What is Brainstorming Template?

A brainstorming template is a structured tool used to facilitate creative thinking and idea generation during brainstorming sessions. It provides a framework for participants to organize their thoughts, ideas, and suggestions in a clear and concise manner. The goal of a brainstorming template is to encourage free-flowing ideas without worrying about feasibility or practicality at this stage.

A typical brainstorms template includes the following elements:

1. Topic: Clearly define the topic or problem you want to address during the brainstorming session.
2. Objective: Specify the objective of the brainstorming session, such as generating new product ideas or solving a specific business challenge.
3. Idea Generation: This section is where participants write down their ideas, suggestions, and thoughts related to the topic.
4. Categorization: Divide the ideas into categories or themes to help group similar ideas together and identify patterns or relationships.
5. Evaluation Criteria: Establish criteria for evaluating the generated ideas, such as feasibility, cost, impact, or potential.
6. Idea Development: Provide space for participants to elaborate on their ideas, including details about how they would work, potential benefits, and potential challenges.

Some common types of brainstorms templates include:

1. Mind Map Template: A visual template that uses circles, arrows, and keywords to create a mind map.
2. Idea Matrix Template: A grid-based template that helps participants categorize and evaluate ideas based on different criteria.
3. Brainstorming Worksheet Template: A simple template that provides space for writing down ideas and organizing them by category or theme.
4. SCAMPER Template: A creative thinking tool that uses the SCAMPER acronym (Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, Put to Another Use, Eliminate, and Rearrange) to generate new ideas.

Benefits of using a brainstorming template:

1. Encourages creativity: The structured format helps participants think outside the box and explore new ideas.
2. Increases participation: By providing a clear framework, more people are likely to participate in the brainstorming session.
3. Improves organization: The template helps organize thoughts and ideas, making it easier to review and build upon them later.
4. Enhances collaboration: Brainstorming templates can facilitate group work by helping participants share their ideas and build on each other's suggestions.

When choosing a brainstorms template, consider the specific needs of your team or organization, as well as the complexity of the topic you're addressing.