On a recent podcast, the presenters were moaning about useless brainstorming sessions. No good ideas have ever come out of a brainstorming session, they said. In fact, they should be banned. I was a bit taken aback. I spend my life running workshops.

On reflection, it’s not surprising that brainstorms are derided. Here’s why

Generating breakthrough ideas from a standing start is a near-impossible brief. Due to time pressure people tend to jump on an early idea or indeed any idea. At least they’d have something to present back. Even if it’s mediocre.

You’re told ‘no idea is a bad idea’, So we hold back from criticising an idea that’s been suggested. This is tricky if you’re working with people you don’t know very well. You’ve no idea how they’ll react.

We’re also told ‘anything goes’. We therefore generate lots of outlandish ideas that have zero chance of working.

So yes, I can see why people don’t see the value of them.

Before we ban brainstorming workshops altogether, let’s reflect on how creativity really works. Here are a few truisms.

You can’t suddenly turn creativity on and off.

Ideas come to you at odd times. Walking the dog, sitting on the bus, in the bath. Ideas take time to ferment. They emerge, mutate, and finally take shape. Nothing ever emerges fully formed

Key Takeout: allow space, time, and opportunity for brilliant ideas to emerge.

Ideas often come to you when you’re on your own

Big ideas are rarely designed by a committee. There are many examples of great creative partnerships. However deep thought, individual reflection, and working in isolation is usually how big ideas are created.

Key Takeout: Don’t force collective idea generation, especially with random people

We’re most creative when we have clear parameters

The ‘anything goes’ approach to creativity is simply wrong. We need tight guidelines and parameters. Deadlines, deliverables, budgets. It forces us to think differently and to problem-solve.

Key Takeout: Give people tight, inspiring creative briefs.

Instead of banning brainstorms, re-design them to be more productive. Here’s how:

1 Brief people before the brainstorming

Provide a hand-picked team with a clear tight brief well in advance of the workshop itself. At least 2-3 weeks. Give them time to develop ideas on their own, in their own time. You’re not relying on the time pressure of brainstorming to come up with ideas.

2 Ask them to send you your ideas before the brainstorming

If people send you ideas in advance, you get a sense of the volume and quality of the ideas that are generated. You can look at key themes that are emerging. This way you can print them out, display them, or have them available for discussion.

3 Use the session itself to share and build

By the time you get to the workshop, lots of ideas have been generated and are on display. The participants will have been fully immersed in the creative challenge for several weeks. The brainstorming will therefore be all about sharing, building, and debating the best ideas. It should feel open, and collaborative.

4 Do the final selection and optimisation of Ideas outside the workshop

Typically at the workshop, you create a shortlist or else rank what the teams perceive are the ‘best ideas’. Don’t make this the final decision. Give yourself time to reflect on what’s been discussed. There will always be the opportunity to improve them. You need to make sure the final decision-makers are fully aligned and are prepared to back them. This is best down outside of the main workshop.

In Summary

There’s still a place for random, ad-hoc sessions to kick around early ideas. As a means of getting going. To get the creative juices flowing. If you design them properly, with the right exercises you can come up with great ideas. I’ve witnessed this on many occasions.

But if you’re looking for fully formed breakthroughs, don’t leave it to chance. Select the right people. Provide them with an inspiring creative brief. Give them the opportunity to generate ideas in advance. Then, the session itself will focus on working on these ideas.