Brainstorming Demons

  Innovation   ProjectsAtWork  

Scary creatures and evil spirits are fine on Halloween, but they have no place in brainstorming sessions, where they’re sure to thwart innovative thinking. Here are five ways your organization may be scaring away good ideas, and tips for how to exorcize the most disruptive brainstorming demons.

For most of us, the arrival of Halloween evokes childhood memories of trick-or-treating, jack-o’-lanterns, ghosts, goblins, witches, black cats — and staying up late to watch horror movies like Friday the 13^th and Nightmare on Elm Street. Although the spooky traditions of “All Hallow’s Eve” aren’t widely celebrated in the business world, those traditions can provide us with interesting metaphors and analogies for some of the challenges organizations often face when trying to generate new ideas and drive innovation.

In a world where innovation is an essential ingredient for business success, the ability to freely and consistently generate fresh, new thinking is crucial. Ideas are the lifeblood of business. Without them, you have nothing. So it’s important to eliminate any impediments to effective idea generation swiftly and handily.

Here are five warning signs that negative influences might be affecting your organization’s best thinking and creative problem-solving abilities — and what to do about it.

1. Dungeon Masters…

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