What needs to be finished first
A clear brainwriting question or How-Might-We statement exists and is understandable in 1-2 sentences.
All participants understand the domain and the problem situation, ideally through a prior briefing.
What needs to be ready before start
6-3-5 template (6 people × 3 ideas × 5 rounds) on A4 sheets or digital (Miro, FigJam, Google Docs); timer; visible prompt; quiet setup.
One facilitator to hold the rounds and the timer; 4-12 participants from different functions; ideally mixed experience levels (anti-hierarchy effect).
Prompt; context briefing (2-3 min or pre-material); examples of good idea phrasing (full sentence, not keyword); anti-examples (too vague, too finished).
15-30 min writing phase, plus 10-15 min condensation
One sheet per person with 3 fields × 5 rounds (classic 6-3-5 format) or one slot per round digitally. Prompt visible at the top. Set the timer to 5 min per round.
The one question this method answers
What range of ideas can we generate when each person first writes quietly and builds on others' ideas?
Marker: Phase
| Step | Duration | Action | Hint |
|---|---|---|---|
1Phase 1: Briefing and rules | 5 min | Read the prompt and recap the context. Explain the format: everyone writes 3 ideas per round, passes the sheet along, and builds on predecessor ideas. Silence during writing. | If someone does not understand the format, the rotation stalls. Show a format demo with an example sheet. |
2Phase 2: Round 1 - first ideas | 5 min | Each person writes 3 ideas alone on the sheet or digitally. Silence. After 5 minutes, pass the sheet along (clockwise, or switch the digital slot). | The first round yields obvious ideas. That is fine; they become the base for building in later rounds. |
3Phase 3: Rounds 2-5 - build on ideas | 20 min | Each follow-up round lasts 5 minutes. Participants read the 3 predecessor ideas and write 3 new ones that build on or combine them. Silence, no talking. | Building does not mean copying. Variation, combination, and counter-proposals are allowed. Copying verbatim misses the point. |
4Phase 4: Collect and review | 10 min | Put all sheets (or slots) on the wall or board. Silent reading phase. Consolidate duplicates and form clusters (analogous to affinity mapping). | With 6 people, 90 ideas are created (6 × 3 × 5). Volume is normal; clustering reduces it to 5-10 themes. |
5Phase 5: Convergence | 10-15 min | Dot voting on clusters or top ideas. 3-5 dots per person. Mark the top 5 for follow-up. Name an owner per top idea. | Convergence is mandatory. Without a selection, the output remains a pile with no effect. |
What comes out at the end
Brainwriting collection (photo, scan, or digital export) with all 6-3-5 sheets, consolidated theme clusters, and a top shortlist with owner and next step.
Create a separate snapshot per session with date and prompt. Store the condensed shortlist in the research or discovery repository. If the same prompt is used again, keep the previous version as a reference.
Compact agenda template for method sequences with timebox, purpose, and output.
Goal: ... Participants: ... Duration: ...
| Time | Method | Purpose | Output |
|---|---|---|---|
| 00:00 | Check-in | Set focus | Shared start |
| 00:10 | How Might We | Ideation questions | HMW list |
| 00:35 | Brainwriting | Generate ideas | Idea pool |
| 01:10 | Dot Voting | Prepare selection | Prioritized ideas |
| 01:30 | Storyboarding | Make the concept tangible | Storyboard |
Decision, owner, next test.
Concrete filled scenario, fictional example
Concrete filled scenario, fictional example
Prompt: "What could give a solo tax advisor a clear aha moment within the first 30 minutes with our software?"
Setup: 6 people × 3 ideas × 5 rounds = 90 ideas, 25 min writing phase
Round 1 (Anna):
Round 2 (Ben builds on it):
Round 3 (Lisa builds on it):
...and so on
Recognize symptoms and steer against them
Participants discuss quietly, silence breaks, and bias reduction disappears.
The facilitator interrupts politely. If needed, separate rooms (including separate digital channels). Silence is non-negotiable.
Keywords without context ('AI', 'better', 'faster') mean the next person cannot build on them.
Rule: one full sentence per idea. Show examples before starting. Flag short ideas during review and let the author expand them.
Each round produces completely independent ideas and the building effect is lost.
Repeat the format rule explicitly. If forgotten, reading the previous 3 ideas is a mandatory step before writing.
After round 5, energy drops and the last rounds produce junk ideas.
Do not force classic 6-3-5 to five rounds. If energy drops, stop after 3-4 rounds.
90 ideas are generated, nobody chooses, and everything goes into the wiki.
A convergence phase is mandatory. Voting or a decider decision in the same session. Without a shortlist, the method was just busywork.
Done signals checkable in under a minute
Go to the profile for purpose, similar methods, and sources or continue to the next method in the catalog.