Designing A Brainstorm Process

During that past several decades, I have facilitated thousands of brainstorms.

While most brainstorming produces several ideas — some brainstorming is more powerfully productive, producing hundreds of ideas.

Why? What makes some brainstorming more powerful?

Here's what.

Better Brainstorming Techniques
Put these best practices to work in your next brainstorm:

  • No fear. Don't let the fear of the clients — the folks who need the answer — to squash the creativity of the brainstorm. Keep the clients far away from the brainstormers.
  • Have fun. Fun isn't silly. Fun is engagement. Keep smiling. Enjoy moments of whimsy. Keep on task, but think about brainstorming as "applied fun."
  • Define roles. Brainstorms need facilitators, scribes and participants. And, far away, clients. (Here is a page to keep everyone on the job.)
  • Explain the question. In the best brainstorms, facilitators clearly define the question. And all the participants understand it. It's simple and written on the wall for all to see. In weaker brainstorms, the participants can't quite articulate the question they seek to answer. It's better to brainstorm a clear question that might not be quite the right question (and re-brainstorm a revised question tomorrow), than to brainstorm an unclear question.
  • Separate idea generation from idea assessment. Don't judge the ideas as they are expressed. Say "yes" to everything today. Tomorrow, the clients can review the ideas and make hard decisions about which ones to pursue (in further brainstorming).
  • Celebrate quantity over quality. Usually, we think we need to produce great ideas. In brainstorming, we seek to produce many ideas, because — if we produce enough ideas — some of them will be worthy. Sure, some will be bad ideas, but don't worry about that. And really, who are you to say what is a bad idea? Bad often leads to great. (See "Springboard.")
  • Springboard. If you hear an idea that you think is goofy, don't focus on why it is goofy. Focus on what other ideas it could lead to.
  • No long stories. State your idea in one sentence. And don't start your sentence with an unnecessary disclaimer like "This is probably a bad idea..." or "I don't know if someone has already thought of this..." Just say it.
  • Everyone talks. Don't dominate the conversation. And don't remain silent. Everyone in the pool!
  • Be heard. If your idea is not written for all to see by the scribe, stop the brainstorm — right away — and make sure your idea is recorded. 
  • Brainstorm iteratively. One brainstorm rarely answers the question. Brainstorm today. Tomorrow, pick some of the ideas for further brainstorming. Brainstorm again. Apply. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
  • Keep it short and sweet. Brainstorm for 90 minutes at the most. Sixty minutes is probably better.

Good Tools
Whenever I lead a brainstorm, we start by creating YES! Space, as I've been taught by the inspiring folks at Improvedge with Karen Hough's YES! DECK.

And I often use Go Artie!, the 62-minute brainstorm guide.

And here is a page to share with everyone before the brainstorm.

The First Brainstorm
We warm up with a practice mini-brainstorm. We brainstorm our own ground rules for our brainstorming. It's a nice, ironic start. And an easy way for me to demonstrate some of the ways we do not want anyone to brainstorm.

That's not all the work for the first day, of course. We brainstorm on brainstorming for 10 minutes. Then we head straight for our real question.

Why rules? Isn't this brainstorming, dude?
Yes, brainstorming is best when it's open minded. But "open minded" doesn't mean a reckless disregard for the question-at-hand and the intended outcomes.

So, for principled brainstorming, we need some guidelines.

Am I missing something here? If so, let me know.

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What Clients Say

  • "Through Artie and Vistage Columbus, I have enjoyed substantial progress in my business, improving sales, profits, and delegation. Artie is the one person in my life who will ask me challenging questions that nobody else has thought to or had the courage to ask me. He helps me find answers to challenges by asking great questions, sometimes prodding me to do what I know I should do. We have built a strong mutual trust relationship while working together very effectively."
    — Mark Schuetz, CEO, Replex Plastics

    "I was hesitant to invest the time and resources to work with an executive coach but working with Artie through his connection with Vistage Columbus has far surpassed my expectations. I have brought something back from each meeting which has resulted in a significant improvement in my business or my personal life. I highly recommend Artie."
    — Brent Johnson, Managing Partner,
    Clarus Partners

    "Artie helped us bring attention to our company as an innovation leader by sponsoring a workshop breakfast during an international trade event. By making it quite participatory, he really changed up the 'trade show as usual' and engaged participants with each other. Artie challenged us to adapt some regular creative practices that we learned and I am personally committed to doing them."
    — Mark Crawford, Mont Blanc Gourmet

    ✍

Do It Yourself

What Clients Say
(continued)

  • "Engaging, inspiring, thought-provoking. Everyone came away with a renewed energy and a revived creative spirit. I look forward to more creative adventures with you."
    — Rachel Rubin, Ohio Library Council

    "An inspiring and stimulating presentation. All of us who were fortunate enough to be in attendance will remember it as one of the best we have ever shared. We are so grateful for your generosity in sharing your insights, humor, and wisdom."
    — Diana C. Beebe, Head Mistresses Association of the East

    "I recently had the pleasure of working with Artie on a major research initiative. He ran a series of complex and quite challenging brainstorms and work sessions. Participants were excited and happy to be involved the entire time — no small feat when each session lasted four hours. More importantly, we generated a tremendous amount of rich insights and business ideas. I recommend Artie without hesitation if you're looking for a unique and inspiring moderator."
    — Avin Narasimhan, Arnold Worldwide

    "Artie presented at our national corporate meeting. He met with our executive team in advance to understand requirements, developed a targeted presentation, and delighted everyone with his blend of business strategy and performance. I recommend Artie for any meeting where you need something more to engage while entertaining your teams.”
    — Kathryn Kendell, Crown Partners

    "Arriving Chevy Chase Bank in 2002, I presented Artie to earn the confidence of my new 412 employees. They LOVED him. (I loved him!) He challenged their paradigms and the status quo, re-igniting their passion. Artie is a magician. I’ve never seen anyone walk into a room and command as much thought-provoking insight on human behavior and how it relates to business and obtaining your goals."
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    "Artie is a master at engaging people in group settings to draw out innovative and creative thinking. And he makes it fun."
    — Sherief Meleis, Novantas

    "We trust Artie's creative program design and improvisational instincts. His 2010 brainstorming sessions with retail personnel were instrumental in developing our innovative 24-Hour Grace™. So we again turned to Artie for more sessions this year, to help explore how to apply a core ethic of Huntington that could be our competitive advantage. We are delighted with the ideas generated during his productive sessions with our front-line bankers in key business segments."
    — Glen Zehr, Huntington National Bank

    "I've engaged Artie on projects for 10+ years. He's one of the most creative, personable and intelligent people I have ever worked with. He has the highest integrity, delivers on time, and exceeds all expectations."
    — Deborah Sutor, Huntington National Bank

    "Artie Isaac's articulateness, compassion and intelligence are simply unequaled. He has unmatched understanding of certain situations, of teachable moments, of drawing people out into learning arenas that they might not have discovered on their own. If you are considering hiring Artie Isaac, you should."
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    "Artie helps us think differently, enabling our perspectives and ideas to blossom beyond usual industry boundaries. His communication skills are unique and inspiring, lifting our team to new innovative heights."
    — Lee Lemke, Huntington National Bank

    "I knew he'd be the highlight of the day, and start us off on a thought-provoking, positive, be-your-best-self note. I was right. One leader remarked to me after the meeting, 'I don’t know anyone who thinks like that guy. I’m thinking about things I never thought of before. He was the best speaker we’ve ever had.' Artie lives his values, and brings them to everything he does. His humor, charm, integrity, intelligence, and quirkiness make him a real treasure."
    — Zoe Klopf Switzer, Goodwill Columbus

    "Everyone I spoke with that attended said that Artie was fabulous, and that they would definitely use some of his suggestions and ideas. Our only regret is spending a brief one hour with him. We wanted more!"
     — Keith Yun, State Auto Insurance

    "Artie spoke at a conference we held for approximately 400 non-profit executives. His session was packed. Some of the attendees' comments are: 'Artie's presentation was great — he's dynamic and the enthusiasm he shows is contagious.' 'Artie's session was great, as expected.' Artie's session received the most positive comments."
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    "Artie wowed our audience with a thought-provoking, entertaining and creative presentation. The audience loved his quirky ideas and funny and innovative visuals that aptly illustrated his thoughts. Without a doubt, one of CMC's best speakers and we host more than 100 speakers every year. You can't miss with him!"
     — Jane Scott, Columbus Metropolitan Club

    "Artie Isaac is someone I admire greatly. He exudes tangible charisma and exhibits impeccable character. He is confident yet humble, energetic yet peaceful, brilliant yet filled with a child-like curiosity that enables him to see the world in completely different ways. He is both explorer and teacher, mentor and student. He seems to live life in a way that most of us want to, but never quite figure out how to do. He is a generous, brilliant, and thoroughly delightful person. I learn from him every day and continue to improve my life by learning from his."
    — David E. Bowman, LUCRUM, Inc.

    "Artie Isaac is an incredible facilitator. His unique skill set (gained from experiences in corporate conference rooms, in college classrooms, and on theatre stages), along with his unique style (a blend of good humor and sensitivity), create an environment where the great ideas and insights are developed. He trains and encourages — to unlock the creativity of battle-hardened people who have been unexpectedly called upon to think imaginatively."
    — Glen Zehr, Huntington National Bank