Every new and great idea starts with brainstorming. As an essential part of the creative process, brainstorming requires a safe and open space where people are free to express their ideas without judgment. If your brainstorming sessions are lacking, here are five tricks to help you maximize your time.

1. Assign a Group Leader

Assigning a group leader to guide the session is crucial. When ideas are freely flowing from multiple people in the group, it’s easy to fall off track and lose focus. A leader will help ensure that everyone stays on the same page and drive unproductive or hostile conversation toward something more productive and meaningful.

2. Establish Goals

Before each brainstorming session, make sure that all participants understand what the project is and what your goals are. Everyone should be well aware of the project already, but a quick refresher will help get their minds in the right place. Each goal should be specific, measurable, attainable and time-bound.

3. Be Open to New and Unusual Ideas

For brainstorming to be successful, everyone must be open to new and unusual ideas. You can’t be innovative if you’re just maintaining the status quo. Don’t concern yourself about how an idea will work tactically or financially – just think and embrace out-of-the-box ideas.

4. Be Visual

With each brainstorming session, come armed with whiteboard space, sketchpads and post-it notes. Get everyone involved. Every idea that comes up during your session should be either written down or sketched out. You don’t have to be an artist to sketch out ideas. What matters most is the idea behind the drawing.

5. Build on Ideas

Oftentimes, the greatest ideas are founded on several smaller concepts or sparks of an idea. Don’t be afraid to combine ideas together to create something new or build on a concept.

Use these five tips to really maximize your next brainstorming session. Remember to always keep an open mind, write (or sketch) every new idea, build on other ideas and establish goals.

Image source: Pling