Brain in Business

Does anyone have any innovative ways of getting people to record their thoughts (e.g. brainstorm ideas) which are a) an alternative to flipcharts, and which b) must also be easily transportable and presentable from breakout room to the main training room to share with the whole group?

Many thank yous. Clare

hi Clare,
Lovely to hear from you!
We've used duplo bricks and pens - you can get people to write on them and then build them into a transportable shape to be carried back into main room.

I've also used laminated sheets - A5 size (or whatever size you need)
cutout shapes - whatever shape works for the session - hands, fruit, etc - helps if you use spray mount

Now for some off the top of a Friday evening head...
How about etchasketch?
how about writing onto card and turning it into shapes - boxes, flowers, etc probably got to be good at origami.
plasticine
record them audibly on tape (if you can find any), mp3 players, mobile phones etc
video the ideas
text each other
finding physical metaphors for their ideas
write ideas on postits and stick to life sized cardboard cutout which can be 'walked' back
ice them onto biscuits.

RIght, I'd better stop and go and do something much more sensible. It was a great question Clare.
Hope to see you before too long.
Stella

Hi Clare

I am a bit in awe of all Stella's ideas, was that before or after the first glass of wine? The only thing I can add to this list is that they use pieces of paper with a watermarked picture that fits in with the theme or topic for the day. A colleague of ours uses sheets with a picture of a brick wall for things that might prevent you from using your time wisely on a time management course.

Now I have got my creative (green) hat on, how about giving them a newspaper and highlighters to pick out the words or pictures that relate to their thoughts.

Speak to you soon

Helen

I use large Post-It notes. You can get them in A5 size in flourescent colours. They are ideal for sticking on walls etc, and then easy to transport back for transcribing.

Hi John,
Fab to see you posting.
Helen - see how easy it is to put your creative hat on - I just started with a couple of ideas and they mushroomed from there - sounds like you did much the same.
Sam - tell us how you got on!

Warm regards
Stella

Hi guys - some great ideas here already! One of the tools I have for engaging people and capturing their ideas is a set of magnetic hexagons. A good alternative to post-its and reusable. They have an added advantage in that their hexagonal shape makes them reallygood for 'clustering' ideas into 'themes'. Not sure what names they are marketed under just now - probably woth searching under - 'communikit', 'logo-visual thinking' and 'cognitive mapping' - or maybe just plain 'hexagons'.
the set I've got is pretty old and was marketed by Communikit Systems.