<p class='MsoNormal' style='margin: 0in 0in 0pt;'><span style='font-size: small;'><span style='font-family: Times New Roman;'>Brainstorming asks you to come up with thoughts and ideas that you may not even know you had.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>These ideas may turn out to be a bit off the wall, crazy even, but they are ones that can be built upon and added to.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>Brainstorming techniques can help you come up with very creative solutions to a problem, create new opportunities, or improve the quality of work or services that you offer.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span></span></span>

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<p class='MsoNormal' style='margin: 0in 0in 0pt;'><span style='font-size: small;'><span style='font-family: Times New Roman;'>The key to successful brainstorming is to leave any and all criticism at the door.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>The goal is to open up all possibilities, and criticism will put a halt to the process.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>One very successful brainstorming technique is to have an interactive group brainstorming session.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>By enlisting the help of others you will bring in the experience and ideas into solving your problem, creating a solution, or creating an opportunity.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>Group brainstorming may cause some people to bottle up their ideas instead of share them for fear of criticism.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>These group sessions need to be monitored closely so that criticism is not a part of the process.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>Ideas need to flow freely, and you may find a better solution with the group than you would have relying on just yourself.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span></span></span>

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<p class='MsoNormal' style='margin: 0in 0in 0pt;'><span style='font-size: small;'><span style='font-family: Times New Roman;'>A great brainstorming technique to get your creative juices flowing is to do brain warm ups. <span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>The first warm up is to participate in an opposites match.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>On the left side of a paper write down 15 every day words, not related to the topic or subject at hand.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>Give yourself 5 to 10 minutes, however long you may think that you need to think of and write down 3 opposites of each word.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>Don’t pause too long on one particular word, the idea is to wake your brain up, get it warm and used to thinking of ideas quickly.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>If you are working in a group, have one person say the word out loud and everyone else make a list in front of them.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>Perform the match several times so that everyone has a turn reading a list out loud and participating in the opposites writing.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span></span></span>

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<p class='MsoNormal' style='margin: 0in 0in 0pt;'><span style='font-size: small;'><span style='font-family: Times New Roman;'>Another great warm up is to play a word game.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>There are hundreds of popular word games to choose from.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>One of the most popular games is to run through the alphabet.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>If you are working with a team, the first team member says a word that begins with the letter A, the next a word that is somehow related to the first, but begins with the letter B, the next C, and so on.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>If you are working by yourself, write the words down on paper as quickly as possible.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span></span></span>

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<p class='MsoNormal' style='margin: 0in 0in 0pt;'><span style='font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";'>Using brainstorming warm ups before your actual brainstorming sessions can really help to get your creative juices flowing.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span>Thoughts and ideas will come quicker, and more freely.<span style='mso-spacerun: yes;'> </span></span>

Author: Matt Murren

About the author:
Matt D Murren owns and operates http:// Brainstorming Techniques

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