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Brainstorming Guide

Techniques and rules to generate a large volume of ideas without judgment.

The 4 Rules of Brainstorming

Defer Judgment

There are no bad ideas at this stage. Criticism kills creativity.

Go for Quantity

The best way to get a good idea is to have a lot of ideas.

Encourage Wild Ideas

It's easier to tame a wild idea than to invigorate a boring one.

Build on Others

Use "Yes, and..." to expand on ideas from teammates.

Techniques

  • Mind Mapping

    Start with a central problem and branch out into related sub-topics and ideas. Good for exploring connections.

  • Round Robin

    Everyone writes an idea on a card and passes it to the right. The next person adds to it or uses it as inspiration for a new idea.

  • SCAMPER

    Use prompts to modify existing ideas: Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, Put to another use, Eliminate, Reverse.