Waste Not Want Not

We pitch a lot.

Sometimes, even though we do a great job, we’re not always successful.

So the question is, what do we do with all that knowledge and insight that we’ve built up?

What about the ideas you’ve generated.

Well you could target related industries.

Without breaking any confidences (of course)

My favourite is to take all those great, but unsold ideas to other brainstorms or ideation sessions

They make fantastic stimulus material

They are new fresh and different

And make a great new jumping off point to create new thinking

Creativity is an asset so it’d be a waste not to use it.

There Are No Bad Ideas In A Brainstorm

How often have you been in a brainstorm, and heard those immortal words: “There’s no such thing as a bad idea”?
Well, I beg to differ, the world’s full of bad ideas.
Just ask Sir Clive Sinclair.
All too often, you’ll find yourself in a room full of too many people, in a meeting that goes on far too long and everything that gets shouted out gets written up, irrespective of how, of how....well, stupid it is.
The point of those words is to make everyone feel comfortable that they can make a contribution and not to feel shy about shouting out what is in their head.
For me the atmosphere that is created in the brainstorm is key; it should be warm and welcoming, fun and full of energy, lots of stimulus material and above all fun.
I know I’ve said that once but I like fun*
The best brainstorms involve a handful of people who are comfortable enough with each other to say when something works, and when it doesn’t.
These people, the right people, importantly not the same people every time, will be open and honest enough to recognise the good ideas and build on them.
There’ll be no hurt feelings about the suggestions that don’t make the grade.


*I’d like to thank Mel Brooks and Blazing saddles for the original version of that joke