ROMANS 14

SESSION 8, CREATIVITY AND BRAINSTORMING

Copyright 2009, R14 and Romans 14A Group and Team Ministry

| Scott Rohlwing

Group and Team Dynamics II, Building Group and Team Effectiveness

Session 8, Creativity and Brainstorming I. Biblical References:

Proverbs 15:28, The heart of the godly thinks carefully before speaking; the mouth of the wicked overflows with evil words (NLT). This week we will begin focusing on the Performing stage of Tuckmans model. I cho se this verse because it focuses on thinking carefully. Decision making can be difficult and can go awry very quickly; we will discuss more about decision making in the third class. Before we make decisions though, we need to think about our options and explore possibilities. Romans 12:5-6, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us (NIV). As Ive said before, collectively we possess more knowledge than any one person alone. That is, together, we can accomplish extraordinary tasks. By utilizing each others gifts throughout the creative process, we can continue to build effectiveness. II. Academic Concepts:

Creativity To begin discussing creativity, one might ask, Of all things, why are we discussing creativity? Is it that important? I would like to present a short story that may help you answer this question The Dog Story Start with a cage containing five dogs. Inside the cage, hang a piece of meat on a string and place a set of stairs under it. Before long, a dog will go to the stairs and start to climb towards the meat. As soon as he touches the stairs, spray all of the dogs with cold water. After a while, another dog makes an attempt with the same result - all the dogs are sprayed with cold water. Pretty soon, when another dog tries to climb the stairs, the other dogs will try to prevent it. Now, turn off the cold water.

Copyright 2009, R14 and Romans 14A Group and Team Ministry

Group and Team Dynamics II, Building Group and Team Effectiveness

Remove one dog from the cage and replace it with a new one. The new dog sees the meat and wants to climb the stairs. To his surprise and horror, all of the other dogs attack him. After another attempt and attack, he knows that if he tries to climb the stairs, he will be assaulted. Next, remove another of the original five dogs and replace it with a new one. The newcomer goes to the stairs and is attacked. The previous newcomer takes part in the punishment with enthusiasm. Again, replace a third original dog with a new one. The new one makes it to the stairs and is attacked as well. Two of the four dogs that beat him have no idea why they were not permitted to climb the stairs, or why they are participating in the beating of the newest dog. After replacing the fourth and fifth original dogs, all the dogs that have been sprayed with cold water have been replaced. Nevertheless, no dog ever again approaches the stairs. Why not? Because as far as they know that's the way it's always been around here. And that's how company policy begins ... (Source: adapted from www.businessballs.com) (NOTE: I personally like dogs and suggest you dont use this tactic, its just an illustration) We may find ourselves in a situation like this that may take some creativity to explore other options and discover newer, faster, and more innovative ways of accomplishing our tasks. Many times, selecting a different perspective enables alternative solutions. Whether we are talking about a creative process, trying to generate a creative product, or working creatively with people, creativity starts with a fixed point (the impetus). From a graphical representation, one might view the creative process in this manner Copyright 2009, R14 and Romans 14A Group and Team Ministry
Selecting a different perspective enables alternative solutions.

Group and Team Dynamics II, Building Group and Team Effectiveness

As you can see, at the generation of ideas, our graph starts at a relative 0 but peaks with a vast number of ideas and begins to funnel towards application (the culmination). Levi refers to this as a divergent generation, but a convergent application (2001, p.213). The creative process can also be shown in flowchart form

Build an Open Climate

Conduct Research

Generate Creative Ideas

Sort Ideas and Select

Do Some Refining

Repeat Process if Needed

(Source: Levi, 2001, p.223). These diagrams provide a basic overview of how the creative process works, but we also need to talk about initiating the process and therefore motivation. Levi states, In general, intrinsic motivation encourages creativity, whereas extrinsic motivation is a detriment to creativity (2001, p.215). Lets define these two briefly: Intrinsic: belonging to a thing by its very nature Extrinsic: being outside a thing; outward or external; operating or coming from without (Source: http://thesaurus.reference.com/) When someone is motivated intrinsically, s/he is driven by internal forces. This person is motivated because s/he wants to accomplish a task. In this case, a person is acting creatively with the result in mind, not reward. Conversely, an extrinsically motivated person acts based Copyright 2009, R14 and Romans 14A Group and Team Ministry

Group and Team Dynamics II, Building Group and Team Effectiveness

on an external reward. By nature, this defeats the creative process. For example, if many were placed in a room and told, Lets do a little brainstorming and were not leaving until we have solid solutions a person might get results, but not very likely the best results. Similarly, if a group is told, the group with the best solution wins $1000, - again, there will be results, but not necessarily the best; competition can supersede any intrinsic motivation. Its very possible (and likely) that a combination of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can be particularly effective. If we look at the two previous situations, there is an inherent factor that stifles creativity - its called Evaluation Apprehension (Levi, 2001, p.216). With both previous examples, some group members could be intimidated by such a stressful situation and might be hesitant to participate due to chastisement or embarrassment from others. There are of course other problems with such brainstorming activities. Some of those are o Stability vs. Change though many organizations strive for change due to a rapidly growing market, they still need stability o Group vs. Individual group brainstorming does not necessarily increase the number of ideas vs. working individually o Listening vs. Thinking though weve stressed listening throughout the program, the fact is that its hard to think creatively when waiting and listening to others after all, we should be actively listening (Levi, 2001). (In other words, promote active listening, but provide time for people to think). Im not saying traditional brainstorming techniques dont or cant work, Im suggesting there are better ways. Its also important to note that creative thinking doesnt happen on command. If you recall the last creative idea you had, more than likely, it was an a -ha! light-bulb situation vs. I thought of it because I was told to. Fortunately, there are some techniques that may prove to be helpful and combat the aforementioned factors. Lastly, being creative sometimes means using a different perspective. To illustrate this point, see the video titled, The Truth by clicking the Godtube icon below. I should warn you before you view this video, you may not agree with the message (at first) just trust me and watch the entire video.

Brainstorming Ive added this section as a reference brainstorming should be a natural process. Please keep that in mind as you are reading the next section. Copyright 2009, R14 and Romans 14A Group and Team Ministry

Group and Team Dynamics II, Building Group and Team Effectiveness

Before we discuss some effective brainstorming techniques, lets first look at Levis four basic rules of brainstorming 1) 2) 3) 4) Criticisms are strictly forbidden Free thinking and wild notions are encouraged Numerous ideas are sought Combining and building ideas of others is good (2001, p.117)

The first technique that one might find useful is called electronic brainstorming. With the advent of the internet and text messaging, there are many forms of electronic brainstorming such as discussion boards, chat rooms, instant messaging, and email. The idea behind electronic brainstorming is that an idea can be posted at any time an individual creates it. Over the course of days/weeks, the ideas can be pulled apart, adapted, expanded, challenged, and recreated. With such a medium, evaluation apprehension may still exist, but the forum is less formal and may reduce some barriers. Another technique is known as the Nominal Group Technique and Brainwriting. Levi defines this process as, A group is brought together, and the facilitator announces the question/situation. In the nominal group technique, each participant spends 10 to 20 minutes writing down his or her ideas. Variations to this technique include 1) Write and pass one person writes down an idea and passes to the next person. That person can either alter that idea or generate a new idea. The process continues until time runs out. 2) Write and pool each person writes down an idea. All ideas are thrown into a pool and then drawn to start discussions (2001, p.224). 3) Present and disperse a topic is presented and all members are dispersed with the topic in mind. After a predetermined time limit (hours, days, etc.), members reconvene and either pass or pool. The first variation may experience some evaluation apprehension, but is lessened with silent idea generation. The second variation eliminates apprehension because all ideas can be anonymous. With the third dispersing variation, all members are persuaded to think individually or collaborate with others based on their own preferences. Allowing members hours or even days, encourages free thought and allows members to minimize distractions (remember to place a deadline on reconvening). After soliciting your team, you may employ all three techniques depending on what works best for each individual. Note: should you be in the situation where you need to employ options 1) or 2), I might suggest you clear the heads of your team. What does this mean? Typically, were distracted or concerned about factors other than what is presented. Ask your team what they are currently thinking about and encourage them to let go of extraneous components and focus on the task at hand (they may need some help here).

Copyright 2009, R14 and Romans 14A Group and Team Ministry

Group and Team Dynamics II, Building Group and Team Effectiveness

Should you decide that you need to have an open brainstorming session, I have provided guidelines for brainstorming in Appendix J. Lastly, there is an interesting yet amusing story in Appendix K that illustrates an example of creativity. The title of that story is, Lipstick Kisses on the Mirror. III. Synergy

Though its hard to do in todays society, we need to slow down to think. If you recall from the NOOMA video in the first class, silence is so hard to accomplish in our noise-enhanced environment. Admittedly, I listen to music when I create curriculum and listen to a white-noise machine when I sleep. Thinking doesnt necessarily require silence, but it does require we slow down, proceed somewhat methodically and without constraints. Heres an excerpt from the web Is oxygen essential for brain activity? The brain demands at least 20% of the body's oxygen supply, when it doesn't get this supply it can lead to issues such as sleep apnea, poor concentration, forgetfulness, mood swings, restlessness, depressive thoughts and low drive. Brain activity Dr. Andrew Scholey, Division of Psychology, University of Northumbria: "Extra oxygen has been shown to enhance mental performance and memory recall in healthy active adults in several clinical studies". Ref. Pmid: 10604851 (pubmed - indexed for medline) (Source: http://www.drz.org/asp/conditions/oxygen_deficiency.asp#6) In other words: breathe. You may find yourself in a situation where the preferred techniques are neither exercised nor available, but at the very least you can slow down and breathe. Should you find yourself in a position to initiate creativity and brainstorming, you can refer to our techniques listed above as well as search for other methods to encourage open communication, free thought, collaboration, and independent discovery. As you begin the performing stages of your groups and committees, I hope youve learned some things to place you on the right track. Our final class focuses on decision making, problem solving and more on group evaluation. Lastly, our final week introduces Emotional Intelligence. I have found this phenomenon particularly interesting when discussing relationships.

Copyright 2009, R14 and Romans 14A Group and Team Ministry

Group and Team Dynamics II, Building Group and Team Effectiveness

IV. 1.

Questions What factors have you found that have increased your creative flow? (environment, people, time, etc.) What other techniques have you experienced that have been particularly helpful in brainstorming? How about those that have been disparaging? Describe a situation where you were involved in a brainstorming situation that was considerably effective. What stifles your creativity? What are some typical distractions that you deal with? Have you found a way to block them out temporarily? What did you think of The Truth video? Besides creativity and a different perspective, what else is the video trying to teach us? Charter Elements

2.

3.

4.

5.

V.

To maximize creativity, we will employ the following rules: Criticisms are strictly forbidden Free thinking and wild notions are encouraged Numerous ideas are sought Combining and building ideas of others is good

As necessary, we will utilize one of the variations of the Nominal Group Technique: Write and pass one person writes down an idea and passes to the next person. That person can either alter that idea or generate a new idea. The process continues until time runs out. Write and pool each person writes down an idea. All ideas are thrown into a pool and then drawn to start discussions (2001, p.224) Present and disperse a topic is presented and all members are dispersed with the topic in mind. After a predetermined time limit (hours, days, etc.), members reconvene and either pass or pool.

Copyright 2009, R14 and Romans 14A Group and Team Ministry

Group and Team Dynamics II, Building Group and Team Effectiveness

Appendices Appendix J, Guidelines for Brainstorming (back to brainstorming)

Table 12.3 Guidelines for Brainstorming Question Toss out Accept Record Prompt Announce the question or issue to be addressed. All team members toss out as many ideas as they can. All ideas are accepted regardless of how practical they are. All ideas are listed for everyone to see. The facilitator re-asks the main question to help keep people on track. The facilitator reminds the team that no one is allowed to criticize or evaluate until the process id done. Everyone should build on each others ideas, using t he ideas to go off in new directions.

No editing Build

Source: Adapted from Pokras (1995); used with permission

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Group and Team Dynamics II, Building Group and Team Effectiveness

10

Appendix K, Lipstick Kisses on the Mirror Story (back to Synergy)

Lipstick kisses on the mirror

A school head was alerted by the caretaker to a persistent problem in the girls lavatories: some of the girl students were leaving lipstick kisses on the mirrors. The caretaker had left notices on the toilet walls asking for the practice to cease, but to no avail; every evening the caretaker would wipe away the kisses, and the next day lots more kisses would be planted on the mirror. It had become a bit of a game. The head teacher usually took a creative approach to problem solving, and so the next day she asked a few girl representatives from each class to meet with her in the lavatory. "Thank you for coming," said the head, "You will see there are several lipstick kisses in the mirrors in this washroom.." Some of the girls grinned at each other. "As you will understand, modern lipstick is cleverly designed to stay on the lips, and so the lipstick is not easy at all to clean from the mirrors. We have therefore had to develop a special cleaning regime, and my hope is that when you see the effort involved you will help spread the word that we'd all be better off if those responsible for the kisses use tissue paper instead of the mirrors in future.." At this point the caretaker stepped forward with a sponge squeegee, which he took into one of the toilet cubicles, dipped into the toilet bowl, and then used to clean one of the lipstick-covered mirrors. The caretaker smiled. The girls departed. And there were no more lipstick kisses on the mirrors.

Source: http://www.businessballs.com/stories.htm#lipstick%20mirrors%20girls%20toilets%20story Copyright 2009, R14 and Romans 14A Group and Team Ministry