Section 3a — Crafting Solution Possibilities
Time to Brainstorm!
You've identified your problem. You've used the 5W1H method to understand it deeply. Now comes one of the most exciting parts of the entrepreneurial process: generating solutions.
This is where your creativity gets to shine.
What Is Brainstorming?
Brainstorming is a creative thinking technique where you generate as many ideas as possible — without judging or filtering them. The goal is quantity first, quality later.
During brainstorming, there are no bad ideas. Every idea gets written down, no matter how silly, impractical, or outrageous it might seem. Sometimes the wildest idea turns out to be the seed of the best solution.
Rules of Brainstorming
- No judgment — Do not criticize any idea during the brainstorming session. Not yours, not anyone else's.
- Go for quantity — The more ideas the better. Aim for at least 10–20 ideas.
- Build on ideas — Use other ideas as a springboard. "What if we combined this with that?"
- Encourage wild ideas — Unusual ideas often spark the most creative solutions.
- Stay focused — Keep the problem statement in mind throughout the session.
How to Brainstorm
There are many brainstorming techniques. Here are a few of the most effective:
Mind Mapping Start with your problem in the centre of a page. Draw branches for different categories of solutions (product vs. service, low-tech vs. high-tech, online vs. in-person). Then add sub-branches for specific ideas under each category.
Post-it Storm Write each idea on a separate sticky note. Stick them all on a wall. Then group similar ideas together and look for patterns.
"How Might We" Questions Rephrase your problem as a "How Might We" question. For example: "How might we help Somali-Canadian children learn their heritage language in a fun, accessible way?" Then brainstorm as many answers to that question as possible.
Reverse Brainstorming Instead of asking "How do we solve this problem?" ask "How could we make this problem worse?" Then reverse those ideas to find solutions.