“Let’s get two pastors to do an epic rap battle.” Our team has been planning for our two BASICcon events this fall for the last couple weeks and this is just one of the crazy suggestions that has come forth. It’s been fun, creative, and a little wacky at times. It truly is a privilege to serve and work with these guys.
In the midst of all the silliness we’ve actually been coming up with more creative ideas than ever before. It’s been really cool to see and I want to share some thoughts this week on how to generate an environment that stimulates creativity. It’s something that I think could be really helpful as you begin planning for your upcoming semester with your team.
Ask God for creativity
This seems obvious, but is something we can easily overlook. I regularly pray and ask God for fresh and unmatched creativity. Sometimes I do it right before or as the meeting begins, but more often I pray on my own at various times throughout the day for it.
Take time to have fun, but also stay focused
If your team is anything like ours then you’ll definitely need to reel people back in at times, but having fun breeds creativity. Letting people joke around some will help everyone feel more comfortable with the rest of the team and stimulate more ideas in the long run. There are times to get down to business for sure, but finding a balance here is key. Everyone tends to be more creative when they don’t feel like it’s “work” and they’re having fun throughout the process.
Entertain every idea
People have to feel comfortable that they can express any idea they have. There will be some completely ridiculous ideas that come out if people do feel comfortable, but you never know where it could lead. Sometimes the craziest ideas lead to the best ones once they have been refined or modified by others in the group. Even if you don’t end up using the idea, entertaining it for at least a minute or two will help people feel like they are valuable and their thoughts are being considered, which is important if you want them to suggest more ideas down the road that could be very useful.
The other key here is to set money aside and just go for it. Sure, you’ll have to consider money and the practical aspects of an idea soon enough, but at the beginning consider ideas without asking how much it will cost. After that then ask how much it will cost and brainstorm unusual ways to accomplish it for a lower cost by borrowing, renting (instead of buying), repurposing, etc.
Make sure the right people are in the room
There are people who no matter how much you try to do this they will just kill ideas before they are even given a chance. If they can’t adjust then you’ll need to remove them from these meetings. Their negativity (or what they may call practicality) will just continue to stifle creativity. (For clarification, I think practicality is important and I’m pretty practical. However, I’ve reined in my first instinct to announce why something won’t work in favor of exploring ideas and stimulating creativity.)
These people not only impact the current meeting, but can also impact future meetings and members of your team. The more artistic people in the room may feel like their ideas aren’t being taken seriously or that they just get shot down right away. Think about how you feel when that happens. Eventually you will shut down and stop suggesting things. That’s the last thing you want when trying to come up with creative ideas.
Pay close attention to the momentum of the room
What direction is this meeting heading? Are people joking around so much that it’s not productive? Are people’s feelings getting hurt and/or is someone “shutting down?” Keeping as many people active in the conversation is important and getting everyone’s opinions is crucial. You may want to stop and ask someone what they think to make sure they’re getting included. Being aware of the momentum (upward or downward) in the room will help you stay on track and be more productive.
I know your next planning meeting with your group can be more productive and creative than ever before with these tips. Just go for it!