Even when participants are not being paid by the hour, meetings are costly: Notwithstanding smart-phones, no one around the table is really doing something else, at least not with an undivided focus.\u00a0A poorly planned or run meeting wastes everybody’s time, not just yours.<\/p>\n
A meeting called for the purpose of brainstorming is a weird thing. There is an agenda, but nothing’s really on it … except be thoughtful, and be creative, and be that way *right now*<\/em>.<\/p>\n Hootsuite’s James Mulvey writes<\/a> that business-marketing teams – I would add academic departments as well – can brainstorm more effectively by applying techniques used by writers of television comedy.\u00a0He quotes his\u00a0Hootsuite colleague Liam MacLeod – who is also a comedy writer:\u00a0\u201cThe biggest mistake most marketing brainstorms make is that people don\u2019t listen to each other. Everyone is talking at once and trying to get their idea heard. In most marketing brainstorms there\u2019s a lot of noise and not a lot of actual thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n MacLeod a his co-writers divide their writing sessions into three stages:<\/p>\n The thinking period in a comedy brainstorm begins with a writing prompt and two minutes of silence, explains MacLeod: \u201cFor us, when we\u2019re writing a script, when we\u2019re coming up with the idea for an episode or a scene, we like to start with a keyword like \u2018restaurant\u2019 or \u2018first date.\u2019 This is the writing prompt.<\/p>\n \u201cWe then set a timer for two minutes and all sit in silence, thinking on that prompt. The timer, we find, is really useful in giving everyone a set amount of time to think.\u201d<\/p>\n When the timer rings, one person goes through their list of ideas. The majority of the ideas at this stage are mediocre. But going around the room one-by-one ensures everyone has a chance to be heard and that everyone is listening to one another.<\/p>\n \u201cIn your typical company brainstorm, there\u2019s pressure to perform. Especially at ad agencies\u2014everyone wants to be seen as someone who can come up with ideas. So often the loudest voices end up on the whiteboard,\u201d says MacLeod.<\/p>\n \u201cWe find that by the time we go around the room, new ideas are starting to form. For example, you might have meant one thing\u2014but it sparked a different direction for me. So you\u2019re getting a new synthesis of all those initial ideas. This is where you break into more creative ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n Once everyone in the room has had a chance to share their ideas, the brainstorm enters the collaborative phase. \u201cIt\u2019s speed thinking at this point,\u201d says MacLeod. \u201cA lot of ideas are going to be dumb. But you need that quantity. I\u2019d rather leave a brainstorm with 20 ideas rather than three or four.\u201d<\/p>\n Sorting the good from the mediocre is simple: \u201cTypically, if you say something and everyone in the group starts to add things and run with the idea, it\u2019s usually original. Those are the moments you need to look for. Even if it is a stupid idea, but gets people talking and laughing together\u2014that\u2019s what you want to look for. This is why listening is important. You want the group to take an idea and add to it and get the group thinking together.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The whole post is really helpful, with a step-by-step ‘recipe’ at the end<\/a>. It’s a good use of your time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Even when participants are not being paid by the hour, meetings are costly: Notwithstanding smart-phones, no one around the table is really doing something else, at least not with an undivided focus.\u00a0A poorly planned or run meeting wastes everybody’s time, … Continue reading \n