Creative & Goals
Brainstorming for Beginners: Run the Session with 4 Rules, Group Ideas, Then Narrow Down
Beginner | 2 whiteboard pages · Task board: 5 columns (4 parent tasks, 12 subtasks)
Beginner: No technical terms. Just answer the whiteboard's questions, following the examples, and it takes shape.
If you are running a brainstorming session for the first time, this beginner template helps 4 to 6 people spend 60 minutes getting every idea out under 4 rules and then narrowing them down. The whiteboard puts the topic and the 4 brainstorming rules, a mind map that opens the topic into 6 branches, 3 frames for grouping similar notes and the Six Thinking Hats on the left page, then a 7-row SCAMPER checklist, an impact and ease matrix and a 5-step plan for the 60 minutes on the right page. The task board has 5 columns - topic and prep, diverging, grouping, narrowing down and next actions - and starts with 4 parent tasks and 12 subtasks, from preparation through naming an owner, all not started. If you are not sure how to run a brainstorm, or the same person always does the talking, read the 4 rules aloud first and give everyone 5 silent minutes to write on their own. The topic is not fixed, so the same board works for process improvement or new product ideas.
Once you have a free account, you can copy this template from the marketplace
Whiteboard preview
Read the whiteboard text as plain text
Brainstorming Session Board
How to use: (1) Read the topic and the 4 rules aloud → (2) Write alone for five minutes, then post on the map → (3) Group similar notes and name each group → (4) Switch viewpoints with the Six Thinking Hats → (5) Narrow to two ideas on the matrix and set owners
1. The 4 Brainstorming Rules (read them aloud at the start) / Topic: ____ / Facilitator: ____ / Timing is in frame 9
- Rule 1 No criticism Never reject an idea. No "but", no "impossible", no "we tried that". e.g. Even when the cost worries you, post it first. Risks belong to the black hat in frame 6, and good or bad is judged together on the matrix in frame 8.
- Rule 2 Go wild Whether it can be done comes later. The more extreme, the more welcome. e.g. "Cancel the meeting" and "Everyone stays standing" go up as they are.
- Rule 3 Quantity over quality Picking the good ones is for the second half. First, get volume. e.g. Aim for 80 notes with 4 to 6 people. Reading one note every 15 seconds between minute 15 and 35 in frame 9 gives you exactly 80.
- Rule 4 Build on ideas You may take someone else's idea and improve it. Nobody owns an idea here. e.g. "Send the material the day before" plus "Read it at the top of the meeting" makes one more note.
2. Idea Map (the branches are angles to think from, not categories)
- Example topic
How do we make the weekly
team meeting 30 minutes shorter?
- Change what comes before e.g. Send the material the day before
- Change what happens inside e.g. Two minutes maximum per speaker
- Change what comes after e.g. Share only the decisions, in three lines
- Change who attends e.g. Invite only the people who decide
- Change the tools e.g. Drop screen sharing, use one page
- Drop it altogether e.g. Go biweekly and test it for two weeks
3. Example cluster / Settle it before the meeting
- e.g. Send the material the day before and open with questions
- e.g. Cut the agenda to three items before inviting anyone
- Pull 3 to 6 similar notes across the branches in frame 2 and give them a short name
- An idea that fits nowhere may stay on its own
4. Example cluster / Change how it runs
- e.g. Two minutes per speaker, with the timer on screen
- e.g. Rotate the facilitator every week
- Names in the form "change the ..." are easier to compare
- Split a cluster in two once it grows past ten notes
5. Example cluster / Do it without meeting
- e.g. Go biweekly and try it for two weeks only
- e.g. Move report-only items to chat
- Move on once you have 3 to 5 clusters
- If they all lean one way, run one lap of the Six Thinking Hats in frame 6 and spend five minutes adding the missing angles
6. Six Thinking Hats (switch viewpoints / clear the bias before frame 8)
- Theme
e.g. How do we make the weekly meeting 30 minutes shorter?
- White: facts and data State facts only. Do not mix opinions into the numbers. e.g. Once a week, 60 minutes, 8 people. Material handed out on the day.
- Red: feelings and instinct No reasons required. Say what you feel, as you feel it. e.g. It is long. Half the agenda has nothing to do with me.
- Black: risks and concerns Criticism belongs to this hat and nowhere else on the board. e.g. A shorter meeting may push more work into homework afterwards.
- Yellow: benefits and value Name what gets better if this works. e.g. Each person gets four hours a week back for their own work.
- Green: creativity and options Produce new ideas that cancel the concerns raised under black. e.g. To avoid extra homework, write the decisions in three lines on the spot and share them.
- Blue: process and next step Decide what happens next. Everyone wears the same hat at the same time and laps all six in five minutes. e.g. Add the green options to the clusters in frames 3, 4 and 5, then send each cluster's lead idea to frame 8.
7. SCAMPER Idea Checklist (substitute, combine, adapt, modify, put to another use, eliminate, reverse - work down it when hands stop)
| Prompt | Example (shorter meeting) | |
|---|---|---|
| S Substitute | Can part of it be swapped for something else | e.g. Replace the spoken update with one line in a shared document |
| C Combine | Can two things be merged into one | e.g. Merge the daily huddle and the weekly meeting into 15 minutes a week |
| A Adapt | Can we borrow something that works elsewhere | e.g. Fix the agenda on one page, like an order slip in a restaurant |
| M Modify or scale | Can the size, the length or the frequency change | e.g. 60 minutes becomes 30. Eight attendees become four |
| P Put to other use | Can it serve a different purpose | e.g. Turn the meeting slot into a slot for doing the work together |
| E Eliminate | Which part could disappear without hurting | e.g. Drop updates people can read, and just share the document |
| R Reverse | Can the order or the roles be reversed | e.g. Start from the conclusion. Let the newest member speak first |
8. Narrowing Down (impact and ease)
Vertical axis: Size of impact (top = big / bottom = small) / Horizontal axis: Ease (right = can start today / left = needs preparation)
- Big impact and needs preparation The strong candidate. Do not settle it today; write down who prepares what and put it in the next actions column.
- Big impact and easy to start The 2 you pick today come from here. Set the owner and the date on the spot and report back at next week's meeting.
- Small impact and needs preparation Pass for now. Do not throw the notes away; leave them in the narrowing down column as material for the next session.
- Small impact and easy to start Whoever noticed it just does it. Do not spend meeting time discussing this quadrant.
9. How the 60 Minutes Run
- Minutes 0-10 Setup and rules Read the topic aloud and say the 4 rules out loud together. Assign the roles too.
- Minutes 10-15 Write on your own Nobody speaks; everyone writes on notes. These five minutes stop one person from producing everything.
- Minutes 15-35 Get it all out Read the notes out in turn and post them. Fifteen seconds each. No questions, no judging.
- Minutes 35-50 Grouping Pull similar ideas into 3 to 5 clusters and give each one a short name. In the last five minutes, lap the Six Thinking Hats in frame 6 and add the angles you are missing.
- Minutes 50-60 Narrow down and take the first step Place the ideas in the four quadrants in frame 8, cut down to 2, set the owner and the date, and finish.
Task board contents
Topic and prep 16 items
Prepare the session
Deciding once you have started burns the first 15 minutes. Have the topic, the people and the rules ready the day before.
Write the question
Put the topic in one sentence in the form "How can we ...?". Too wide and ideas scatter, too narrow and nothing comes, so use the examples to set the width.
Pick people & roles
Gather 4 to 6 people and name a facilitator, a note taker and a timekeeper. The facilitator posts no ideas and only keeps everyone talking.
Post the 4 rules
Put no criticism, go wild, quantity over quality and build on ideas in frame 1 and read them aloud at the start. That alone cuts the number of dismissive comments.
Get every idea out
The diverging half. Judge nothing and go for volume only. Start selecting here and you end up with less than half the ideas.
Write alone 5 min
For the first 5 minutes nobody speaks and everyone writes on notes. If the loudest voice goes first, everybody else drifts towards it.
Read out and post
Take turns reading each note aloud and post it on the map in frame 2. Keep each note to 15 seconds, and ask no questions and pass no judgement.
Use SCAMPER prompts
When hands stop, work down the 7 prompts in frame 7. Reshaping an idea that is already on the board also counts as a new idea.
Group similar ideas
The middle stretch. Dozens of loose notes cannot be chosen from, so gather the similar ones, name them and end up with 3 to 5 clusters.
Cluster the notes
Pull close notes together into clusters of 3 to 6. Leave an idea that fits nowhere on its own rather than forcing it in.
Name each cluster
Give every cluster a short name and write it into frames 3, 4 and 5. Naming them makes the missing angles visible.
Add missing views
Check whether the clusters all lean the same way by going through the Six Thinking Hats in frame 6 (facts, feelings, risks, benefits, creativity, process) and add ideas for the angles that are missing. One lap of the 6 hats in 5 minutes is enough.
Narrow down and act
The converging half. Lay the ideas out again on impact and ease, cut down to 2 you can start today and name an owner for each.
Plot on the matrix
Place the lead idea of each cluster in the four quadrants in frame 8. Everyone places one note at a time, and impact wins when you hesitate.
Pick two to try
Choose only 2 from the top right quadrant. Keep the ideas you did not choose in the narrowing down column as material for next time.
Set owner and date
Give the 2 chosen ideas an owner and a due date, then move them to the next actions column. Stop before this and the session stays a meeting.
