Related Activities
- Bionic Ideas [53]
- Chain Alike [54]
Procedure
- Distribute the I Like It Like That Handout, review it with the participants, and
answer any questions they may have. - Tell group members to think of the major principle underlying their problem and
use it to generate a list of things similar to the problem. To help generate this list,
say, “This problem is like... .” (See the handout for an example.) - Instruct them to select one of the analogies and describe it in detail, elaborating as
much as possible, listing parts, functions, or uses. Remind them to include many
action-oriented phrases and, if possible, select an analogy that is controversial or
out of the ordinary. - Have them review each description and use it to stimulate ideas that they should
write on Post-it®Notes (one idea per note) and place on flip-chart paper for evalu-
ation.
Debrief/Discussion
Some research suggests that analogies are more likely than other direct stimulation activi-
ties to yield unique ideas. Analogies also seem to work especially well for mechanical
problems. For instance, analogies have been used to design a new type of thermos bottle
closure and a way to attach spacesuit helmets. Although this activity may take a little
more effort, it is quite useful for difficult problems.
Also consider having participants debrief using the following questions:- What was most helpful about this exercise?
- What was most challenging?
- What can we apply?
- How would you rate the value of this exercise to helping us with this issue?
- Will this exercise be helpful in the future for other sessions?
- What did you learn?
- What will we be able to use from this exercise?
- What ideas were generated, and which ones were most interesting?
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