Performance by Design; How We Develop the Best Customized Solution for Your Business

Performance by Design; How We Develop the Best Customized Solution for Your Business

Successful business initiatives don’t often happen by accident. Planning an impactful B2B loyalty or incentive program is a very intentional process at Motivation Excellence. For us, it all starts with a consultative approach we call Performance by Design.

“It’s really about being able to create a financially balanced and metrics-driven reward program designed specifically for a client’s data, goals and participants,” says Bob Graham, CEO & President of Motivation Excellence.

When our clients can share pertinent internal data, like sales figures, inventory, distribution models and historical trends, we can offer benefits like:

• Risk reduction
• Meaningful analytics and insights
• Financial models

“The best program results happen when we are able to take that deep dive not only into a client’s history, but also the industry and their competitors. The more a client can share, the better it is for our team to build a rule structure with ROI built in, and determine the best metrics to track toward success,” says Graham.

One of the best results we see repeatedly for clients through this approach is the ability to bring their data to life in a way they haven’t seen before.

“Sometimes, it’s because different departments warehouse their records separately. Our process pulls it all together in one big picture for greater business intelligence. It’s so rewarding to hear that we’ve done something for a client they weren’t able to do internally.”

Starting an incentive or loyalty program is a big undertaking and one that can likely feel overwhelming without an experienced partner by your side. Did you know that a well-designed program can pay for itself through the incremental performance it motivates? That’s one of the biggest benefits of working with our team. After 40 years in the industry, we know how to build programs that match your needs.

While Performance by Design is a great way to begin your partnership with us, it’s not a mandatory part of the journey. If you don’t have access to the elements needed for this type of foundational process, it’s OK. We can still apply our expertise and work with you to build a customized solution to fit your needs.

Our goal is to help our clients Inspire Extraordinary Performance with the people who mean the most to the success of their business. We do this through customized incentive and loyalty programs, global meetings & events, aspirational group travel experiences and personalized rewards. Explore all of our solutions on our website and click on Let’s Connect to get started today!

Get to Know ME with Alyssa Chomiczewski

It’s time to get to know Alyssa Chomiczewski from our Traverse City location. Alyssa started with Motivation Excellence halfway through 2024 and fell in step with the team instantly. She’s kind, open and ready for adventure. Read below, and watch her short video, to learn more about her favorite sports team (despite the family drama) and at least one potential wedding gift idea (she gets married later in 2025). Thanks, Alyssa, for participating in our Get to Know ME segment this month!

What’s your current title and how long have you been in the incentive industry?

I am a Technical Project Manager, and I joined the incentive industry, and Motivation Excellence, about 7 months ago (July 2024).

What do you like about your job?

As a project manager, I enjoy problem-solving and keeping projects on track. Organization has always been a skill I value and rely on in my professional life. The problem-solving aspect keeps the work interesting and is especially rewarding when I overcome a complex challenge or learn something new in the process.

What’s something you want to share about the people you work with at Motivation Excellence?

I feel very fortunate to have joined a team that is not only welcoming (and fun!) but is also filled with smart, genuine people who have become friends with one another. The sense of camaraderie on my team, and with everyone I’ve met at Motivation Excellence so far, was obvious from the start and I feel lucky to get to be a part of it.

What’s a specific moment in your history that always stands out as a defining moment, and why?

The summer after I graduated from college, my car broke down while I was driving back to my internship. It suddenly stopped in the middle of the road, leaving me stranded and broke. At the time, my plan was to stay in Michigan and start interviewing for post-grad jobs in some of the state’s bigger cities. However, my dad was living in the suburbs of Chicago, so I made the decision to forgo buying a new car and move to Chicago instead. That choice led me to a role in Commercial Property Management, and I ended up having the time of my life living in one of the country’s largest cities.

What’s an unknown or odd talent you have?

I got a unicycle for my 12th birthday, and for a time, I was pretty good at riding it. It’s been over 15 years since I last tried, but I’m sure I could pick it up again with some practice.

What motivates you to accomplish things in your life (work or personal)?

I’m always striving to grow and improve, both personally and professionally. Learning or trying new things gives me a genuine sense of accomplishment. Ultimately, my goal is to spend as much meaningful time with my family and friends as I possibly can.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work?

I love anything that gets me outside! Hiking, backpacking, kayaking, snowboarding. If I have free time, you’ll usually find me outside. When I’m indoors, I enjoy reading, puzzling, or building with Legos.

One thing that always makes you laugh is?

My funny friends and family.

What’s a bucket-list item you can’t wait to cross off?

Traveling internationally (besides Canada). Other than a couple parks in Canada, I’ve never left the US.

Do you make New Year’s resolutions? Why or why not and care to share any?

No official resolutions, but I am participating in Dry January and No Frivolous Spending January.

Tips for Making Personalized Travel and Events More Exciting

If you’ve ever attended an event or embarked on a work outing that felt lackluster, where the highlight was watching the clock, you’re not alone. Whether it’s personalized incentive travel or a special event, the experience can feel uninspired when it’s not tailored to the participants. But here’s the good news: personalized travel and events can be thrilling and unforgettable.

At Motivation Excellence, we specialize in creating experiences that wow participants from the moment they arrive until the final farewell. Personalization is the key to transforming any event or journey into a memorable adventure. By focusing on customization and creativity, the possibilities for excitement are endless.

Let’s explore some tips for making personalized travel and events more engaging and memorable:

1. Choose Unique Destinations

The destination sets the tone for any experience. Selecting the same type of venue or location repeatedly can lead to predictability, and fatigue. Instead, explore unique destinations that your participants will be intrigued by. In the case of a channel partner incentive, selecting a location that outshines any competitors’ planned destination is critical. 

Whether it’s an off-the-beaten-path retreat, a luxurious resort with a distinctive cultural flair, or a boutique venue with stunning views, a new and unexpected location ignites curiosity and enthusiasm. When attendees anticipate exploring someplace new, the excitement begins even before the journey starts. 

Our travel planning team members are experts at finding the right space in the right place for your needs, audience and budget. You’ll be surprised at how many options you’ll have to choose from!

2. Incorporate Immersive Experiences

The best experiences are those that engage participants on multiple levels. Start things off with an engaging activity that immediately draws everyone in. For instance:

• A cultural cooking class at your destination.
• A fun group adventure, like ziplining or paddleboarding.
• A charitable activity that pairs your team with a local group in need. 
• A hands-on workshop tailored to your group’s interests.

Interactive experiences create connection and excitement, breaking the ice and setting the stage for a truly memorable time. Your participants will wonder what’s happening next!

3. Add a Dash of Gamification

Gamification isn’t just for meetings—it’s a powerful tool to add fun and engagement to travel and events. By incorporating game-like elements, you’ll keep your group entertained and energized. Here are some ways to gamify your next experience:

• Create scavenger hunts that encourage exploration of the destination.
• Offer opportunities to earn rewards or prizes through group challenges.
• Set up friendly competitions, like trivia or physical challenges, that foster camaraderie.

Gamification not only adds excitement but also keeps participants engaged throughout the entire gathering.

4. Leverage Technology to Elevate the Experience

Technology can enhance travel and events in ways that feel fresh and innovative. Gone are the days of dull itineraries and generic activities. Our proprietary travel technology, Inspire, gives your participants the power of individuality in the palm of their hands. 

• Real-time engagement: You can send alerts and updated activities directly to the participants who need to know there’s a change.
• Personalized itineraries: Inspire creates individual itineraries and keeps flight and transportation information in one place. 
• Create a Scrapbook of Memories: Our interactive photo gallery allows everyone to share photos from the experience so they can relive the best moments again and again. 

By integrating the latest tech, you can transform even the simplest gathering into something extraordinary. We’re up to date on 

5. Surprise and Delight

One of the most powerful ways to create lasting memories is by incorporating surprises throughout the experience. Whether it’s a surprise guest, an unexpected gifting event, or a secret experience revealed at the right moment, these touches add a sense of wonder and make your event feel truly special.

We like to offer special activities that participants select ahead of time, to help create that personalized experience within a group travel program. Adding a gift that enhances the activity is a great way to keep the surprises coming. 

Final Thoughts

The secret to creating excitement in personalized travel and events is to focus on the participants’ unique preferences and interests while continually introducing new elements to keep them engaged. From unforgettable destinations to interactive activities, gamification, and tech-driven innovations, there’s no limit to what you can do.

At Motivation Excellence, we believe in delivering the wow factor at every step. Whether it’s an incentive travel program for top performers, a team-building retreat, or a celebration to acknowledge a big milestone, we craft events and travel experiences that leave a lasting impact.

Your next adventure doesn’t have to be ordinary—it can be extraordinary.

How to Establish Goals for a Successful Incentive Program

When we design an incentive program, your goals become the heart of the rule structure. Motivation Excellence programs focus on attainable goals for your participants that move the needle for you too.  Whether you’re putting together a sales incentive program for your internal team or looking to reward your channel partners, having clear goals and motivational rewards are the pillars to success.  

Start With the SMART Concept

A good place to begin when establishing goals is the SMART concept. SMART is an acronym encapsulating the following five components:

1. Specific – Specifically define what you want to accomplish and why.
2. Measurable – Your chosen goals should be both measurable and trackable.
3. Achievable – Set goals that are challenging yet reasonably achieved.
4. Results-Driven – Goals should be driven by a desire to produce results.
5. Timely – Establishing time sensitive goals creates a sense of urgency.

The SMART concept works extremely well for ensuring goals are intentional rather than random. Intentional goals lay the groundwork for successful incentive programs. If you’re looking for more tips on setting and achieving goals, check out our blog on the topic here. For specifics on how we design successful rule structures visit our website and explore our tab on Performance Management & Tracking. 

Consider Existing Business Objectives

Every business entity has a core set of objectives. Well-designed incentive programs look at which objectives, or goals, will make the most difference to your bottom line. Pairing the appropriate goals to the most relevant participant audience is key to building your next incentive program. For instance, if you’re launching a new product in Q2, your incentive program audience might be your internal sales team, with the goal that each team member secures five new locations to distribute your new product. If five new locations is a stretch, but doable with extra effort AND it will create positive ROI for you, then it’s a worthwhile goal to use as the basis of your incentive program. 

If something is unattainable for your participants, it kills the incentive process before it gets started. Also, if you’ve selected a goal that doesn’t help your overall business objectives, no one walks away feeling motivated or rewarded in the end, which can lead to poor excitement levels leading into your next incentive scenario. 

Get Management Buy-In

In our experience, incentive programs that don’t involve the management team, tend to fizzle rather quickly. If team leaders are fully involved and excited, the enthusiasm spreads to participants. This is the case whether you’re planning an internal incentive or one that involves channel partners. Management needs to believe in the goals and rewards, and even have the ability to earn something if their team succeeds. Incentives that have individual and team goals can really amp up participation. And often, team leaders are the ones who know what the best goals are for their team, as well as the best motivators. Don’t leave them out of the mix! 

On the flip side, if management isn’t involved or interested, we see inconsistent success rates. Incentive program motivation definitely comes from reasonable goals paired with aspirational rewards, but without consistent encouragement, individuals can find themselves deflating after the first bump in the road. 

Personalize the Reward Experience

As a final springboard to preparing the best incentive outcome for your selected goals, consider making the reward for success something personalized to the receiver. Individual travel options, lifestyle upgrade packages, or reward points that can be used for nearly anything are all staples of our personalized reward choices. When someone is working for an experience or reward that means something extra special for them, the intrinsic motivation value can skyrocket!

Remember, incentive programs are most successful when they are established on clear and attainable goals, paired with aspirational rewards and buoyed by consistent encouragement. Before you launch your next program, consult with us on how best to establish goals and rewards that will help move your business forward in both the long- and short terms. We’re experts in creating winning rule structures that motivate your participants and reward your bottom line. 

Channel Partner Engagement: Common Challenges to Overcome

Successful distributor incentive programs understand the importance of channel partner engagement and its relationship to loyalty. The whole point of engagement is to captivate, activate, and motivate partners to choose your product or services over your competitors. Anyone in this sphere of influence knows keenly though that there are challenges when it comes to engaging with B2B partners. 

1. Poor Communication

Communication is essential between businesses and their distribution channel. Clear and transparent communication ensures that everyone is on the same page and pursuing the same goals. But the opposite is also true. Poor communication leads to goal misalignment. It leads to misunderstandings, missed opportunities, and conflicts.

How can organizations overcome this challenge? By establishing clear lines of communication in advance. At Motivation Excellence, we suggest reaching out to channel partners involved in an incentive or loyalty program multiple ways. Some people prefer email to text. Others prefer a printed piece over a phone call. Sometimes participants like to be able to tune in on their own time. 

We always recommend a variety of engagement channels. A custom program website that can house important program information, training modules and instant performance tracking gauges is great for the “one stop shop” approach. Sending well-timed emails with data analytic options is critical for getting increased open rates. Sending materials to the home can engage the significant other as well as the participant. Texts can be easy ways to keep the program top of mind. We put together a monthly schedule so we aren’t being too intrusive, while also knowing we are being timely and consistent. 

2. Competing Interests

Your channel partners are probably not exclusive to you. Most partners work with multiple distributors or manufacturers, increasing the chances of competing interests. Channel partners may prioritize a competitor instead, leaving your business with partners who are not as engaged as they could be. 

That’s where loyalty or incentive programs play a critical role. If your business is offering an incentive that ignites excitement, you’ll likely capture attention. At Motivation Excellence we take a deep dive into your industry to find out what competitors might be doing for incentive or loyalty programs. Then we look at what options could bring the focus to your program, and thus, bring you more market share. 

Our programs drive incremental growth, but also, stronger relationships which, in the long run, builds loyalty and trust. 

3. Business Support and Training

If your business invests in the success of your channel partners, you’ll see a greater ROI in your incentive or loyalty program. One of our clients has seen great success and increased loyalty with their distribution network because they offer supports like networking events, training modules and small business growth seminars in between their yearly customer loyalty travel event. As channel partners’ businesses grew, they tied the success back to our client’s support. 

Providing training on the merits of your product or service is another proven way to build trust and loyalty with B2B partners. If you’re reaching out with valuable information on best practices or steps to the sale and your competitors are not, you’ll capture engagement and loyalty going forward. 

4. Incentive Misalignment

Rewards and incentives are the seeds of channel partner engagement. However, they may fail to effectively bloom under one of two circumstances: they do not align with partner priorities or partners find the reward structure confusing or unmotivating. 

Incentive misalignment is overcome through proper research ahead of time. Creating a clear rule structure with attainable stretch goals and aspirational rewards leads the way to engaging channel partners. By successfully overcoming numbers 1 to 3 above, you’ll naturally find better alignment and success with your next incentive or loyalty program. 

One final word about channel partner engagement before we close: it is not a one-time thing. It’s an ongoing effort designed to ensure that channel partners remain on board for the long term. Strong engagement drives sales and brand loyalty. On the other hand, a half-hearted engagement will deliver half-hearted results. Which would you prefer to see from your channel partner program?

Take the guesswork out of your channel partner engagement and have Motivation Excellence manage your next loyalty or incentive program. 

Get to Know ME with Susan Falkiewicz

Our last Get to Know ME segment for 2024 is one of our awesome Travel Program Coordinators, Susan Falkiewicz. She has a long history in the travel industry and provides detailed service to our incentive travel and meeting participants. She shares below, and in a short video, what keeps her laughing and enjoying her active life. Thanks Susan, for letting us get to know you better!

What’s your current title and how long have you been in the incentive industry?

I’m a Travel Program Coordinator and I recently celebrated 10 years in the incentive industry.  I’ve been in the travel industry for 35 years.

What do you like about your job?

I like the people the most – our clients, coworkers, and participants.  I’m always doing different things and shifting gears and that keeps it interesting.

What’s something you want to share about the people you work with at Motivation Excellence?

We are a great big family.  I felt welcomed when David Jobes bought VIKTOR in 2022 and everything just fell into place.

What’s a specific moment in your history that always stands out as a defining moment, and why?

In early 1989, I lived in Detroit and was job hunting. I had interviews set up with Michigan Bell and Detroit Edison.  Then Delta called asking me to fly to Atlanta for an interview.  I wasn’t going to move so I didn’t think there was any sense in going.  My mom convinced me to go, and I was hired to work at an office 15 min from home.  This started my career in the travel industry. I got married a few months later. So it was a big period of time for me!

What’s an unknown or odd talent you have?

I can ride a unicycle.

What motivates you to accomplish things in your life (work or personal)?

With work, it’s mastering new skills. At home, my kids motivate me to live a healthy lifestyle and they keep me feeling young.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work?

Spending time with my kids and grandkids, fishing, camping, hiking, and doing anything outside.  I love to bake, cook, and read too.

One thing that always makes you laugh is?

My two youngest kids and I have this noise we make when we’re in a situation where we want to make each other laugh, but when we shouldn’t be laughing.  It’s like an inside joke and we’ve done it for years.

What’s a bucket list item you can’t wait to cross off?

I’ve never had a bucket list, but Hawaii is the only state I haven’t been to.  I would like to go someday.

This month, our theme for social media is “A Stress-free End of Year.” Do you have a favorite technique to use when stress creeps up on you?

I take a long walk or do some laps in my yard.

Reduce Your Stress in December (and All Year Long) 

With multiple family gatherings, pressure to find meaningful gifts, and the push to wrap up the corporate year successfully, we all have the potential to feel more stress in the last four weeks of the year than we think we can handle! Firstbeat, a Scandinavian company that focuses on heart rate variability data to improve sports performance, shows in their data that stress levels in December are higher than at any other time of the year. 

So, if we know what we’re heading into, let’s be proactive in keeping our stress levels under the boiling point by using some simple strategies. 

You Can Say No 

If you’re a people-pleaser, the temptation to say yes to any ask is pretty high. The problem with the end of the year is there are a lot more people asking for your time, expertise, ear… the list goes on! Saying yes to everything doesn’t make you an awesome person—it makes you a stretched-thin person, which can mean you’re not giving 100% to anyone.  

If you listen to the Julia Louis-Dreyfus podcast “Wiser Than Me,” you’ll hear a repeating sentiment: “No is a complete sentence.” Many of us feel like we need to explain why we can’t do something. Yes, it feels like the nice thing to do, but we, women especially, don’t need to voice our reasonable excuses. A simple, “No, I can’t,” is sufficient. Of course, when your boss is the one asking, perhaps a little explanation is good, so you still have a job to come back to in January!  

Limit Your Expectations 

Nothing can disappoint someone like failed expectations. The good news here is we own our expectations and can adjust them accordingly. Perhaps you think you’ve found THE BEST GIFT for so-and-so, but when they open it, their enthusiasm fails to convey that you did a great job. Maybe your thoughts of serving the perfect meal are crushed when your dinner guests arrive an hour late. A blog on Tiny Buddha sums it up well: When expectations rule our lives, we set ourselves up for disappointment, and then we judge ourselves harshly as a result.  

Adjust how you envision end-of-the-year situations. Dissect ahead of time the areas you can control, and come up with alternate plans for when the parts you can’t control go out of whack. Someone doesn’t like their gift as much as you thought they would? Be happy with yourself for the effort made. Company is late for dinner? Give yourself some leeway on timing in the kitchen, or accept that the microwave might come into play. The most important thing is spending time with people you care about. That’s where the memories are made, not what sits on your dinner plate.  

Take Time for You 

Taking time for yourself can mean exercising, enjoying a massage, solving Wordle, playing with your pet, slipping in a 30-minute catnap or relaxing in a bath. You don’t need to carve out hours of dedicated time every day, but making sure you have 5 to15 minute intervals of “me time” is important during stressful periods.  

The trick here is not to add stress to your life figuring out what your “me time” looks like. It could be a few minutes of yoga or an hour reading a book. If you’re flexible, you can grab some recharging time on the fly even if it’s just concentrating on your breathing for five minutes in your car between errands.  

Make Conscious Dietary Choices 

Oh my goodness, the end of the year parade of parties and social obligations can be daunting! Add to it the copious amounts of rich or sugary food readily available and the social norm of consuming alcohol to celebrate, and any kind of nutritious habits you dedicated yourself to earlier in the year start to buckle.  

Along with sleep and exercise, nutrition is a key indicator of good health. Heart.org lays out some useful tips to help you make healthy choices when it comes to food and beverages over the holidays.  

• Eat fruit and veggies before a party so you don’t arrive famished 

• Keep a bottle of water nearby so when you want to sip something it’s an easy choice 

• Enjoy the things you love, just in moderation 

Fueling your body with the good stuff will help your immunity, sleep and waistline! 

Prioritize 

What REALLY needs to get done? For the corporate setting, Parabol, itemized 45 questions to ask yourself that deal with risk assessment, practicality and value among other things. Outside of a work setting there are questions you can ask yourself to help decide which tasks MUST get done and which ones can wait.

1. What’s the worst-case scenario if I don’t do this task ASAP?

2. Can someone else get this done so I can take it off my plate? 

3. Does this task align with my current life goals? 

4. What will have the greater impact on my well-being, getting it done now, or letting it go for a while?

While it’s easy to mark every to-do as urgent this time of year, likely, most are not. Your house does not need to be “real estate showing” ready to host guests, and every package does not need to be wrapped in matching paper. If you can recognize some of the pressures you put on yourself, you’ll be one step closer to giving yourself a break. 

Our team at Motivation Excellence is ready to help relieve your stress when it comes to connecting with the people who mean the most to your business. Our B2B loyalty programs, group travel, incentives, and meetings & events are a great way to Inspire Extraordinary Performance any time of year. Explore all of our solutions on our website! 

Our New Website is LIVE! Explore Flexible Incentive Solutions in 2025

All Signs Point to Growing Incentives & Meetings Business in 2025; You Can Still Reap the Benefits at Your Company

Recent industry forecasts and surveys indicate corporate meetings, events and incentives will grow in 2025. According to the Incentive Travel Index 37% of respondents say 2025 levels will surpass 2024; 54% expect the spend-per-person to increase too. 

At Motivation Excellence, we continue to see interest in planning something in 2025, even though it’s less than a month away. Meetings, retreats and spurt incentive programs are all easy ways to inject some energy into the calendar year without necessarily needing a long planning period. Flexibility in destinations and venues helps keep options open well into the year. 

“Fitch Ratings predicts corporate revenue will continue to grow at a low- to mid-single digit rate in 2025. Using a well-thought-out event or meeting or launching a short-term incentive program could increase that growth. 

“We’ve been helping our clients shoot for larger percentage growth next year through our solutions that generate excitement and motivate people to want to exceed their sales goals,” says Joe Reise, Director, Travel Purchasing, Planning and Supplier Relations. 

The Benefits of Launching a Short-Term Incentive in 2025

If you’ve never invested in running a B2B or sales team incentive, planning a spurt program is a great way to get the feel for one and see instant results. Short-term incentives can run from a month to a quarter or two, depending on your sales cycle and goals. They can be valuable for:

• Specific products in your inventory
• Launching a new product
• Seasonal products or services
• Promoting steps-to-the-sale initiatives
• Gaining market share

“Short-term incentive programs are especially beneficial when a company wants to focus on generating excitement within its sales ranks; which in turn generates a boost of incremental sales,” says Rhonda Brewer, VP, Sales. 

Pairing the incentive rules with a motivational reward is key to producing results. Goals need to be attainable, yet a stretch to reach. Rewards need to be aspirational but within your budget. This is an area in which our experts at Motivation Excellence excel. Many incentive programs pay for themselves and then some, if set up correctly from the start.  

Rewards can run from award points to use on nearly anything to individual or group travel experiences to merchandise packages that upgrade a favorite hobby or room in a house. We offer such a huge selection of reward options that everyone will find something they can’t wait to earn! 

Go Ahead and Plan that 2025 Meeting; We’re Here to Help

Another option to infuse some energy into 2025 is to look at hosting a meeting or event that energizes the key stakeholders responsible for your company’s success. From an executive retreat for 12 to a global sales meeting for hundreds, we can help you put it on the calendar sooner than you might expect. We recently planned an international sales meeting for more than 500 people, including breakout training sessions, off-site social gatherings and expert speakers, in just four months. 

“We are experts with years of experience and a network of amazing global partners. When we work with a client, we become an extension of their team. We can take on as much as they need from us,” says Brewer. 

“Flexibility is key in short turn around events, but that doesn’t have to mean you’re settling for anything. My team will source several great options that fit parameters like location, budget, amenities and space considerations, so our clients have really good choices,” Reise adds. 

Let’s Connect

Motivation Excellence is happy to provide clients with a wide range of services, including program enrollment, event registration, air ticketing, full event planning, engagement support and performance tracking for all of our incentives, meetings and events solutions.  We’re excited to celebrate 40 years in the industry in 2025. Nothing would be better than giving your company a reason to celebrate next year too!

5 Tips for Turning a Thought Shower into a Brainstorm

The benefits of a good brainstorming session are numerous! Whether you do it solo, or in a group, taking time to generate a wide range of ideas leads to diverse solutions and creative innovations. The best part about this exercise is its flexibility – you can do it at any time or in any place. There are some basic “rules” to follow though for maximum results.

It’s About Quantity, not Quality

Workflowy reminds us that brainstorming is about generating lots of ideas, not critiquing them as they fly into play. Brainstorming is about creativity and being open to anything. Evaluating those ideas comes later.

Positivity Rules the Play

Being critical of ideas in a brainstorming session defeats the purpose. Being positive relates to the idea givers as well as the receivers. Remember, there are no dumb ideas in this setting. At Motivation Excellence, to encourage collaboration, we suggest having a “plussing” environment where someone can add on to another’s idea if it moves it in a positive direction.

Get Comfortable

Balancing on a high wire is not the place to brainstorm! Not only is that scenario very uncomfortable, you clearly can’t relax and let your mind wander off task. Comfort is key and that can be different for each person. That could be why, as work efficiency company Mural points out, there is evidence showing virtual brainstorming jams can actually be more effective than meeting in person. The important point is that in a group session, there is shared space of some kind, that includes a Zoom or Teams meeting, and that everyone feels at their most comfortable.

• Play with lighting
• Wear comfortable clothing
• Pace, lay down or sit cross-legged – whatever opens up your pathways
• Try different kinds of music, or absolute silence
• Have a favorite beverage and snack at the ready

Have Some Structure

While the end result of brainstorming might feel and look like a chaotic jumble of half thoughts, to get there it’s good to have some boundaries. Mural suggests having a defined topic, an agenda and a leader to help guide the process.

Allow Yourself a Break

This is especially important when gnawing over finding a solution to a problem solo. Start with all of the above strategies, for sure, but remember that sometimes the best ideas come after they’ve had some time to sit in your subconscious. Job search company The Muse, suggests some long-term brainstorming tactics like:

• Breaking for some physical or creative activity
• Exposing yourself to a topic totally different than what you’re brainstorming on
• Taking notes as they hit you

No one comes up with the absolute right answer to an issue immediately, every time. Allowing yourself the luxury of brainstorming can turn a few idea droplets into a flood of possibilities. The next step, evaluation, is like splashing in the puddles to find the top contenders. Hopefully the end result is one or two viable solutions ready to shine in the sunlight. Good luck!