Maximizing creativity in brainstorming: idea generation inspired by neuro-inclusion best practices
Published on 11 April 2024 • Written by Dr Lisa Colledge
Solving a problem starts with creating lots of ideas. They may or may not be what you later implement, but to start with that doesn’t matter. Humankind has evolved to be inherently brilliant at finding solutions by building in sub-groups who specialize in different aspects of problem solving. Making the extra effort to design an inclusive brainstorming process unlocks the collective genius that is naturally present within this neurodiversity, but brainstorms often fall short of capturing all ideas of the team. Best practices inspired by neuro-inclusion help create an environment where not only neurodivergent individuals, such as dyslexic, autistic, dyscalculic, ADHD team members, but also introverts and anyone inclined towards solitary reflection, can contribute meaningfully.
Three key takeaways
Humans are incredible at finding solutions because we evolved sub-groups specialized at each different aspect of it. In a brainstorm, we are at our best sharing ideas to solve a problem when we ensure that we enable the collective genius of these sub-groups to emerge.
Neurodivergent brainstorm participants hold critical keys to group success, such as big picture thinking, pattern analysis, and comfort in risk taking, but tend to struggle with the majority style of information processing and communication. Introverted team members, who prefer to think first and then talk, share these challenges, as does anyone who prefers to start with quiet contemplation. If these styles are not accommodated, your brainstorm won’t unlock the full range of creativity available.
Make your brainstorm process inclusive by spending extra time preparing and providing options to contribute. Share materials beforehand for those who wish to prepare; during the brainstorm session, use a mix of verbal and quiet written contribution time slots to cater to all thinking and communication preferences; and continue the brainstorm process by allowing participants to contribute after the session itself has finished.
— — — — — — —
Brainstorming is about generating lots of ideas that could solve a problem. It’s creative. It’s about quantity, not quality. It’s about sharing data so that the team can make observations and draw connections. It’s about building on a starting point by saying, “Yes, and”, not, “No, but”, and being willing to go where the discussion takes you. For now, it’s irrelevant how feasible those ideas are.
It follows that the conditions for a successful brainstorm must enable everyone to share their ideas. To make sure we get all ideas outside of the heads they are created in, we need to create a brainstorming environment that is inclusive.
We can all probably recall brainstorm sessions that were filled with enthusiastic, rapid-fire discussion. But think back to whether there any quiet participants among the vocal majority (statistically, it will have been a majority). Was the list of ideas truly representative of each individual who spent time in that session? Or were some ideas missed?
As a group, we can’t help but excel at ideation
Humans are incredible at finding solutions to problems because, over hundreds of thousands of years of evolution, we have solved the so-called Exploration versus Exploitation challenge of adapting successfully to unpredictability. Our solution was to evolve sub-groups whose styles of understanding, interpreting, and acting on information differed. The collective genius that emerged by combining these diverse styles allowed us to navigate environmental change that could have extinguished our species, so trust me when I say that problem solving is an innate human skill. If you’d like to learn more, please take a look at this article.
We do, however, need to make efforts to ensure that our innate ideating skill can emerge during a brainstorm. It does take effort, and I’ll take two approaches to convincing you that the extra time is worth the result by considering sub-groups in terms of neurodivergence, and in terms of preferences in interacting with others.
There are certainly neurodivergent team members who are participating in your brainstorm; it is irrelevant whether you know this for certain or who they are. A few examples of their typical contributions are that:
Dyslexics tend to be great at complex, big picture thinking but read slowly and struggle to keep track of what they have read.
People with ADHD tend to be comfortable taking calculated risks but may be disorganized and jump between topics.
Dyscalculics often possess creative problem-solving skills but can make mistakes with numbers.
Autists tend to be strong at detailed data analysis but to take things literally.
It is easy to become overwhelmed by the list of challenges faced by neurodivergent colleagues, and in the interests making these brainstorm best practices manageable and accessible for everyone, I am going to share the helpful generalizations made by Victoria Honeybourne (reference at the end). Neurodivergent team members tend to exhibit:
Differences in information processing.
Differences in executive functions, which underpin skills such as organization, planning, structuring of information, and focus.
Difficulties with working memory, or the ability to hold information in short-term storage for immediate processing.
Low self-esteem.
Now let’s consider your brainstorming team members from the perspective of introversion and extraversion. These are preferences in our attitudes to interacting with others, and describe one of the four dimensions of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) description of personality. In their book (reference at the end), Olaf Isachsen, Ph.D. and Linda V. Berens, Ph.D. share these descriptions:
An extraverted person is outwardly focused and energized by interactions with others. They talk first, and then think or feel, and they use many words. They have scattered energy.
An introverted person is energized by being alone, and they have a rich inner life. Silence is a blessing to the introvert, as they like to think first, and then talk or feel, and they are economical with words. Their energy is concentrated.
The consequences of the challenges are similar to those that I listed from Victoria Honeybourne, even though the cause is different. An introvert will find it difficult to process information when extroverts are enthusiastically sharing their ideas, and may become frustrated by the consideration of insights in the evidence coming after the talking. All these challenges are worsened in situations that an individual finds stressful.
How can you leverage the collective genius of your diverse group?
Typical brainstorms tend to favor the majority: the 75% extrovert and 70% neurotypical participants. How can you accommodate the challenges we’ve discussed, while retaining the free-flowing exchange of ideas that you want to stimulate? In short, by preparing thoroughly and providing options to contribute. I’m sharing some best practices here, and I am sure that you can think of more as well.
Tip 1: Enable participants to prepare in advance.
Some people are comfortable going into a brainstorm and ad-libbing. To others, it is the height of discomfort. You need to prepare anyway, so prepare in a way that can be shared in advance, so that those who want to can build their familiarity with the material.
Make sure the problem is clearly stated. Active language is easier to process than passive.
Help to make the brainstorm a safe space by share your game rules, such as being creative and supportive, and not evaluating suggestions at this stage.
Provide the evidence that will underpin the discussion. Try not to dump in everything you think might be relevant because you don’t have the time to sort it out: be selective in making sure that what you share is relevant to the problem.
Some people prefer to look at the original evidence, and some prefer to look at derived visualizations or summaries. Ideally, provide both, such as raw data plus a chart, and anonymized survey comments with your key takeaways.
Be explicit about any assumptions you’re making, or any evidence that you’d like to have but don’t.
Share an agenda. Explain the method that you’ll follow to let participants share their ideas to the collaboration board. Include a link to any online collaboration tool you’ll be using so people can be sure they are familiar with the functionality.
Tip 2: Provide more than one option to share ideas during your brainstorm session.
Recap the key points of your preparation material to make sure that everyone has a common understanding of what you’ll be doing. Not everyone will have looked at it.
Consider providing 5–10 minutes to allow people to re-familiarize themselves with the evidence, or to take a first look at it.
The easiest way to mix contribution options is to have part of the meeting where people can verbally share ideas, and part where people can write them down.
Consider multiple rounds of your contribution options. For example: in round 1, invite everyone in turn to share one idea verbally (not obligatory), which you capture on your collaboration board, and then provide time to share further ideas to the board in writing. In round 2, you could ask people to vote on the ideas they’d like to elaborate on, invite questions, and then write down related ideas.
Use a count-down timer to offer everyone the same amount of time when they are verbally sharing make sure everyone gets an equal chance, and a sub-group doesn’t dominate.
Tip 3: Extend the opportunity to contribute.
A brainstorm that gets as far as tip 2 is quite inclusive, but no one said a brainstorm had to be confined to one meeting. If you consider a brainstorm as a process, you can create additional inclusive opportunities.
Share the list of ideas with participants.
Give participants a defined amount of time to feedback. They could build on existing ideas or contribute new ones. This gives those who prefer to contemplate before sharing the chance to digest and respond to new ideas from the brainstorm session.
Declare the idea generation closed and share the next steps. It’s time to pass this great list on into a different process to evaluate and select the idea(s) to be acted on.
Inclusive brainstorming: paving the way for collective genius
The foundation of designing a successful solution to a change is to generate a lot of ideas. The decision of which idea(s) to pursue emerges later in the process. You’ll generate the most ideas if you take some extra time to prepare and create an inclusive brainstorming environment that accommodates diverse participant styles. Embracing neuro-inclusive best practices makes your brainstorm more accessible to the 30% neurodivergent team members, 25% introverted participants, and in fact every contributor who prefers quiet contemplation before contributing. By prioritizing inclusivity, you will unlock the full range of creativity you have at your disposal.
References
‘The Neurodiverse Workplace: An Employer’s Guide to Managing and Working with Neurodivergent Employees, Clients and Customers’, Victoria Honeybourne.
‘Working Together: A Personality-Centered Approach to Management’, Olaf Isachsen, Ph.D. and Linda V. Berens, Ph.D.
I'm Lisa, and I help leaders create inclusive cultures that embrace all neurostyles. By empowering every team member to contribute at their best, while fostering mental well-being, you will boost innovation, retention, and talent acquisition—leading to enhanced business performance.
Click here to learn more about how my services can transform your team.
