for visual thinkers and great for doing product development,
For doing this, the participants close ties for at least one minute and Imagine the core topic, which can be anything, for example, smartphones. Now they have to visualize what it looks like, what it does and how it can be used, and for what.
Then the next step is to discuss the common Trends and things on which the product can be imagined
Now everyone will close their eyes and think about this for at least one minute. This time they will imagine the new use of the same thing or the added feature accessories that could make it better.
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“Vision, strategy, and inspiration – these three words describe me the best. I am the founder of “TheLeaderboy” dedicated to leadership and personal development. As a self-taught practitioner, I have been studying the principles of effective leadership for the past decade and my passion lies in sharing my insights with others. My mission is to empower individuals to become better leader