Five Brainstorming Techniques to Change the Way you Ideate

Brainstorming is part of the ideation process. While many would choose to focus on the end result, the fact is that reaching the main goal takes a lot more work than what meets the eye. We apply brainstorming in very different aspects of our lives such as in professional projects and personal endeavors. It can be done in teams or as an individual project. The essence of brainstorming is that no idea is useless or irrelevant. Everyone has different methods to brainstorm, here are some exciting ways to do the same:

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1. Mind Mapping

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Mind Mapping is an excellent method to brainstorm since it is structured and ordered. It allows for a better visual structure to analyze and recall your thoughts and resources. A mind map is essentially a diagram that represents different interconnected concepts. This could include words, theories, and items around a central concept or subject to create a proper framework. Our mind is overflowing with ideas and items, this technique helps in processing this monotonous information into a much more personalized and fun diagram.

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This can be applied not only in professional scenarios but even in other situations such as planning vacations et cetera. 

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2. Rapid Ideation

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This technique requires you to write or note down as many ideas as possible in a limited amount of time. This is done before any of the ideas are rejected or fleshed out. This is done to avoid letting ideas run away from you. Ideas require time to grow and develop. This brainstorming method allows you to transform your initial, rudimentary ideas into bigger and better projects. This way you can deliberate over ideas before showing them to the team. 

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3. Brainwriting 

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An excellent way of brainstorming in a team setting. It can also be used as a team-building exercise to improve team dynamics. It broadly includes the facilitator or manager throwing out a random topic or theme for the team members to build on. Then it passes to one team member who writes down their idea, then it passes to the next member. They write down their idea or build on the existing ones. This way a list of new and exciting ideas is built up. The facilitator can review these ideas and construct a solid plan accordingly.

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4. Starbursting 

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This particular technique is usually adopted at a later stage of brainstorming when the idea is more or less selected. As the term suggests, in a starbursting session, the team focuses on the chosen topic by keeping the idea in the center and drawing a six-pointed star around it. Each point of the star depicts six questions- who, what, when, where, why, and how. Interestingly, this method focuses more on the questions rather than the answers. It allows for a deeper analysis of the idea to see whether it is truly useful and can be implemented or not. 

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5. Whiteboard Brainstorming

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The technological world is revolutionizing the way of brainstorming as well. While traditional paper and pen methods can be used, there are several digital tools available now. These tools make it infinitely easier to access a common workspace. It's a much better way to get the team working with new features which are different than the traditional text-based information.

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There are several brainstorming techniques in the market. However, these five are one of the best few out there!

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