101 Activities For Teaching Creativity And Problem Solving

Related Activities

• Brain Mapping [36]


• Idea Links [41]

Procedure

1. Tell each group to tape together two sheets of flip-chart paper, side-by-side, to a
   wall or other hard surface such as a table.


2. Distribute the Skybridging Handout, review the example with the participants,
   and answer any questions they may have.


3. Have them write down, on the left side, one to three words that define where they
   are today with respect to a current challenge (for example, if product improve-
   ment is the concern, they would list a current product’s status).


4. Have them use one to three words and write them down, on the right side of the
   paper, where they would like to be with respect to the challenge (for example,
   what is the ideal result?).


5. Instruct them to draw a straight line between the current and desired states. Tell
   them to write on this line a sure thing and a boring thing, both of which represent
   ways to achieve the desired state.


6. Instruct them to draw another connecting line that bends in the middle, as shown
   in Figure 7.4. On the left side of the line, they should list an obvious idea; on the
   right side, a safe idea. Have them continue drawing lines and listing ideas as
   shown in the figure until they have generated all possible ideas. Note that, as they
   list ideas, they should try working from right to left on some of the lines.


7. After they have finished listing ideas, tell them to examine them and make any
   impractical ideas more practical, write all practical ideas on Post-it®Notes, and
   place them on a flip chart for evaluation.

Debrief/Discussion

You might want to note that words on the arches become more impractical the higher up

they are. The diagram makes it relatively easy to see the range of ideas. Another thing to

emphasize during this exercise is that the participants don’t have to be too concerned

with the “correctness” of their words or how concrete or abstract the ideas might be. The

important thing is to generate a diversity of ideas.

Free Association Activities: “Blue Skies” 205

101 Activities for Teaching Creativity and Problem Solving.Copyright © 2005 by John Wiley &

Sons, Inc. Reproduced by permission of Pfeiffer, an Imprint of Wiley. http://www.pfeiffer.com

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