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Now that you've formed a "how might we" statement, brainstorm ideas for potentail solutions. 

USE CONSTRAINTS TO FORCE CREATIVITY

IDEATE

"Brainstorming" and "rules" may sound opposing, but constraining yourself helps you develop more creative solutions. 

Thinking about a broad problem is much more overwhelming than thinking about a small one. 

Brainstorming RULES
DEFER
Judgment

Don't shoot down any ideas. You will filter through them later.

GO FOR
Quantity

Everyone has the same first 20 ideas. You need to generate way more (at least 100) for them to get innovative. 

BUILD OFF OF
Others

This is just like improv. Always use "yes, and" instead of "but."

FOCUS ON THE 
Topic

Make sure your ideas are always tied back into the How Might We statement. 

ENCOURAGE CRAZY
Ideas

It's much easier to reel back a crazy idea than to innovate from a tame one.

Get out your ideas quickly and efficiently using sticky notes or a white board

WRITE IT DOWN

TEchniques

NOW THAT YOU KNOW THE RULES, HERE ARE SOME TECHNIQUES TO HELP YOU GENERATE AND ORGANIZE YOUR IDEAS. 

Use Biomimicry

Take inspiration from nature. For example, the shape of the Japanese bullet trains was inspired by the naturally aerodynamic beak of a bird.  

False Facts!

Explore the opposite. For example: coffee shops that don't sell coffee. Sounds crazy, but it allows for innovative ideas. Have you ever heard of Cat Cafes?

Cluster Ideas

Now that you've generated a bunch of ideas, group them into general categories. This will help you condense ideas moving forward. 

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Ready for More?
 

The Baker Institute is able to bring Design Thinking concepts to Lehigh's student organizations and faculty/staff departments. If you are interested in learning more
about the Baker Institutes' brand of Design Thinking workshops, please complete this form

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