{"id":54606,"date":"2021-03-31T05:13:09","date_gmt":"2021-03-31T05:13:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging-mondaycomblog.kinsta.cloud\/?post_type=teamwork&p=54606"},"modified":"2025-09-23T07:01:21","modified_gmt":"2025-09-23T12:01:21","slug":"brainstorming-techniques","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/monday.com\/blog\/teamwork\/brainstorming-techniques\/","title":{"rendered":"10 brainstorming techniques for your team to create better ideas"},"content":{"rendered":"

Most teams settle for an unstructured brainstorming session where everyone tries to figure out a challenging topic together. The average kindergarten class is more orderly and \u2014 let\u2019s be honest \u2014 more productive.<\/p>\n

But since you\u2019re looking for new tricks, you already know this isn\u2019t the best way to generate ideas.<\/p>\n

Strong personalities can end up dominating the ideation session. Instead of ideas standing on their own merits, whoever takes the initiative leads the conversation.<\/p>\n

That leads to a narrow set of often closely related ideas.<\/p>\n

But with the 10 brainstorming techniques, we cover below, you can minimize this issue and produce better, more original ideas.<\/p>\n

Get started with monday.com<\/a><\/p>\n

What are brainstorming techniques?<\/h2>\nBrainstorming techniques are methods that let you better structure brainstorming sessions for better results. It may sound counterintuitive, but by implementing structure and rules, you can generate more fresh ideas.<\/span><\/a>\n

A growing body of research<\/a> shows that a simple brainstorming session is often counterproductive. It can lead to fewer ideas of lower quality than just a person sitting down to think.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, some techniques can limit the downside while maximizing the upside.<\/p>\n

What are the 7 rules of brainstorming?<\/h3>\n

Design Thinking leader Ideo has developed a set of 7 rules for brainstorming. These rules help you get better results, regardless of which technique you use.<\/p>\n

\"Rules<\/p>\n

(Image Source<\/a>)<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Defer judgment:<\/strong> first, you want to list all ideas, not try to rank or evaluate them based on quality.<\/li>\n
  2. One conversation at a time:<\/strong> make sure everyone gets to speak.<\/li>\n
  3. Encourage the wild idea:<\/strong> moonshots can help you find a different perspective. Innovative ideas often start out seeming unrealistic \u2014 imagine pitching the moon landing to a caveman.<\/li>\n
  4. Be visual: <\/strong>use tools for visualization, like mind maps, to help everyone keep track of the conversation.<\/li>\n
  5. Build on others\u2019 ideas: <\/strong><\/strong>mix, match, and expand on existing ideas to find the new ones.<\/li>\n
  6. Go for quantity: <\/strong>don\u2019t try to create a list of fully-formed solutions. Stick to rough, high-level ideas in the first round.<\/li>\n
  7. Stay on topic: <\/strong>it\u2019s easy to go off course in any meeting, especially free-format brainstorming.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    10 cutting-edge brainstorming techniques for your team to try<\/h2>\n

    Let\u2019s explore common brainstorming techniques that anyone can use to develop better ideas faster.<\/p>\n

    1. Brainwriting<\/h3>\n

    You don\u2019t meet with the team and start discussing at once. Instead, you give everyone a chance to write down their unique ideas first. It begins with silent, individual brainstorming.<\/p>\n

    Then, instead of out-loud, chaotic discussions, everyone swaps their paper slips. All team members then expand on or add new ideas to the note they received.<\/p>\n

    You can then repeat this step multiple times until finally collecting all ideas and sharing them. You end a session with a collective discussion about the ideas.<\/p>\n

    \u201cRapid Ideation\u201d is a variation where everyone writes silently during the first 5\u201315 minutes of a brainstorming session.<\/p>\n

    2. Mind mapping<\/h3>\n

    A mind map is an excellent tool for creating more varied and realistic ideas that consider the big picture.<\/p>\n

    Outlining all the moving parts and the relationships between them makes it easier to generate robust ideas.<\/p>\n

    For example, if you want to brainstorm ideas for your marketing campaign, having all areas on the table will lead to a broader range of solutions.<\/p>\n

    \"Mind<\/p>\n

    Using mind mapping software<\/a> and techniques will help your team to stop focusing on the shiniest option, like a new social media campaign. The whole picture is right there. Everyone will consider the impact of partnerships, analytics, and more.<\/p>\n

    3. Concept mapping<\/h3>\n

    Unlike a mind map, a concept map is conceptual. It outlines the relationship between different concepts during ideation.<\/p>\n

    It\u2019s a great tool during the latter stages of brainstorming when you start to explore ideas in-depth.<\/p>\n

    For example, you can visually \u201cbuild\u201d different solutions with the necessary resources and potential impact.<\/p>\n

    Concept mapping helps you evaluate the viability of different ideas and explore the relationship between them. You can combine it with associative brainstorming.<\/p>\n

    Get started<\/a><\/p>\n

    4. Step-ladder technique<\/h3>\n

    With the step-ladder technique, you start by sharing the topic with everyone in the room \u2014 ideally 8 people or fewer.<\/p>\n

    But then, you send everyone except 2 people out of the room. This pair will come up with ideas for a limited time, often around 5 minutes.<\/p>\n

    Then they\u2019ll invite another person into the room and ask them about their ideas. After adding the new ones, discuss the generated ideas with the third person. Repeat this step \u2014 keeping all new members \u2014 until everyone joins in.<\/p>\n

    With everyone back in the room, you then discuss all the ideas and single out the best ones.<\/p>\n

    5. Figure, role, and what if brainstorming<\/h3>\n

    These are variations of a simple but powerful brainstorming strategy \u2014 putting yourself in someone else\u2019s shoes.<\/p>\n

    For example, in figure and role brainstorming, you focus on channeling a specific role or persona. You could ask everyone to look at the problem from the perspective of a CIO or a customer support rep.<\/p>\n

    With the \u201cwhat if\u201d approach, you imagine a specific situation instead. For example, how would we handle the problem if we only had 2 weeks to do so?<\/p>\n

    By forcing your team to approach the issue from a new angle, you open up new possibilities. They may consider potential risks or solutions nobody would have given a second thought otherwise.<\/p>\n

    Get the creative juices flowing by stepping into someone else\u2019s shoes.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    6. Charette Procedure<\/h3>\n

    The Charette Procedure is almost like a scaled-up version of brainstorming. It works best with at least 10\u201315 active team members and stakeholders.<\/p>\n

    In Charette, you break down the problem into topics and assign them to different groups. A person on each team \u2014 called the recorder \u2014 takes meticulous notes.<\/p>\n

    This brainstorming process plays out as multiple simultaneous sessions.<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Divide the main idea into specific topics.<\/li>\n
    2. Break teams into groups and assign issues.<\/li>\n
    3. Each group discusses separately \u2014 and notes down all ideas.<\/li>\n
    4. The recorders move to different groups and share their group\u2019s ideas.<\/li>\n
    5. Hold a final brainstorming meeting where all teams discuss their final ideas and create a prioritized list.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      The first step might seem complicated, but it\u2019s usually fairly straightforward. For example, when trying to imagine a new campaign, it has natural divisions.<\/p>\n