It’s easy to get set in our ways. For those of us who work in content, it might be easier than for most. We see patterns. And because we can see those patterns, we are good at making things understandable to others. The funny thing about patterns, though, is that sometimes they stop serving us. Sometimes, they can give us tunnel vision, leading us down a well-worn path without seeing other possibilities. The way we’ve done things for a long time can seem like the only way to do them right.
There is, of course, a reason why the path is well-worn. It’s worked for us for a long time. Don’t fix what’s not broken, right? Sometimes, though, the path is more grueling than other times. It works, and we, maybe only we, know how to make it work. But sometimes there’s friction, pain, and heavy lifting. It might come from the content itself – that this time the content doesn’t so neatly fit the pattern. It might come from our tools – and the sometimes-frustrating quirks that come with them. Or it might come from process – people not wanting to use the process that’s worked for us in the past, or the process itself causing some friction, pain, blisters, maybe eventually callouses. We make it work, sometimes through heroic effort. It can feel good to be the hero, even if nobody else knows it.
But what if the pattern is the problem?
Sit with that thought for a moment.
What if the way we’ve been doing it is only responsible for our past successes? What if it’s holding us back from our future success? Being mentally locked in to past patterns, linearly following the same path again and again, can keep us from seeing the other possibilities.
When I was young, I was fortunate enough to get practical training in creative problem solving. I’d like to describe two of the techniques I learned.
Reframe How You Brainstorm
You’ve probably heard of brainstorming. You’ve probably been doing it wrong, although you may already be familiar with its basic rules – don’t judge your ideas or those of others, go for quantity over quality. But the thing that is often missed is that brainstorming works best when it starts as a solitary activity, allowing time for everyone involved to generate ideas without the influence of others. Why is that important? It’s about priming and framing. What others say will influence the lines along which you think. That’s not a bad thing, but it needs to happen at the right time. Too early, and you’ll be oblivious to paths you might otherwise have taken on your own. And the thing we’re trying to do here is to break out of the predetermined path. So, take some time on your own to think about the problem and its possible solutions.
SCAMPER Your Content
Here’s where the second technique comes in. We might not feel able to “be creative” on demand any more than we might feel able to “be inclusive” or “be productive” just through sheer will. It can take some thought, maybe even instruction, on how to do those things. The SCAMPER technique gives us a framework for how to be creative. Ooh, a paradox! Love it!
I’ve seen SCAMPER expressed with minor variations on this list, but here’s the one that I use: SCAMPER stands for:
- S – Substitute
- C – Combine
- A – Adapt/Add
- M – Magnify/Minimize
- P – Put to another purpose
- E – Eliminate
- R – Reverse
This list is a set of specific prompts for how to consider changing a situation. There doesn’t need to be a “problem” to solve. We’re just seeing other possibilities here. Use them on your own, one at a time to get started or to get un-stuck. Try to remember not to judge your ideas. Write them down, though, or draw them, or sing them, or dance them – whatever works for you – as you’re working through the list so that you can look back later on the ideas you produced.
In the arena of content creation and management:
- Substitute – what other existing patterns could we substitute here? What tools? What audiences? What outputs? Which contributors?
- Combine – what separate things could we put together? What exists in more than one place that could be merged?
- Adapt/Add – what might not seem like a perfect fit but could be changed to fit current or future situations? What has already changed? What could be added? What more could we do? Additional outputs, audiences, feedback, languages?
- Magnify/Minimize – what could be done much more, or much less to change the situation? What do you wish you had more of? Less of?
- Put to another purpose – what do you already have that could be repurposed? An under-utilized resource? Something with more potential?
- Eliminate – what could be removed entirely? What could you stop doing?
- Reverse – could things happen in a different order? Where else could we start? Could an output become an input?
Once you’ve gone through all of the SCAMPER prompts once, work through them again. (Maybe in a different order? REVERSE!) Let the ideas build on and inspire other ideas. Then, brainstorm with others and build on each other’s ideas. And if you need help getting unstuck, then connect with us so we can SCAMPER your content for you.
