4 Methods on How to Brainstorm Better
There were not too many topics from school that I enjoyed.
But one that I did enjoy was brainstorming.
Something about it just felt right.
The students would be assigned a paper.
Expository or narrative.
Once we had the paper idea, we wouldn’t immediately begin.
Instead, we would brainstorm.
Teachers gave us an umbrella chart to brainstorm.
On the head, we would put the central idea.
On the steel frame, we would share the other ideas that would support the central idea.
This was fun.
Nowadays, as a grown-up, I see the importance of generating and connecting ideas at will.
Let’s first make sure we have the right philosophy regarding brainstorming.
Then I will give you 4 unique ways to bring forth your inner concepts.
Correct Philosophy Regarding Brainstorming
The brainstorming zone needs to be judgment free.
With brainstorming, there is no such thing as a bad idea.
You may be like:
‘Of course there are bad ideas bro!’
In a logical world, sure.
But with creativity, no, there are no bad ideas.
And here’s why.
With creativity, you’ll often have 11 “bad” ideas.
Then the 12th one will be amazing.
The 12th one didn’t just come out of the ether.
Instead, you needed the 11 prior ones beforehand.
So, were the initial 11:
- Bad ideas or ideas that were setting the stage for a good idea?
The next thing to implement with brainstorming is a purpose.
What are you trying to solve?
Brainstorming without a purpose may lead to anxiety.
Every now and then, a purpose is not needed.
But that’s more of an advanced move.
As a beginner, aim to get a gist of why you are brainstorming:
- Is it to solve a company problem?
- To create more content?
- Build a speech for your brother’s wedding?
With the direction set, the next few brainstorming methods will make more sense.
Let’s get started with the first method.
Method 1: Mumbling
Mumbling is awful for social skills.
Mumbling is amazing for brainstorming.
The reason why mumbling is great for brainstorming is because you are not committing.
When you are not committing, you are not falling in love with an idea.
- You’ll drop the bad ideas quicker.
- You’ll pick up the good ideas quicker.
A lot of rappers use the mumbling strategy to get a general gist of their song.
Once they have a general gist, that’s when they pad it down with the lyrics and such.
So, try mumbling.
You will see yourself stumbling across a lot of unique insights that were previously overlooked.
Method 2: Whiteboards
A lot of productive people have whiteboards.
The reason why is because they are capable of seeing their ideas.
When you see ideas, it becomes much easier to see what is working and what is not.
For this strategy, messiness is a good thing.
Avoid trying to be too neat.
Move with urgency.
Move fast.
Afterward, you can get rid of the ideas that didn’t work.
Rather than wiping them off, I recommend crossing them off.
Because a lot of times, the crossed off ideas may make sense later.
This type of brainstorming is known as externalization.
Take the ideas from the internal world to the external world.
Method 3: Conversations
Have you ever heard the quote:
Average people talk about people.
Good people talk about events.
Great people talk about ideas.
The last line can be translated to:
- Great people brainstorm together.
A while back, I was thinking about creating a journal for mind mapping.
I wanted it to be as simple as possible.
So, I tell a friend about my idea.
It would be a journal with just blank pages.
More real estate to be creative.
He liked the idea but he didn’t love it.
He was like:
‘I like the overall idea, but don’t like how it’s all blank pages.’
Then I asked him what he would do.
He said:
‘You should personalize it by adding some content.’
That’s when I realized that I have a lot of tweets on mind mapping and how to brainstorm effectively.
How about adding those tips among the pages to keep the user of the journal motivated and educated on brainstorming?
That idea came through the method of conversation.
Method 4: High Pressure
Have you ever forgotten when an assignment was due?
Then someone reminded you the assignment was due tomorrow.
You were like:
‘What?!!’
The pressure has been added.
Suddenly, you were:
- Contacting the right group of people.
- Simplifying notes.
- Researching like a winner.
- Finishing the assignment at a record pace.
And so much more!
Pressure unlocks our inner genius.
‘What if I don’t have any pressure?
Then create some pressure.
The way you create pressure is with a timer and a high-stakes narrative.
‘You have 3 minutes to think of 50 ideas on how to improve the morale of the company. Otherwise, you will die. Go!!’
The timer is set.
Go, go go!!
The more you believe the narrative, the more you move with urgency.
A rapid heartbeat plus a deadline makes for brilliant brainstorming.
Learn How to Brainstorm With Practice
A flexible mind is built through brainstorming.
Put in the work and reap the rewards.
The better you brainstorm, the better you adapt to this ever-changing world.
Also, the 4 methods mentioned in this article are not separate from one another.
You can do them with one another.
For example, you’re having a conversation with a business partner in front of a whiteboard.
Since you made it this far, I do have one more tip.
Practice flexing your mind on a consistent basis with the help of a trusty aid.
‘Any suggestions on what that trusty aid should be?’
Yes, check out my journal, Idea Machine.
This is a creative writing journal with 333 writing prompts that will help boost your creativity.
You will be assigned prompts on self-improvement, politics, metaphysics, fantasy, and much more.
By forcing yourself to create a story on a variety of prompts, you will learn how to brainstorm effectively.
