FireFly Facilitation

When facilitating a problem-solving session, I enjoy a lively debate in which everybody is participating and ideas are flowing spontaneously from everyone in attendance. However, sometimes meetings don’t start out with a bang. When you’re trying to open up dialog, a wall of silence isn’t exactly an encouraging welcome. What happens if no one ventures forth input? How do you spark conversation when those in the room seem fearful to speak?

One tool I use is brainwriting. This process taps into the unique perspective of each person and encourages them to build upon the ideas of others. The anonymity of the exercise along with its emphasis on stretching ideas further and further increases the odds of coming up with . . . well, odd and potentially novel solutions.

Let me walk you through how this exercise works, and you will see what I mean:

1. Give each member of the problem-solving team—ideally, four to six people—a blank sheet of paper.
2. On the top of the page, have them write an agreed upon problem statement. Then, ask them to draw vertical lines to separate the sheet of paper into three columns.
3. Set a timer for two minutes. Each participant should brainstorm three solutions, writing one in each column.
4. After the buzzer sounds, ask each person to draw a horizontal line under their solutions across the entire page. Then have them pass the sheet of paper to their left.
5. Now, set the timer for three minutes. Have the participants add to or build upon the existing suggestions by writing their own ideas underneath the original solutions.
6. At the end of three minutes, the papers should again be passed to the left. The process should be repeated as many times as there are people around the table. During each round, allow slightly more time since the addition of ideas makes it harder to think up new solutions.
7. When you’ve finished going around the table, post the sheets of paper on the wall so that each person can read the ideas. Ask them to write their initials beside the ones they think are most likely to solve the original problem. Better yet, see if they can combine ideas from one or more pages to generate an exponentially better idea.

I’ve found brainwriting to be ideal when people are afraid to voice their ideas or when one person is dominating the discussion. Brainwriting jumpstarts the flow of ideas and invites everyone into the problem-solving process. The resulting ideas are collaborative and creative—often leading directly to successful solutions.

Nothing oppresses people in a problem-solving session more than the tyranny of “or.” Instead of a collaborative exercise, “or” turns creative brainstorming into a winner-takes-all contest. Battle lines are drawn, trenches are dug, and co-workers duke it out until either Idea A OR Idea B emerges victorious. After the war has subsided, the losing idea is then mercilessly executed in front a firing squad of members of the “winning” side.

It takes a talented leader to spearhead the rebellion against the tyranny of “or.” A true revolutionary teaches his or her team to think in terms of endless combinations as opposed to mutually exclusive options. How can ideas be linked? How do they interrelate? How does one suggestion piggyback on another?

People with an either/or mindset aren’t appeased until they have control, whereas those who think both/and welcome every contribution.  It’s up to the leader to make sure that a spirit of cooperation pervades the strategic planning process. Practically, this means:

1) Establishing a “No-fly Zone” for put-downs. Each individual’s ideas ought to be respected, even if they’re not adopted.

2) Putting ideas in the public domain. Early on, make it know that no one “owns” his or her suggestions. The welfare of the team supersedes personal agendas.

3) Weaving the web of ideas. Encourage the connections teammates make between one idea and another. Do this visibly and audibly (by giving out candy and compliments) whenever someone bridges two previously isolated concepts.