As you go on errands or walk around your campus, notice all the things that you could improve. Make a list of things that frustrate you or things that could be made even better. Does your list surprise you in terms of how much you noticed?
List 15 new uses for a popular product or service. Try paper clips, or coffee mugs, or home
delivery. Use SCAMPER to generate new uses and make connections to other uses.
Interview a local business owner and ask how he or she thought of the idea behind the business.
How does the business develop new ideas now?
Do some research on innovative companies in your area. What sets them apart? How are they
designed to take advantage of the innovativeness of their staffs?
Next time you are working on a problem or looking for new ideas (your major in college? Where
to move on campus? What do to this weekend? ) go to a museum, a park, or anywhere outside
the ordinary places you frequent. Were any new ideas suggested to you?
Keep a journal in which you can record your ideas as they come. Sometimes we get breakthrough
ideas while our brain is incubating as we sleep. By the time we wake up in the morning we have
lost them, so keep your journal near your bed.
Pick a business idea and research its industry and market. What did you learn? What are some creative questions you might ask about contemporary trends in this business? How could you find
out the answers?
