ideation.md•3.32 kB
### Ideation
* **What it is:** Ideation is a broad, structured **process** or **phase** in a project (like in Design Thinking). It covers the complete cycle from understanding a problem to generating potential solutions and refining them into viable concepts.
* **Scope:** It's a wider concept that includes:
1. **Understanding the problem space** (research, user empathy).
2. **Generating new ideas** (this is where brainstorming happens).
3. **Capturing and documenting** those ideas.
4. **Evaluating and prioritizing** the ideas.
5. **Refining** the top ideas into more concrete concepts.
* **The Goal:** To move from a problem to a well-formed, validated solution concept. It's about both creativity and critical thinking.
### Brainstorming
* **What it is:** Brainstorming is a specific **technique** or **activity** used *during* the ideation phase. It's designed to generate a large quantity of raw ideas in a short amount of time.
* **Scope:** It's more focused and has specific rules:
1. **Focus on Quantity:** Generate as many ideas as possible.
2. **No Criticism Allowed:** Defer judgment to encourage wild ideas and prevent people from self-censoring.
3. **Encourage Wild Ideas:** Think outside the box.
4. **Build on the Ideas of Others:** Use other people's ideas as a springboard.
* **The Goal:** To produce a large, unorganized list of potential starting points. It's almost purely about creative, divergent thinking.
### Analogy: Cooking a Meal
* **Ideation** is like the entire process of **"Making Dinner."** It includes planning the menu, gathering ingredients, preparing them, cooking, and plating the final dish.
* **Brainstorming** is like the specific activity of **"Chopping the Vegetables."** It's a crucial, high-energy step in the middle of the process, but it's not the whole process.
### How They Fit into the Workflow I Gave You
Let's map these terms onto the 5-phase workflow we created:
* **Phase 2: Divergent Brainstorming** is a classic **Brainstorming** session. Its goal is pure idea generation.
* The **Ideation** phase, in its entirety, actually covers **Phases 1, 2, and 3** of our workflow:
* **Phase 1 (Define the Problem):** This is the start of ideation, where you set the context.
* **Phase 2 (Divergent Brainstorming):** This is the creative core of ideation.
* **Phase 3 (Convergent Refinement):** This is the critical thinking part of ideation, where you select and refine the best ideas.
### Summary Table
| Feature | Brainstorming | Ideation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| **Scope** | A specific **technique** or **event**. | A broad **process** or **phase**. |
| **Focus** | **Quantity** of raw ideas. Divergent thinking. | **Quality** of a final concept. Both divergent and convergent thinking. |
| **Output** | A long, unorganized list of possibilities. | A short, prioritized list of viable, well-defined concepts. |
| **Role** | A **tool** used within the ideation process. | The **entire framework** for developing new ideas. |
So, you are correct to see them as similar. In casual conversation, if you say "Let's have an ideation session," everyone will understand you mean "Let's brainstorm." But knowing the distinction helps you structure your work more effectively.