Brainstorming is a good way to generate new ideas, whether you are trying to create a home business or looking for ways to increase your business’s income. While brainstorming in business is usually done by groups, solo entrepreneurs can also use this technique to generate new ideas.
Brainstorming can help you come up with ideas you might not otherwise have thought of. It can also help to better understand your business and help you focus on the areas that need improvement.
You can use these 7 techniques to expand your mind and come up with new ideas for your business. These techniques can be used to generate new ideas. You’ll also find helpful tools and rules to maximize your brainstorming.
Ask a question
Answering a question is a great way to come up with new ideas. You can ask yourself what kind of business would help you achieve your goals if you are looking to start a business at home.
You might ask yourself, “What’s the one thing that my clients and customers want most?” or “Where can I find the help they need with my product or service?”
Use a mind map
The mind map was popularized by Tony buzan in the 20th century. This is a great tool for those who are visual learners. You can use mind map software on computers or apps on digital devices. But all you really need is paper and pencil. Color pencils are a good option, as Tony Buzan suggested when he first introduced mind maps.
The steps of mind mapping are:
- Start by placing a word or question in the middle of the page.
- Draw a circle from the middle outwards, then add a word, question, or concept that is related. These next-level ideas can be as many as you like.
- Draw a line from the second-level concepts and add words that relate to the subtopic.
- As long as you have ideas, continue to draw related lines.
Let’s say that you are trying to think of marketing ideas. As a central topic, you could choose “Marketing”. Then, you could have spokes that include “Building Community,” Media/PR,” and Advertising.
Word Map
A world map can be used to brainstorm ideas such as your company name and tagline. Write down all words that are related to the goals of your brand or business. Write down words related to each word. For instance, if you wanted to start a business in organic gardening, you could write “organic”, “gardening” or “organic”. You might, for example, write “safe,””clean,”and “vegetables.”
SWOT Analysis
You’ve probably done a SWOT analysis if you’ve written a business plan. The SWOT analysis isn’t only useful in your Business Plan. This can be used as a brainstorming tool. Create a grid of four squares by drawing vertically across the paper and then horizontally. Write “Strengths” in the upper left corner, and “Weaknesses” in the upper right corner. In the lower left, write “Opportunities”, and “Threats” in the lower right.
Let’s say, for example, you are trying to decide whether you want to create a blog. You can also list your own strengths under “Strengths”, such as, “It is low-cost to start,” or “I am an expert in the field.” The same goes for “Weaknesses,” like “I am not tech-savvy,” “it can take time to earn a decent income from a blogging,” etc. You might say, “There are a lot of ways to earn money from a blog.” And under “Threats,” you could write “A lot of competition.”
Spend time in your customer/client’s shoes
Making decisions and analyzing the situation solely through the eyes of a business owner is a mistake. It is important to put yourself in the shoes of your clients or customers. This will help you come up with ideas that are appealing and that attract them. You can do this by surveying clients and customers, but you can also generate ideas for improvement by working through the marketing, sales, purchasing, and customer service system as a client or customer.
Ask Who, What and Why, When, Where and How
Sometimes you don’t know what questions to ask when brainstorming. You can generate new ideas by going back to basics like who, what and why. If you are a visual person you can draw them in a similar way to a mind-map, called a “starburst”.
Starbursting is a technique where you begin with the main idea and draw lines with the basic questions who, what and why at the end. Create more questions based on your main idea by using these basic questions. Let’s say, for example, that you want to earn money through affiliate marketing. In the middle, you’d write “Affiliate Marketing”. You can ask questions like “How will affiliate products promoted? “, or “Who would be the ideal person to purchase my affiliate products?”. As many questions as you can think of.
You can focus your business goals by asking the right questions and generating answers.
When Money and Time are not an Issue
You may have played a game in which you answered the question “What would you be doing if you won a lottery?” Your mind is free to dream and imagine anything you want, without the limitations of your present life.
When brainstorming, the same applies. Your brain can eliminate too many ideas because you don’t have the resources. To keep your mind wide open, think about what you would do if time and money were not an issue. What would you do if money and time were not an issue?
Tools for Brainstorming
A piece of paper, pen or pencil are all you need to do brainstorming. As it is a creative process, you will need tools to help you come up with the best ideas. Here are some tools that you can use.
- Idea Notebook: Keep all your ideas in one place to make it easy to look back at old brainstorming sessions. You can also keep a notebook handy to record new ideas that come up after brainstorming.
- Colored Pencils Using colors is pleasing to the eye, and can help you be more creative. You can use it to organize and sort your thoughts.
- Mind Map Apps There are many free or low-cost mind mapping apps that you can download and use on your computer.
- A whiteboard or large sheet of paper is often used for group brainstorming, but it can also be useful if you are alone. You can avoid writing on a small surface by using a large writing surface.
- Sticky Notes: One of the advantages of sticky notes is that they can be moved around on a large surface.
- Recorder : Although you should always write down your ideas, it is sometimes helpful to record them. Often, voicing your ideas is more effective than thinking them. If you are part of a mastermind or have a coach you can also benefit from talking about the issue. You will not only get more ideas and clarification, but you may also receive some feedback.
Brainstorming Rules
Brainstorming has the purpose of generating a lot of ideas, which you can then go through and decide on what is best for your goal. The brain is prone to filtering, judging, and assessing ideas. You’re likely to not write down certain ideas because they seem stupid or impossible. You can’t. You need to follow these rules to ensure a productive brainstorming session:
- No judgement: Write all ideas down, no matter how absurd or impossible they may seem. Is being on a morning TV show going to boost your credibility? If it occurs to you, write it down. It is important to include ideas that seem too far-fetched, as they often lead to more realistic ones. It never hurts, either, to aim for the stars. It might seem impossible to appear on a morning television show that airs nationally, but this idea can lead you to reach out to local radio shows or morning shows.
- No evaluation : Brainstorming is a simple mind dump. Write down any idea you have. It’s not the right time to evaluate an idea or decide how it can be implemented. Evaluation of ideas is done later.
