Tag Archives: Creativity

Reverse brainstorming: A better way to generate creative ideas

in Creativity, Innovation, Strategy

brainstorming

When we consider ‘how aha really happens‘ the traditional method we use for generating creative ideas, brainstorming, has flaws. Ask your friends, when do they have their best ideas? They will seldom answer, ‘during a brainstorming session’. Most likely it was in the shower, while driving and stuck in traffic or while daydreaming. The fact of the matter is ‘we can’t schedule creativity’ because we don’t know when that ‘aha’ will strike. Yet despite this basic human process we find that managers schedule a specific time for teams to come up with creative ideas.

This is not how creativity works in our brains. (Read page two of ‘How Aha really happens’):

“Over the past decade, neuroscientists have come a long way in figuring out how ideas form in the human mind. As it turns out, their findings contradict how most companies understand and organize innovation. But very few executives know that. They continue applying their conventional wisdom, unaware that science has overturned it.”

Another common belief is that having diverse people involved in a brainstorming session improves idea generation and selection. While this is true that doesn’t mean that the human element of ‘bias’ doesn’t exist. Group dynamics stifle innovation:

For example, in brainstorming sessions several people can quickly dominate a conversation often restricting the sharing of all potential ideas. In other cases, individuals may think less critically about a problem because they are happy to let others do the heavy lifting.  And, those people who lack confidence or internal credibility are more likely to practice self-censorship within peer groups. Finally, groups can be a breeding-ground for organizational barriers such as cultural norms and management bias that limit creativity and critical thinking.

Ok so now what?

Hybrid Model of Brainstorming

I think a better way of brainstorming is doing the opposite of typical brainstorming. For example, instead of brainstorming in groups to solve a particular problem at a particular time, setup a weekly meeting and let people bring in ideas on any subject that strike them at any time during the week. Interesting right?

Also in a traditional brainstorming session the group picks out the idea right there. Instead, don’t decide right away. Because if you brought an idea on any topic at all, the rest of the group might not have thought about the topic before. They’ll greet you with a blank stare in their face.

So instead of evaluating your idea the group will ask you to explain the idea as best you can, including all the elements that you combined in your head to come up with the idea. Then everyone goes off and think about individually and the discussion can continue over emails, telephone or in person. Eventually, a promising idea might emerge from the pack. At that time, it’s time for the ‘What Works Matrix‘ as an individual or group exercise.

Bottom line is creating the element of surprise at the beginning of idea generation. Because if you don’t create surprises you aren’t innovating.

Reverse brainstorming isn’t new

Now that you know how creativity works in the brain, the point is that our brains make connections continuously without us being aware of it. And because this is a natural human process, it’s key that we take advantage of in a whole week or month and not just in a two hour session.

Now, new research suggests that this hybrid model of brainstorming is more effective than the traditional one. While the research may be new, the practice is not. Firms such as IDEO have been doing this for years. They’re well known for including people from diverse backgrounds in all their meetings, essentially preparing a cocktail mix of ingredients to generate creative ideas.

This is how creativity works in the brain.

Obstacles don’t go away easily

Personally, I practice this model of brainstorming myself but have encountered problems. For example, if you’re the only one who brainstorms this way you’ll end up generating ideas that make no sense to others. They’ll think you’re nuts but at the same time they’ll give you the benefit of the doubt since you seem to have all the cool non-conventional ideas. Another problem is that people are used to brainstorming and selecting an idea right there. They don’t want to give an idea time to ‘simmer’ in their brains because of the bias for action. And also because they have more ‘important’ things to do in their routines and supposedly have no time to think. Blah!

So what to do?

Well you have to get people on board in the new way of brainstorming. My recommendation is ‘educate’ your team on how creativity works in our brains so they become aware of their own tendencies. This isn’t necessarily going to eliminate all obstacles but it’s an effective way to get people to believe, and as a plus they’ll feel smarter.

Thoughts? Do you practice a version of reverse brainstorming?

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Unlocking your creativity to fulfill your personal vision

in Creativity

I love this! Talk about freeing your mind, here’s a high powered conversation you don’t want to miss…

Alex Bogusky, formerly of Crispin Porter+Bogusky, has a weekly web show where he talks to all sorts of people who are making a difference. This week’s episode is called, Unlocking Your Personal Vision. This episode features a conversation with the team behind UFUSE – a company that helps individuals and companies unlock their vision and creativity. This one hour conversation is especially of interest, because Alex actually spent a week with them pushing his own vision and creativity to new heights.

The recipe for unlocking your personal vision: Genesis + Knowing why you’re doing it + staying with it.

Here are some ideas that were discussed:

Take a vacation and figure out what your vision is

  • . Grab a pen and a piece of paper and write down the things that are important to you. Take your time and get it all out. Think about it as the starting point of a vacation to figure out what your vision is.
  • Have courage. . Whereas creative decisions require courage, making fear based decisions that always lead to conventional paths as outcomes is what we always do. Break the pattern!
  • If you don’t like it, stop doing it. . It’s a terrible propositions because sometimes you just have to roll with the punches but if you’re really unhappy just stop doing it.
  • Tell people what you would like to work on. If you don’t like the projects that you’re being tasked with, tell them them the types of things that you really want to work on. Sometimes speaking helps not only you but others too. Other people have dislikes too, and in an effort to conform we don’t say what they are. Speak up!
  • If you’re working on fixing something that pisses you off, you’re in the right place. What are you dissatisfied with? What do you think sucks and can be done better? Can you feel how your soul gets filled with purpose when thinking about it? This is a good place to start.
  • No matter how good it is, it can always get better. If you’re perfectly happy with how things are going already, why not make it better? Get out of your comfort zone.

It’s an hour long but I guarantee it’s well worth your time Winking smile

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Will.i.am + Intel. What does it mean?

in Creativity, Innovation

will.i.am performing with Black Eyed Peas at O...

Image via Wikipedia

So the news broke yesterday that Black Eyed Peas singer Will.i.am is the new Director of Creative Innovation of chip maker Intel. It seemed to catch everyone by surprise. Well it shouldn’t really surprise you because it was only a matter of time when a major corporation would call on a ‘celebrity artist’ to collaborate on a deeper level. What is surprising are the protagonists: Will.i.am and Intel.

You see, innovation and design consultancies such as IDEO, Jump Associates, Frog Design have been collaborating with artists for a long time. It’s standard practice for them to bring them into the ideation and design process because they understand that innovation comes from anywhere including the creative arts. Now these are not ‘celebrity artists’, they’re artists from a local bar, freelancers or a friend of someone.

And that’s the difference. Big names joining forces gets noticed.

Examples of collaboration between celebrity artists and corporations exists already: Polaroid named Lady Gaga Creative Director of it’s imaging products last year and the result were the sunglasses that incorporate both a camera for taking pictures and video and an LCD screen for playing them back. HP brought in Dr. Dre and his Beats Headphones from the simple sound guide website to help freshen up their Envy line of laptops.

And this is only the beginning…

But what do these collaborations mean?

Simple:

As tech companies try to figure out how best to sell their growing multimedia firepower to consumers, they are turning to creative types like will.i.am for ideas and insight into the tastes of a younger demographic, as well as looking for their star power to add some sheen to their products.

What these artists have in common is they’re part of the culture of fashion, music and design. They have huge audiences of fans and have a thorough understanding of what their fans like. They can move masses of people because they understand culture. They also have a sense of technology. These insights are extremely valuable to corporations.

Some may see this as a simple marketing gimmick. I disagree. What I think is this points to a much larger trend, and that is the need for corporations to understand culture. Grant McCracken dedicated a whole book to expose why corporations fall behind in understanding consumers and how this is simply a problem of not understanding that the world they live in, is much different than the one their customers live in. It’s rallying cry for the need to understand culture. To not just observe it but to live it and bring it into the corporation.

Insights are the seeds of great ideas and you have to understand the world your customers live in to uncover those insights. These collaborations help bridge that gap.

Thougths?

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Can innovation be bred in a group or is it an individual effort?

in Innovation

Spotted this question on a discussion on Linkedin and thought I’d repost my answer here and hopefully get your thoughts. (Linkedin group is open so anyone can comment there too Winking smile)

Great question. Ideation geared towards innovating can happen at both levels but I think it’s important to separate creativity from innovation. True innovation (execution of idea) happens with a group. Ideation (creativity) can be done individually and in most cases this is where ideas are born. A small group of committed and passionate people then help refine it.

What is important to consider is that when brainstorming in a group it is less effective as ‘group think’ takes over, so a better approach is to come up with ideas individually and then bring them into a collaborative environment. It’s also important to have themes (objectives) to shoot at as these will provide context for discussion. Once the ideas are in the collaborative environment the real fun begins. Ideas are just the beginning, getting people to buy into them and then help you execute is the key.

Another area of importance when talking about groups is creating serendipity. For example being in this discussion is a form of serendipity, and we as a group might come up with an idea by commenting back and forth. So this also needs to be taken into consideration as to how the idea formed.

Bottom line: Innovation is a team game!

Thoughts?

UPDATE: Jonah Lehrer wrote up a great posts in which he argues that: “The era of the lone genius is coming to an end.” – Teamwork is becoming the heart of innovation. It’s a must read!

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Use constraints to fuel your creativity

in Creativity, Innovation, Strategy

Quickly, think of as many white things as you can in ten seconds.  Now think of white things in your kitchen.  Did the more constrained prompt spark more ideas? Yes.

Recent research on the best approach to creating novel things says that the number one key to innovation is scarcity. In other words, constraints help you focus on what matters.

Apple knows that embracing constraints helps them focus on what matters. Google is popular for using constraints to fuel their design and development process which have resulted in ‘perceived innovations’ in user experience. The ever popular 37 Signals, maker of online business management apps, pretty much runs their business on constraints.

So, how does placing constraints to fuel creativity look like?…

Surprise yourself

in Creativity

After hemming and hawing for ages, I’ve finally decided to get a haircut. You can do it yourself too when you purchase tools such as Jaguar Hairdressing Scissors.

I’ve been growing my hair out since last year—I wanted to have Rapunzel-length locks for my wedding. But I’ve been a Mrs. for a few months, now. It’s high time for a new look. Only thing is…I’m torn between three very different dos. Care to weigh in? A great example of textured weave are these clip in hair extensions for black hair.

You guys were such sweethearts when Joanna needed help choosing a new look, I was hoping you could offer me some advice too. Pretty, please?

Image may contain Face Human Person Smile Hair Dimples and Black Hair

Here’s what my hair looks like now. I’m iffy about the length and there really is no shape to it. Boring!

I usually tell Chris when I’m getting a haircut, but I rarely divulge the style I’m going for. I love seeing the surprised look on his face when I first show off my new tresses. However, this time around, I can’t make up my mind. I love these three looks and I can’t decide which would look best.

Image may contain Clothing Apparel Human Person Sunglasses Accessories Accessory Dress Female and Robe

This shoulder-length look January Jones is rocking is divine. Bonus: it looks super low-maintence and I’d get to keep most of my length.

Image may contain Hair Human Person Jessica Alba Face Haircut and Black Hair

Jessica Alba’s short style looks so fun and flirty; I adore her bangs, don’t you?

Image may contain Carey Mulligan Ginnifer Goodwin Face Human Person Hair and Haircut

I’ve been jonesing for a pixie cut for eons. Imagine how good this will look while wearing a prom dress with long sleeves. Aren’t Carrie Mulligan and Ginnifer Goodwin romantically chic?

Are you more credible as an innovator?

in Innovation

I found this question at the bottom of an article that states that in order . See below:

The research clearly shows that “when people voice creative ideas, they are viewed by others as having less leadership potential,” says Jack Goncalo, who teaches organizational behavior at Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations.

That may come as a surprise, since many companies claim to prize innovative thinking.

But Goncalo, who led the studies, points out that our deeply ingrained expectations of “creative people” and “effective leaders” are often at loggerheads: Creative types may be seen as mercurial and unpredictable, while leaders “are expected to reduce uncertainty and uphold the norms of the group,” he says.

That’s particularly true in times of economic uncertainty. The data suggest that, when the going gets tough, people crave the security that comes from having leaders who preserve the status quo.

This study further reinforces what we already know about instituting innovation within established organizations, that the forces of human nature are the biggest impediments to innovation.

Naturally, this is the way it’s always been. Human tendency is to prefer the familiar, so naturally people who maintain the status quo will be seen as ‘better’ than creatives. Again, this is a matter of perception. The problem is, as is often the case, in times of uncertainty there are gaps that can be exploited. Opportunities open up because there is a restructuring of the fundamental ideas of the past. Everyone is looking for a light to follow and that light is NOT ‘the same it’s always been’. This is all counter intuitive, but most things that are uncertain are.

But this doesn’t answer the question of this post: Are you more credible as an innovator?

Before answering let me point out that being creative doesn’t mean you’re innovative, although the probability of that happening is much higher than if you’re not creative. Again, this is a matter of definition. What is innovative can be different things to everybody.

So the first thing that needs to happen is the organization has to come to a collective understanding of what ‘innovation’ is to them. That can then help inform how problems are framed and ideas are presented, because if the ideas presented are not aiming at something then most likely they’re going to be shot down and you along with it. I think this is where the fundamental problem is.

Are you more credible as an innovator? If you’ve done it before and it improved/solved a problem then yes. If the ideas are just thrown out there to see what happens then you’re staying right where you are.

We all know we need to innovate continuously to stay relevant, key is making it happen and then all these issues will be kept at bay.

Thoughts?

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