Page 219 - THE DO-IT-YOURSELF LOBOTOMY Open Your Mind to Greater Creative Thinking

210 STORMING THE BRAIN

pieces on a game board, and you don’t have to waste time tran-
scribing.
Don’t: Have one person be a scribe. It eliminates that person’s full
involvement and sometimes diffuses the ownership of an idea
that may later need a champion to keep it alive.
Do: Ask people to stand while they are ideating. People actually
think better when they are standing. Cross-lateral activity such
as walking, jogging, swimming, and biking stimulates the brain.
Standing still is actually not an inert state at all, but a constant
balancing act using cross-lateral muscle activity. I like to use
pads on easels for posting the sticky notes with ideas written on
them, or use the sheets from such pads taped to the wall. I also
like to keep chairs at a distance to avoid the temptation to sit. Of
course, pregnant women and octogenarians are excluded from
the rule.
Don’t: Have people sit comfortably around a table unless you’re
willing to supply a steady stream of coffee or pillows.
Do: Ask all players to say their ideas aloud as they write them
down. It cross-pollinates the other players on their team and
contributes to a level of chatter that gives the team some energy.
When all teams are thinking out loud it adds group energy that
is both competitive and supportive for the entire room.
Don’t: Ask people to remain silent for most of the session. This can
contribute to very low energy. There are times, however, when I
ask teams or the entire room to spend, say, 5 or 10 minutes ideat-
ing in silence. I do this when I feel the group has been distracted
from the main mission by digression or judgment, or even when
the energy is getting low. Regarding that last point, rather than
allowing low energy to be a negative element of the atmosphere,
sometimes it’s easier to go with the flow than to fight it and lose.
Do: Change the dynamics throughout the session. Push the group’s
thinking first this way, then that way, then some other way. Off-
center methods of thinking can become routine very quickly.
Don’t: Keep pushing in the same direction. Creative thinking means
finding surprising answers. You can’t keep looking in the same
place or in the same way and expect to find something different.
Do: Use toys, props, music, anything to alter the ambience, tone,
and tempo. I like rock ’n’ roll blasting one minute, classical
music the next. I also use crayons, food, and games.
Don’t: Expect a boring atmosphere to lead to exciting results.