No, that’s not a typo.

But since you’re thinking of brainstorming, let’s identify how it’s different from our focus for today, brainwriting.

When it comes to generating ideas, brainstorming typically consists of getting a group of people together to generate an idea on how to approach a particular problem. During this process, a few things may happen:

• It’s a drawn out process
• Sometimes the most vocal of the group tend to dominate the conversation
• There’s one person documenting the ideas (and can’t fully participate because they’re too busy writing down everyone’s ideas)
• The person documenting typically has the most power in how the idea looks when written down
• There are a lot of ideas, but fewer suggestions on what to do with these ideas
• There’s a greater chance for boredom

In comparison, brainwriting addresses these concerns by:

• Limiting the amount of time the group generates ideas
• Everyone participates equally rather than the most vocal of the group
• Everyone is writing down their ideas instead of one person
• Everyone decides how their idea looks written down
• Everyone has the opportunity to provide a variation of the ideas, which promotes for creativity and insights into next steps
• It’s more engaging

Brainwriting is a more effective process because it allows for more individuality in generating ideas rapidly, rather than conforming to groupthink. Rather than focusing on one person at a time, this method reduces the amount of talking that occurs during brainstorming, which can take time away from idea generation.

This activity is ideal for:

• Understanding how an idea looks from multiple perspectives
• Understanding how problem can be solved based on multiple perspectives
• Having a more engaging process for group work within a training or workshop
• Including more creative exercises within a focus group
• Creating a more equitable way for introverts and extroverts people to participate

Here’s what you need:

• Sheets of paper
• Pens or pencils 

The steps:

1. Divide participants into smalls groups of up to 4-6 people. Ideally, each group is seated around a table.
2. Pass out a sheet of paper to each person
3. The facilitator gives a topic for the brainwriting. After getting the topic, each person list their ideas (up to 3) at the top of their sheet, using as clear and concise a sentence as possible, in under 5 minutes
4. After everyone has written down their idea, place the sheets put in the middle of the table. For participants with additional ideas, have them write the ideas down on additional separate sheets, and place those sheets in the middle of the table.
5. After all ideas have been added to the pile, each person grabs one sheet. Now, after reading the idea at the top the sheet, each participant can now add a variation of that idea, or a relevant comment related to the idea
6. Once everyone is done, each participant passes their sheet to the left. Continue the process of writing down ideas until each sheet has made it around the table at least once
7. Last, have participants place them sheets them in order of priority, such as “Easiest to Implement” or “Most Engaging”
8. After 10 to 15 minutes, collect the sheets and post them for immediate discussion within the larger group

Key Takeaway

Brainwriting is a great way to build on ideas, focusing on individuality rather than all participants agreeing with 1-2 dominant people in the group. Try this exercise and let me know how it goes for you.