Can you actually have a productive brainstorm with others, in only 4-minutes? A technique I read about in Harvard Business Review shows how to do it, and when to use it. Sarah’s recap.
In your job as a content marketing pro, there’s constant pressure to be creative, stay on top of trends, and use your skills to better attract your audience. This helps you advance in your career, and helps you add value to your organization. Being creative is a huge skill, and one that, I believe, can be learned and enhanced further through different techniques and exercises. So, that’s why I’m creating these Creativity Corner episodes. I believe everyone is creative—we just need different prompts to get there sometimes.
Which leads us to today’s creativity topic: Can you actually have a productive brainstorm– with others — in only 4-minutes? I read about a technique called question bursts in Harvard Business Review and the author, Hal Gregersen, shows how to do it, when to use it, and why it’s helpful. So, I’m going to give you a recap of this 4-minute brainstorming technique now.
![](https://i0.wp.com/blog.kindredspeak.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Ep-33-4minbrainstorm-vert-2.png?resize=660%2C660&ssl=1)
TOPICS DISCUSSED DURING THIS MARKETING WITH EMPATHY PODCAST EPISODE
- The origin of Hal’s 4-minute Question Burst technique
- Steps one through three to implement your own 4-minute brainstorming session
- Examples of good questions to ask
- How to make it a habit
- Hal quotes his former MIT colleague Robert Langer who’s been called the “Edison of medicine” who said, “When you’re a student, you’re judged by how well you answer questions. Somebody else asks the questions, and if you give good answers, you’ll get good grade. But in life, you’re judged by how good your questions are.”
Connect with Sarah Panus on social for more inspiration, tips, tricks and trainings via LinkedIn or instagram.
Learn more at www.kindredspeak.com
GET BRAND STORYTELLING EXAMPLES, ADVICE AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SUPPORT- SIGN UP NOW
Content marketing and communciation professions stay informed on new brand storytelling classes, webinars, courses and brand storytelling examples. Sign up to join Sarah Panus brand storytelling newsletter. SIGN UP
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sarah Panus is a brand storytelling marketing strategist, podcast host, Minnesota mom, and owner of Kindred Speak, LLC, a remote consultancy that helps corporations attract upper-funnel leads that drive bottom-funnel results through storytelling. Her mission is to add value to the world by humanizing brand+consumer connections. Her online courses teach content professionals inside corporations how to think like Editorial Directors to drive stronger results while enjoying their jobs more. She’s spent the last 20 years helping brands including Sleep Number, Starbucks, Nestle Waters, Christos Bridal, Game Crazy, Cone Inc, and others, speak a kindred language with their audiences, driving brand advocacy and millions in revenue and brand engagements. Learn more at www.kindredspeak.com.