Beyond Folders : brainstorming

Get Crazy: Courting Out-of-the Box Ideas

Community Manager — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 14:24:00 GMT

Twitter is the perfect example of a crazy, improbable idea-only 140 characters for communicating?!?-that caught fire, making early skeptics look positively antediluvian.

But for every crazy idea that becomes a monster hit-Twitter is nearing 500 million users-any number fizzle into major flops. So how does one know when a big, over-the-top idea is destined for Twitter-style success or is destined to go the way of business dinosaurs like the Edsel, Betamax and Pets.com?

We've rounded up some reading from across the web that examines what Harvard Business Review writer Michael Schrage calls "Goldilocks" crazy: not insane, not conventional, but "just right" crazy.

We also look at articles that challenge readers to think outside-the-box, jettisoning clichéd ideas and conventional thinking. Use these tactics to come up with your own fresh and novel ideas.

How do you harness out-of-the-box ideas? Share your thoughts here and on the Pendaflex Facebook page.

Brainstorming: Better Alone or Together?

Community Manager — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 14:19:00 GMT

When do you get your best ideas? Does lightening strike when you're alone, either working solo or caught up in a day-dream? Or are you most inspired by the energetic give-and-take of a room full of smart, collaborative peers?

We fall into the hybrid camp: sometimes inspiration strikes unexpectedly: surfing the web, commuting, or dare we admit it, hitting the snooze button again and again. Other times, we require the collaborative spark that comes from bouncing ideas around with bright, imaginative colleagues.

So we were intrigued by a recent New York Times piece, The Rise of the New Groupthink which asserts that the trend towards workplace collaboration is actually counterproductive to creativity. The author even goes so far as to say, "Brainstorming sessions are one of the worst possible ways to stimulate creativity." Instead, the article cites privacy, freedom from interruption and solitude as the keys to innovation.

Not surprisingly, the article stirred the pot, generating a number of counter responses. Keith Sawyer, an academic and author of "Group Genius" and "Explaining Creativity" rebuts the notion that creativity is best left a solo endeavor, saying, "Decades of scientific research have revealed that great creativity is almost always based in collaboration, conversation and social networks - just the opposite of our mythical image of the isolated genius."

For more on this debate, read Fast Company's The Fortunes of Solitude: Susan Cain On Introverts, The "New Groupthink," And The Problems With Brainstorming and The New Yorker's Brainstorming Doesn't Really Work.

At the end of the day, we believe that both methods of harnessing creativity and spurring innovation have their merits. If you favor the collaborative, group approach, you might like the tips in our past post Light it Up: Brainstorming Techniques That Work. For those more apt to fly solo, read Sometimes, It's Better to Brainstorm Alone and the Wall Street Journal piece, Brainstorming Works Best if People Scramble for Ideas on Their Own.

Do you favor group brainstorming or do you get your best ideas when working alone? Have you had any luck with particular brainstorming tools or techniques? Share your thoughts here and on the Pendaflex Facebook page.

Light it Up: Brainstorming Techniques That Work

Community Manager — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 19:28:00 GMT

We've had a month of wet and wild weather where I live, after losing the lights one too many times, the only type of storm I like these days is a good brainstorm. Done correctly, brainstorming can produce a deluge of ideas and tremendous thunderclaps of creativity. Talk about electricity!

Brainstorming Best Practices

Research shows that brainstorming is more than just corporate hokum, and that if done correctly, produces measurable, usable ideas. The very useful Business Brainstorming: Part Art, Part Science outlines 21 best practices that contribute to successful brainstorming efforts. Number one? Leave preconceived notions behind; they undermine brainstorming efforts.

Another useful article Brainstorming suggests sessions include a diverse group of people, from different disciplines, in order to generate the widest possible array of ideas. Other tips include:

Don't let one train of thought take center stage for too long
Be sure to create an open, non-judgmental atmosphere
Let people have fun brainstorming, encourage ideas ranging from the practical to wild. Let creativity rule the day!
Take breaks throughout the session to keep energy levels high

While brainstorming often connotes a group session, where people bounce ideas off one another, solo brainstorming is possible. If you are an independent contractor or a self-employed digital nomad read 5 Steps to Solo Brainstorming Success for ideas on how to set up your solo session to get the creative juices flowing.

Do you find brainstorming sessions to be useful? How do you make the most of brainstorming? Share your thoughts here and at the Beyond Folders Facebook page.

by Candie Harris