Design thinking resource

Brainstorming

A creative thinking technique used to generate a large number of ideas within a short period of time.

Generate quantity before quality

Brainstorming encourages participants to generate as many ideas as possible. By focusing on quantity first, teams create opportunities for unexpected and innovative concepts to emerge.

Defer judgement

Ideas should be recorded without criticism, evaluation or debate. Suspending judgement encourages participation and reduces the fear of being wrong.

Build upon ideas

Participants are encouraged to combine, adapt and extend ideas generated by others, creating richer and more innovative outcomes.

Put the method to work

Put Brainstorming into practice

Define the challenge.

Generate ideas rapidly.

Capture every contribution.

Review and refine ideas afterwards.

Why it matters

What Brainstorming makes possible

Encourages creativity

Generates numerous possibilities

Increases participation

Supports collaborative innovation

Worked example

See it in action

An illustrative learning example, not a documented project case study. Observations, choices and outcomes show how the method could be applied; they are not research findings.

Challenge

How might we reduce food waste on campus?

15-minute brainstorming session

Minutes 0–5: generate ideas independently without judging them. Minutes 5–10: share and cluster related ideas. Minutes 10–15: compare likely impact and ease of prototyping, then select three ideas to test.

First five minutes

Generate as many ideas as possible.

Generated ideas

Smart fridges
Food sharing app
Discount surplus meals
Leftover meal marketplace
Food donation kiosks
Compost rewards program
Community kitchen
Smaller portion options
Pre-order meal planning
Food waste tracking dashboard
End-of-day surplus alerts
Reusable takeaway containers
Food storage guidance
Campus food swap shelf
Catering demand forecasting
Student cooking workshops
Donation collection partnerships
Portion-size feedback
Surplus ingredient recipe board
Food waste awareness campaign

Cluster ideas

Technology

Smart fridges
Food sharing app
Marketplace
Pre-order meal planning
Food waste tracking dashboard
End-of-day surplus alerts
Catering demand forecasting

Community

Community kitchen
Donation program
Campus food swap shelf
Student cooking workshops
Donation collection partnerships
Surplus ingredient recipe board

Behaviour

Rewards system
Awareness campaign
Smaller portion options
Reusable takeaway containers
Food storage guidance
Portion-size feedback
Discount surplus meals

Selected ideas

Food sharing app
Discount surplus meals
Compost rewards system

Why selected

Strong impact and relatively easy to prototype.

Common mistake

Evaluating ideas while generating them.

Continue exploring

Return to Explore Possibilities.

Place this method back within the broader 5E Design Thinking Framework and continue developing your understanding.

View the stage →