Brainstorming

The Brainstorming (Brainstorm) method is a semi-structured creative group activity, used most often in ad-hoc business meetings to come up with new ideas for innovation or improvement. Members of the group are encouraged to put forward ideas about a problem and how it may be solved, in order to generate as many ideas as possible, even if they are not always usable alternatives. The idea behind it is that a group of people can achieve a higher (synergy) level of creativity than the sum of the participants separately.

Three major rules for a successful brainstorm session are:
1. participants should be encouraged to come up with a much ideas as possible, however wild they are (there are no bad ideas),
2. no judgment should be passed on any idea until the end of the session (whether negative or positive), and
3. participants should be encouraged to build on each others ideas, creating unlikely combinations and taking each one in unexpected directions.

Some additional tips for a successful brainstorm session are:

- use an experienced (external?) facilitator
- identify a precise topic to be discussed
- no more than 8-10 people in one session, if there are more participants split up the brainstorm and report back to each other afterwards
- make somebody write everything down
- evaluate the ideas in 2 steps: A. define the criteria B. score the results on the criteria
- at the end of the brainstorming session, discuss the steps needed to implement the ideas. If this is complicated, do another brainstorming session on how to implement the ideas.

Although brainstorms are used frequently worldwide for over 70 years, the effectiveness of them for generating new ideas is debatable. Brainstorms are most effective to generate a lot of ideas in a short timeframe. Group processes are also effective for evaluating existing ideas. However (bright) individuals are said to be better at creating original and higher-quality ideas.

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From Facebook to Twitter and Everything In Between

Authors of the Book: Todd Kelsey

Description
What the heck is Facebook? Twitter? Blogging? This book answers these questions and explains how to use a variety of social networking sites to keep in touch, stay in business, and have fun.

This book covers the main social networking “spaces,” and introduces some of the ways people are enjoying them within a family or business context. It includes information on posting pictures, using add-ons, and working with Facebook and LinkedIn groups. It also covers the phenomenon of Twitter, including how it has grown and the road ahead.

This book also covers how you can use the various networks together, such as sending a Twitter message that updates your Facebook status, or exporting your LinkedIn contact list and using it to invite people to Facebook. It also includes discussion of how to use social networks for both personal and business use, and how to keep them separate.

- How to use Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking sites for family, friends, and business
- How to make your sites talk to each other
- How to make the most of social networking and stay out of trouble

What you’ll learn

- Learn why people have been flocking to these social media sites.
- Discover how these sites can help you communicate with friends and family.
- Put that digital camera to use with Facebook and Flickr photo albums and Twitpics.
- Learn how you can use these sites to promote your business.
- Learn how to keep your business and personal life separate online.
- Learn how you can do all this while staying safe online.

Who is this book for?

Social Networking Spaces is for anyone wondering how social networking works, and how to use it to stay in touch, make friends and business contacts, and build an online presence.
More Info

For those who like this book you can buy from the local store, i.e: KLCC, MPH Bookstore and etc.

As for references you can download it here

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