Problem-solving requires creativity, but most adults, as a result of negative feedback while growing up, have lost the majority of their creative ability by age forty.
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Problem-solving is something you do all the time. When the problem affects a number of people and it is complex, it is best to get the affected people together to solve it. This way, you're likely to have two benefits:
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Call a meeting of people who have an interest in solving a particular problem. Here are things to do in preparation:
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Warn people about the meeting at least a week in advance so they have time to think about the subject.
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Plan to get a variety of ideas by inviting people with different backgrounds and diverse skills to add fresh perspectives.
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Include in your group at least one person with the reputation of being a maverick.
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Choose a location. The more informal and unusual the environment, the more creativity you can expect.
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Your meeting will be successful if you do these things:
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Before the meeting starts, get people into a creative and relaxed frame of mind with an icebreaker.
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Restate the purpose of the meeting. Indicate your desire to encourage new ideas.
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Appoint a recorder to write all ideas on a flip chart.
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Use brainstorming to generate ideas. Explain the rules of brainstorming:
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Quantity. Get as many ideas as possible. Don't worry about quality.
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No discussion. Discussing issues will reduce the number of ideas. Leave discussion and comment until afterwards.
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No criticism. Don't judge ideas. Early evaluation will stifle the development of unusual ideas.
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Record. Record ideas on a flip chart, where they are visible.
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Piggyback. Build on ideas. A ridiculous idea might spur a very practical idea from someone else.
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Incubation. If you run out of ideas, leave your list and return to it later. You will usually find that participants have more new ideas.
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Conduct a round robin. Ask people to call out their ideas one at a time, in rotation. Those who don't have ideas can pass.
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Keep the process moving quickly. When you sense that ideas are drying up, encourage contributions from anyone, rather than by rotation.
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When all ideas have dried up, revisit the list so the team can piggyback. Use these ideas to spur new ones.
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If you are dissatisfied with the ideas on your list, give the group more time to incubate. Collect more ideas after a break or a few days later.
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Only when all ideas are exhausted should you refine the list. Eliminate duplications. Evaluate ideas based on criteria such as
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payback period;
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novelty;
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cost;
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benefit;
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ease of implementation.
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