by John Brooker | Mar 1, 2012 | Facilitate meetings, Innovate
YES! AND… Creative Gorilla # 61 There’s always a stimulus for creativity, random connection can help find it “For every living creature that succeeds in getting a footing in life there are thousands or millions that perish. There is an enormous random scattering for every seed that comes to life. This does not remind us of intelligent human design. “If a man in order to shoot a hare, were to discharge thousands of guns on a great moor in all possible directions; if in order to get into a locked room, he were to buy ten thousand casual keys, and try them all; if, in order to have a house, he were to build a town, and leave all the other houses to wind and weather – assuredly no one would call such proceedings purposeful and still less would anyone conjecture behind these proceedings a higher wisdom, unrevealed reasons, and superior prudence.” John W.N. Sullivan Science Writer (d 1937) “Just as well you won’t read this article John.” John Brooker Are you stuck for an idea? I sat having a beer and a toasted cheese sandwich in the bar of my hotel in Luanda, Angola, earlier this month. It was a slightly surreal experience as I was eating in the dark, breached only by the dim glow of the myriad oil industry PC screens on battery power. Luanda had suffered another power cut and we waited for the emergency generator to kick in. The pianist played gamely on and I mused that sight reading of music is obviously not the principal qualification for a pianist in Angola. As he...
by John Brooker | Jan 22, 2012 | Facilitate meetings, Innovate
YES! AND… Facilitate. Innovate. Transform – Creative Gorilla # 22 “Random connections” is a useful technique when stuck for ideas. “I have an idea!” “Twas he that ranged the words at random flung pierced the fair pearls and them together strung.” Bidpai Pilpay If called on to run a creative session RIGHT NOW could you deliver? Imagine you are waiting to meet with a colleague or client. Suddenly the door flies open and they appear. “Sam, (or whatever), we’re trying to come up with a name for our new service and thought you could give us some ideas”. You enter and four expectant faces (and a remote worker on the speaker ‘phone) look up. Do you: Panic? Start thinking of ideas for a name? Search your mind for a handy creative technique and facilitate an idea generation session? This scenario happened to me last week at a client’s office. I opted for choice “C”. Oh OK, I admit I went through option “A” for a split second because I normally prepare thoroughly before a creative session. I facilitated using “Random Connection” (click here and search on our site for details on the technique). This is a great technique to use when you have a blank sheet of paper, blank minds and little time. We used random words and random objects as a catalyst between the information in the group’s head and the issue in hand and produced about seventy ideas. Some facilitation tips are: Not all ideas are realistic so challenge the group to find a practical idea from these “springboards” (this is essential if you are to avoid cynicism from those who believe...
