Rapid Idea Generation

SCAMPER method stands for seven techniques that help direct thinking toward innovative ideas and solutions: (S) substitute, (C) combine, (A) adapt, (M) minimize/magnify, (P) put to another use, (E) eliminate, and (R) reverse. Collectively, these techniques are based on the idea that you can come up with something new by simply modifying the old things already present around you.

The idea is to give you more ideas for generating ideas.

To construct your own idea box, first enumerate the essential parameters of the product or service you want to generate ideas on.

Known as “functional fixedness,” this creativity-blocker surfaces when you have everything you need to solve the problem, but you can’t do it because you see only the usual or traditional function of the objects you have.

Thinking more plainly means zooming out and having a looser perspective on things. It’s being able to grasp the gist of the problem rather than getting stuck on its minute details. This type of thinking can be practiced by replacing problem-specific verbs with generic ones when stating the problem. For instance, don’t ask, “How could I drive something over a long distance?” Instead, think, “How could I move something over a long distance?”

The idea is to let go of linear thinking, and surprise yourself. Draw links. Scramble or invert your preconceived ideas or assumptions. Expand your thinking to include feeling and non-verbal information like sounds, images, intuitions, smells, tastes, or weird mixes of all of these.

Harvey cards. Harvey cards are a set of cards you can use to generate ideas. They contain cues, instructions, or questions you can ask yourself to stimulate creative thinking, such as “Animate – How can you imbue your subject with human qualities?” and “Symbolize – Convert your subject into a symbol.” Write or print them out with one cue per card, shuffle them, and randomly pick one card from the deck. Brainstorm how you can apply the principle of that card to your creative task. Repeat this process over with the other cards and avoid skipping cards even if you find them hard.

Combine random objects. Pick out two random objects and force a connection between them.

Use the alphabet. Think of ideas beginning with each letter of the alphabet, and by the end of this exercise, you’d have twenty-six new ideas. In trying to come up with your party theme, for instance, you may run down the alphabet and churn out ideas for each letter: Aztec, Bohemian, countries, dinosaurs, elements, fantasy, Greek, heroes, India, jewels… and the list goes on.

Spark a fresh flow of ideas in your mind by opening a book to a random page, selecting a random word from a dictionary, or reading a random article on Wikipedia. I