Brainstorming-Getting Creative!
You've built a team, they've got a mission, determined their goals, and are now ready for action…but no one is quite sure what they want to do! One way to get some creative ideas is to have a brainstorming session.In order to set a creative, high-energy tone, the following guidelines should be stated to the group from the onset:
- No judgments.
- No idea or suggestion, no matter how wild, is to be shot down, or
edited.
- Anything goes.
- Offbeat, unusual, humorous, and bizarre ideas are encouraged.
- Go for quantity.
- The more ideas, the better chance of coming up with a winner.
- Building on other people's ideas is fine.
Brainstorming: Here's how to do it:
A facilitator write a topic or goal to be brainstormed at the top of a large sheet of paper, then asks the group to call out their ideas in short phrases, which can be written down quickly. The facilitator of the brainstorm can help to keep things moving by:- Setting a time limit-commonly 3-10 minutes (depending on topic and
size of group)
- Giving a few examples to start things off
- Praising, coaxing
- Asking for different sorts of examples if the group starts to develop
a "one track mind"
- Going around the room round-robin style if people do not speak up spontaneously
The conventional approach is to have one person record the group's ideas on newsprint with a felt marker, so that all can see. Sometimes two recorders work as a team, writing alternate items, so the group won't have to wait for the recorders to catch up.
The next step would be to decide which activities the group wants to implement. See the worksheet, "Turning Ideas Into Action" for a technique to help groups prioritize activities.
Community Health Promotion Main Page
See also > Center for Health Promotion > Health Promotion and Chronic Disease