Brainstorming Again!

 Hey all!  Hope your week has been going well, the weather is finally getting warmer!  Well I'm back with some more brainstorming tips and strategies for you! Hopefully it will help you get your event off the ground and find some fun, exciting ideas!

 Listing: Take your topic or your general idea and you can list in three ways. Take each of these categories  and create a list of only one word items that apply to that list.
  
     1. On the general theme
     2.  On Specific areas of the theme (decorations, food, etc)
     3. Taking the items of the first two lists, come up with the opposites of those ideas

3 Perspectives: Use these prompts to approach your idea from different angles.

1.  Describe it:  What is your basic idea, whats interesting about it, what unique opportunities does it       present?  What are its most well known features?  What are its themes?
2. Trace it: What is the history of your subject? How has it changed over time? Why? What are the          significant events that have influenced your subject?
3.  Map it: What is your subject related to? What is it influenced by? How? What does it influence?          How? Who has a stake in your topic?  Why? How has your subject been approached by others?

Similes:

In this technique, complete the following sentence:
____________________ is/was/are/were like _____________________.

In the first blank put one of the terms or concepts your theme centers on. Then try to brainstorm as many answers as possible for the second blank, writing them down as you come up with them.
After you have produced a list of options, look over your ideas. What kinds of ideas come forward? What patterns or associations do you find?

Search For It!

When all else fails and you can't think of ideas or even a theme to start with, this is the technique for you.  Get a piece of paper, and a variety of resources.  Examples would be different types of magazines, textbooks, catalogues, brochures, even dictionaries and encyclopedias or a trip to the mall.  Flip through the pages, or walk through the stores and write down things that catch your eye.  Things that you think would be interesting, don't worry about plausibility at this point.  Going through different types of magazines and things that cover different topics (history, fashion, science, etc) will you give you a broader range to pull from.  These days you can also browse online and sites like stumble are awesome.  You'll be surprised at how much will spark your imagination.

The big thing to remember with brainstorming is to keep an open mind.  If brainstorming in a group make sure that everyone has the opportunity to speak, and that no idea is shot down or insulted.  This will stunt the creativity and prevent people from speaking out.  Creating an environment where people know their ideas will be valued is crucial to group brainstorming.   Time limits may help keep people on track, but other than that its just best to let the ideas flow unrestricted.

Hopefully some of these ideas will help you out of a rut it you get stuck.  I'm sure you have tons of great ideas for your events, you've just got to get them out!

Good luck and TTFN!