Section 3b — Crafting Solution Possibilities
From Many Ideas to the Best Ones
After brainstorming, you'll have a long list of ideas — some brilliant, some messy, and some that just don't make sense. Now it's time to prioritize.
Prioritization means selecting the best ideas to pursue. You can't test every idea, so you need to choose wisely.
How to Prioritize Your Ideas
Step 1: Eliminate the clearly impossible
Go through your list and cross off any ideas that are truly impossible given your current resources, skills, and context. Be honest, but not too quick to eliminate — sometimes ideas that seem impossible at first just need a creative adjustment.
Step 2: Group similar ideas
Look for ideas that are basically the same or variations of each other. Group them together. You might find that what looked like 20 ideas is really 5–6 clusters of related ideas.
Step 3: Evaluate each remaining idea
For each idea or cluster, ask yourself:
- Does it actually solve the problem? Will this address the root cause identified in your 5W1H analysis?
- Is it feasible? Can a young person realistically execute this? What resources would it require?
- Is it desirable? Would the people affected by this problem actually want this solution?
- Is it original? Does it offer something that doesn't already exist — or improves on something existing in a meaningful way?
Step 4: Select your top 3–6 ideas
Based on your evaluation, choose the 3–6 ideas that seem most promising. These are the ideas you'll take forward to the hypothesis stage.
Group Brainstorming
If you're working with classmates or a team, brainstorming together is even more powerful. Different people bring different perspectives and experiences — which leads to more diverse and creative ideas.
After a group brainstorm, each person votes for their favourite ideas. The ideas with the most votes move forward.
Aisha's Brainstorm
After thinking about her problem, Aisha came up with these solution ideas:
- Start a weekly Somali language class at the community centre
- Create a Somali-language YouTube channel for kids
- Build a Somali learning app with games and songs
- Organize a summer language camp
- Create a language exchange program between Somali and non-Somali kids
- Develop a curriculum for parents to use at home
- Partner with local mosques to offer classes after Friday prayers
After prioritizing, Aisha selected her top 3: the community centre class, the summer camp, and the at-home curriculum for parents.