5. Seeding
Seeding is a brainstorming technique that takes a word that has nothing to do with the
problem and seeing what connections you can make between it and the problem. For
example, if we were looking at ideas to improve the way we organise office systems,
we could at random propose the word "breakfast". This could then seed the following
ideas:
• keep all the paperwork files in empty cornflakes packets
• sort the papers out over breakfast
• stick the papers together with marmalade
• hold a breakfast meeting to discuss ideas
• devise a filing cabinet in the shape of a breakfast bar
• have a daily breakfast-time clear-out of files
• have a deadline on all incoming paperwork by breakfast time each day.
and so on.