Problem Solving with the Lotus Blossom Brainstorming Technique

Lotus Blossom is a powerful technique for brainstorming and organizing your ideas. The principle is very elegant. You start with an idea and expand it into various themes by placing them around the original idea. This organization will give you a balanced view of your ideas and your relationships. Each of the subtopics can be expanded further by considering it as a new topic, and the process continues.

The best way to use Lotus Blossom is by placing all of your ideas within a three-by-three matrix, with the central idea in the middle box. You can then expand the idea into various themes and place them in the surrounding boxes. For each central idea, the optimum would be six to eight subtopics. Each subtopic can be expanded to eight other ideas. By completing this exercise, you will have at least 64 ways to improve your original idea.

Suppose, for example, that you need to find ways to reduce costs for your business. You would write “reduce costs” in the center box. Also, write down any special requirements you need to consider when making your decision. Here, find the eight most important areas in your organization where you can reduce costs. For example, you have selected the following areas: “energy”, “travel expenses”, “personnel”, “technology”, “consumables”, “suppliers”, “facilities” and “operating costs”.

For each area, try to find eight ways to cut costs. For example, in the “energy” box, list the idea of ​​replacing old, energy-inefficient electronics. By expanding this idea outward, he identified several devices that can be replaced. Similarly, in the “technology” box, you type using a multipurpose device. In this case, you can combine a fax machine, printer, scanner, and copier into one all-in-one printer.

Ideas from different topics can be combined into a single execution plan. For example, you have identified several devices in the “power” box that can be replaced with a multipurpose device in the “technology” box. Another example is combining the idea of ​​reducing paper consumption in the “consumables” theme with the implementation of an electronic filing system in the “technology” theme. By organizing your ideas in this way, you have an overview of all your solutions and can easily combine several of them to form an effective execution plan.

Lotus Blossom is a simple yet powerful technical brainstorm. It allows you to focus on one idea at a time, but it also provides the flexibility to expand your thoughts. An important aspect of this technique is that it provides an overview of your problem and the relationships and connections between its components. This allows you to combine multiple solutions into a single action plan. Give it a try, I hope you find this technique useful.