Brainstorming is a powerful tool and for over 10 years I have used many different brainstorming techniques to achieve some excellent personal and business achievements. Whilst lecturing at the University of Melbourne, there were many times where I would get the class to brainstorm ideas using a simple whiteboard and “yell out” process.
Every time I have executed a brainstorming session I have always felt a sense of pride and achievement when the room participates, particularly when it does so as a whole. But, deep down inside there was always something lingering in my mind that even with the power of brainstorming I still was not seeing the best result from these sessions.
The question was, why?
The answer was in front of me yet it took reading this website – How to Create and Run a Mastermind Group . The answer was the ultimate power of a MasterMind Group.
Simply, a MasterMind Group, is the inevitable extension of the brainstorming session. However, in this case the MasterMind Group is about empowering people with common passions and interests to come together and brainstorm ideas. So far it sounds the same as brainstorming. However, there is one major difference.
MasterMind Groups are not limited in the attendance to your team, or even the organisation itself. MasterMind Groups are about bringing together anyone who has an interest in a topic and wishes to participate in developing and growing an idea into a reality.
The benefits of MasterMind Groups are many but most significantly they provide individuals with the ability to participate in discussions to develop themselves and their careers. They empower people to grow as individuals and also the organisation to generate even better results. If you think about this, you will understand why. Imagine a situation where Sony brought together the PC team, with the music team and the Walkman team. Do you think maybe they would have invented the iPod? The probability would have been significantly higher than not doing so!
But that is not all, the benefits are in people now get the opportunity to learn more about the broader organisation and this may even result in them growing in career opportunities.
What do you need to make MasterMind Groups possible?
For me the answer is firstly you need to provide people with the tools to know the ideas that are currently requiring MasterMind Groups, so tools such as discussion boards are a great starting place. If you want to make it even more central to your organisation, consider adding identification of ideas for MasterMind Groups and participation in these groups into reward frameworks and scorecards. From here, provide the tools to capture and even share more broadly the outcomes from these sessions with even a broader section of your organisation.
To make it even better for the individuals in your organisation, add MasterMind Classes or MasterClasses to the framework as well. This will provide the individuals with the basic skills to be able to participate and also help with the achievement of the on the job learning objectives of your organisation as well.
So, it is my belief that through using MasterMind Groups your organisation will achieve better business results and also more highly engaged employees.
Cheers,
