As a rhetorician, you may find yourself in charge of putting together ad campaigns, developing new initiatives and projects, and coming up with creative brands. One of the first things you’ll need to do in any of these situations is to host a brainstorming session.
Brainstorming sessions, with anywhere from three to six people, are a fantastic way to get the creative juices flowing, share ideas, and build off of someone else’s suggestions. Here are five tips for hosting a successful brainstorming session:
1) Get the right people together. You need people who are involved or have a vested interest in the project, people who are willing to speak openly about their thoughts and ideas, and people who work well as a team to be a part of your brainstorming session. Ensure you give them a rundown on the project, what exactly needs to be done, and your initial ideas and objectives, before the brainstorming session actually begins.
2) Choose someone in the group to lead the discussion. If it’s your project, you’ll probably be the one leading the discussion. It’s very important to have someone to lead the discussion because they will need to encourage people to begin talking, ensure that the session keeps moving in the right direction rather than getting off-topic, and judge when it’s time to take a break.
3) Use flip chart paper to record notes. Post some large piece of paper on the wall and use big coloured markers to take notes. This can be the leader or an elected note-taker, but it’s very useful because the group will be able to see past and present ideas, and it can help to keep the discussion going, as well as make sure that great ideas aren’t forgotten.
4) Have a no-holding-back policy. Brainstorming sessions can be intimidating or embarassing if you feel self-conscious about voicing your opinions and ideas, so it’s important to encourage everyone to speak up, share their thoughts, and to respect what everyone has to say, no matter how silly or strange it might sound. Even ridiculous ideas can have good merit, or they can inspire a new idea from somewhere else.
5) Know when to stop. Expect the session to last anywhere from one to five hours, depending on the people involved and the size of your project. But also keep in mind that burnout is very common in a brainstorming session. Perhaps your group can only go for a couple of hours before things become fuzzy and the group has trouble getting out of their old ideas. When this happens, stop the session! Make a plan to come back together as a group later in the day or later in the week, after you’ve all gotten away from brainstorming and have been busy with other things. This will help keep your ideas fresh.
What are some of your best tips for hosting a brainstorming session? Share in the comments section below!