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How the Worst Possible Idea Can Lead to Good Ideas
It’s a bit like Reverse Thinking on steroids
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In this 13th edition of my ideation techniques series, we’ll be looking at the Worst Possible Idea.
What is the Worst Possible Idea?
While this is similar in nature to reverse thinking, it focuses on one particular type of reverse idea: the goal of this technique is to come up with, as the name suggests, not just opposite ideas but the worst possible ones.
Once those have been brainstormed, the next phase is to see if any of those really bad ideas can be pivoted or transformed into something good that might solve the defined problem.
This therefore qualifies as a type of lateral thinking, because you’re not tackling the problem head on but via a different perspective.
Let’s look at an example scenario — part 1
Let’s suppose we plan on opening an exclusive restaurant.
Here are some of the potentially terrible ideas you might come up with:
- Make it ridiculously difficult and time-consuming to book a table
- Don’t post your opening hours
- Employ too few staff
- Charge far more for the food than it’s worth
- Only offer uncomfortable seating
- Offer little to no choice of menu items
- Play music too loudly
- Ensure there is nowhere nearby for customers to park their cars
- Employ staff who do not speak the local language at all
- Have poor hygiene standards
- Make customers wait inordinately long times for their table
- Choose a décor that is unappealing and ugly
- Turn the lights down so low that patrons cannot see their food
- Turn the lights up so high that it dazzles people
These are just a few that sprang to mind while I was writing this guide, but I’m sure you could come up with…
