## Proven & Professional29

Yes And BuildingNever negate; each person opens with "Yes, and..." and adds to the last idea, stacking a chain of accepted additionsGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck · Planning
Brain Writing Round RobinEveryone writes ideas silently, then passes their sheet; you build on whatever lands in front of you, round after roundGreat for: Novel concept · Build a feature
Random StimulationPull a random word or image and force a link to the problem: "how does THIS spark a solution?"Great for: Get unstuck · Novel concept
Role PlayingEach person speaks as a different stakeholder, voicing what that role wants, fears, and would demand of the ideaGreat for: Strategy · Personal / life · Build a feature
First Principles ThinkingStrip every assumption to bedrock facts, then rebuild the solution from scratch on truth aloneGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Diagnose · Strategy
Reverse BrainstormingGenerate problems instead of solutions — 'how could we make this fail?' — then mine each for its inverseGreat for: Diagnose · Build a feature · Get unstuck
Five WhysAsk "why?" five times in a chain, each answer feeding the next, until you hit the root cause beneath the symptomGreat for: Diagnose
Provocation TechniqueState something deliberately absurd, then mine it: "how could this be useful?" Extract the usable principle hiding insideGreat for: Get unstuck · Novel concept
Assumption ReversalList every assumption baked into the problem, flip each to its opposite, then rebuild a solution on the inverted foundationGreat for: Novel concept · Diagnose · Strategy
Question StormingGenerate only questions about the problem, zero answers allowed, until the real problem worth solving comes into focusGreat for: Diagnose · Strategy · Get unstuck
Causal Loop MappingDiagram the feedback loops linking causes and effects, find the reinforcing and balancing cycles, and target the leverage pointGreat for: Diagnose · Strategy
Morphological AnalysisList the problem's independent parameters, generate options for each, then combine across them to surface untried configurationsGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Planning
LadderingAsk 'and what would that give you?' up the chain until you reach the real underlying need, then ideate fresh at that levelGreat for: Personal / life · Strategy · Diagnose
SCAMPER MethodRun your idea through seven lenses: Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, Put-to-other-use, Eliminate, ReverseGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept
Six Thinking HatsExamine the problem six ways one at a time: facts, feelings, benefits, risks, new ideas, processGreat for: Strategy · Diagnose · Planning · Personal / life
Lotus BlossomPut the theme at the center of a 3x3 grid, fill the 8 cells around it, then promote each of those to the center of its own new 3x3Great for: Build a feature · Planning · Novel concept
Worst Possible IdeaDeliberately generate the most terrible solutions you can, then flip each into what it teaches you to do rightGreat for: Get unstuck · Novel concept
Disney MethodCycle the idea through three rooms: Dreamer (anything goes), Realist (how we'd build it), Critic (what breaks)Great for: Build a feature · Strategy · Planning
StarburstingInterrogate the idea with only questions — who, what, where, when, why, how — exhaust each before answering anyGreat for: Build a feature · Planning · Diagnose
Mind MappingBranch the central topic outward, each node spawning children; follow tangents wherever they pull and let the web sprawlGreat for: Planning · Novel concept · Build a feature
Crazy 8sEight ideas in eight minutes, one per box, no editing — speed outruns your inner criticGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Get unstuck
How Might WeReframe the problem as a batch of 'How might we...' opportunity questions first, then ideate against the sharpest oneGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Strategy · Diagnose
Job to Be DoneAsk what the user is really hiring this to do, then ideate around that underlying job, not the feature you assumedGreat for: Build a feature · Strategy · Novel concept
Empathy MapMap what the user says, thinks, does, and feels around the problem, then mine each quadrant for the unmet needGreat for: Build a feature · Personal / life
BackcastingFix the finished future in vivid detail, then work backward step by step to the one move you'd have to make firstGreat for: Strategy · Planning · Novel concept
TRIZ ContradictionName the core contradiction (what only improves by making something else worse), then brainstorm ways to win both instead of trading offGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Diagnose
Fishbone DiagramBranch the problem's spine into cause categories (people, process, tools, environment) and mine each bone for contributing causesGreat for: Diagnose
Build on What WorksName what's already succeeding and why, then ideate how to amplify and extend it instead of fixing what's brokenGreat for: Personal / life · Strategy
Scenario CrossPick two high-impact uncertainties, cross them into four futures, and ideate the move that wins in every oneGreat for: Strategy · Planning

## Structured & Analytical

## Structured15

SCAMPER MethodRun your idea through seven lenses: Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, Put-to-other-use, Eliminate, ReverseGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept
Six Thinking HatsExamine the problem six ways one at a time: facts, feelings, benefits, risks, new ideas, processGreat for: Strategy · Diagnose · Planning · Personal / life
Decision Tree MappingChart every choice point and the paths it forks into, following each branch to its outcome and riskGreat for: Planning · Strategy · Diagnose
Solution MatrixGrid problem variables against solution approaches, score every cell, hunt the best pairings and empty gapsGreat for: Build a feature · Planning
Trait TransferName what makes an unrelated success work, then graft those winning traits onto your own problemGreat for: Novel concept · Build a feature
Lotus BlossomPut the theme at the center of a 3x3 grid, fill the 8 cells around it, then promote each of those to the center of its own new 3x3Great for: Build a feature · Planning · Novel concept
Worst Possible IdeaDeliberately generate the most terrible solutions you can, then flip each into what it teaches you to do rightGreat for: Get unstuck · Novel concept
Disney MethodCycle the idea through three rooms: Dreamer (anything goes), Realist (how we'd build it), Critic (what breaks)Great for: Build a feature · Strategy · Planning
StarburstingInterrogate the idea with only questions — who, what, where, when, why, how — exhaust each before answering anyGreat for: Build a feature · Planning · Diagnose
Mind MappingBranch the central topic outward, each node spawning children; follow tangents wherever they pull and let the web sprawlGreat for: Planning · Novel concept · Build a feature
Crazy 8sEight ideas in eight minutes, one per box, no editing — speed outruns your inner criticGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Get unstuck
How Might WeReframe the problem as a batch of 'How might we...' opportunity questions first, then ideate against the sharpest oneGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Strategy · Diagnose
Job to Be DoneAsk what the user is really hiring this to do, then ideate around that underlying job, not the feature you assumedGreat for: Build a feature · Strategy · Novel concept
Empathy MapMap what the user says, thinks, does, and feels around the problem, then mine each quadrant for the unmet needGreat for: Build a feature · Personal / life
BackcastingFix the finished future in vivid detail, then work backward step by step to the one move you'd have to make firstGreat for: Strategy · Planning · Novel concept
✨ Invent a Structured techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Structured

## Deep13

Five WhysAsk "why?" five times in a chain, each answer feeding the next, until you hit the root cause beneath the symptomGreat for: Diagnose
Provocation TechniqueState something deliberately absurd, then mine it: "how could this be useful?" Extract the usable principle hiding insideGreat for: Get unstuck · Novel concept
Assumption ReversalList every assumption baked into the problem, flip each to its opposite, then rebuild a solution on the inverted foundationGreat for: Novel concept · Diagnose · Strategy
Question StormingGenerate only questions about the problem, zero answers allowed, until the real problem worth solving comes into focusGreat for: Diagnose · Strategy · Get unstuck
Constraint MappingMap every constraint, sort real from imagined, then attack each: dissolve it, route around it, or turn it into an assetGreat for: Build a feature · Strategy · Diagnose
Failure AnalysisDissect a relevant failure: what broke, why it broke, what lesson it leaves, and how to apply that wisdom hereGreat for: Diagnose · Strategy · Build a feature
Emergent ThinkingStop forcing a solution; watch what patterns the system keeps producing and name what's trying to emerge on its ownGreat for: Strategy · Novel concept
Causal Loop MappingDiagram the feedback loops linking causes and effects, find the reinforcing and balancing cycles, and target the leverage pointGreat for: Diagnose · Strategy
Morphological AnalysisList the problem's independent parameters, generate options for each, then combine across them to surface untried configurationsGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Planning
LadderingAsk 'and what would that give you?' up the chain until you reach the real underlying need, then ideate fresh at that levelGreat for: Personal / life · Strategy · Diagnose
TRIZ ContradictionName the core contradiction (what only improves by making something else worse), then brainstorm ways to win both instead of trading offGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Diagnose
Fishbone DiagramBranch the problem's spine into cause categories (people, process, tools, environment) and mine each bone for contributing causesGreat for: Diagnose
Build on What WorksName what's already succeeding and why, then ideate how to amplify and extend it instead of fixing what's brokenGreat for: Personal / life · Strategy
✨ Invent a Deep techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Deep

## Creative & Generative

## Creative10

What If ScenariosDetonate one constraint at a time — unlimited budget, opposite is true, problem vanished — and chase what rushes inGreat for: Novel concept · Strategy · Get unstuck
Analogical ThinkingAsk 'this is like what?' and steal the solution pattern from the domain that answersGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Diagnose
First Principles ThinkingStrip every assumption to bedrock facts, then rebuild the solution from scratch on truth aloneGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept · Diagnose · Strategy
Forced RelationshipsGrab two unrelated things at random and force a bridge between them until an idea falls outGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck
Time ShiftingSolve the problem as a 1900s artisan, then a 2150 colonist — harvest the era-bound constraints and tricksGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck
Metaphor MappingDeclare the problem IS a chosen metaphor, extend the metaphor fully, map each part back to find insightsGreat for: Novel concept · Diagnose
Cross-PollinationAsk how a wildly different industry — casinos, ERs, beekeeping — would crack this, then adapt their moveGreat for: Novel concept · Build a feature · Strategy
Concept BlendingFuse two concepts into one new hybrid category and name what the merger becomes, not just combinesGreat for: Novel concept
Reverse BrainstormingGenerate problems instead of solutions — 'how could we make this fail?' — then mine each for its inverseGreat for: Diagnose · Build a feature · Get unstuck
Sensory ExplorationInterrogate the idea through each sense — its taste, smell, sound, texture — to surface non-analytical anglesGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck
✨ Invent a Creative techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Creative

## Biomimetic6

Nature's SolutionsName an organism that already solved your problem, then copy its mechanism into your designGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept
Ecosystem ThinkingMap your problem as an ecosystem: who eats whom, who partners, what decays, what fills the gapsGreat for: Strategy · Diagnose
Evolutionary PressureSpawn many ugly variants, apply a brutal selection rule, breed the survivors, repeat until it adaptsGreat for: Build a feature · Novel concept
Predator & PreyPick a threat to your idea, then design the defense, camouflage, or escape an animal would evolve against itGreat for: Strategy · Build a feature
Metamorphosis StagesForce your idea through egg, larva, pupa, adult: a radically different form and purpose at each life stageGreat for: Novel concept · Strategy
Swarm LogicForbid the master plan: solve it with dumb local rules each agent follows so order emerges from the bottom upGreat for: Build a feature · Strategy
✨ Invent a Biomimetic techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Biomimetic

## Cultural7

Indigenous WisdomAsk how an indigenous or traditional knowledge system would approach this — name the culture, channel its ancestral problem-solvingGreat for: Personal / life · Strategy · Novel concept
Fusion CuisinePick two unrelated cultures and force-blend their approaches; harvest the hybrid that neither alone would inventGreat for: Novel concept
Ritual InnovationRedesign the idea as a ceremony — define the threshold, the gestures, the transformation participants undergoGreat for: Novel concept · Personal / life
Mythic FrameworksMap the problem onto a myth: name the archetypes, find the parallel tale, let its structure dictate the resolutionGreat for: Strategy · Personal / life · Novel concept
Proverb MiningCollect proverbs from many cultures on this theme, then build the solution from the one that clashes hardest with your assumptionsGreat for: Personal / life · Strategy
Ancestor CouncilConvene three ancestors or elders from different traditions, voice each one's verdict on your idea, reconcile their disagreementGreat for: Personal / life · Strategy
Trickster's GambitChannel the trickster figure — coyote, Anansi, Loki — and solve it by cheating, inverting, or breaking the sacred ruleGreat for: Get unstuck · Strategy
✨ Invent a Cultural techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Cultural

## Speculative Future8

Time Horizon LadderSolve the idea for 1 year out, then 10, then 100 — note what survives, breaks, or becomes absurd at each rungGreat for: Strategy · Planning · Novel concept
Post-Scarcity TestAssume the core constraint (money, energy, time, attention) is now infinite and free — what does the idea becomeGreat for: Novel concept · Strategy
Utopia vs Dystopia Split-ScreenWrite the same future twice: the brochure where it went perfectly and the headline where it went horriblyGreat for: Strategy · Diagnose
Sci-Fi Artifact From the FutureDescribe one physical object, ad, or news clip from the world where this idea already won — reverse-engineer itGreat for: Novel concept · Build a feature
Emerging Tech CollisionForce-marry your idea to a frontier tech (AGI, fusion, neural implants, gene edit) and ask what new thing is bornGreat for: Novel concept · Build a feature · Strategy
What-If-The-World-Changed Card FlipDraw a wild world-shift (no privacy, half population, 200-yr lifespans) and redesign the idea to fit that worldGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck
Future Anthropologist DigA scholar in 2200 unearths your idea as a relic — what do they conclude it reveals about us, and what replaced itGreat for: Strategy · Novel concept
Scenario CrossPick two high-impact uncertainties, cross them into four futures, and ideate the move that wins in every oneGreat for: Strategy · Planning
✨ Invent a Speculative Future techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Speculative Future

## Quantum6

Observer EffectAsk how the act of watching, measuring, or shipping this idea changes the very thing you're trying to captureGreat for: Strategy · Diagnose
Entanglement ThinkingPair two distant parts of the problem and insist a change in one instantly flips the other — surface the hidden linkageGreat for: Diagnose · Strategy
Superposition CollapseHold all rival solutions alive at once, then name the one constraint that collapses them to a single winnerGreat for: Strategy · Diagnose
Relativity Frame ShiftRe-run the idea from a wildly different observer's reference frame — the slow user, the rival, future-you — and see what warpsGreat for: Strategy · Novel concept
Field LinesTreat the goal as a charge and map the invisible forces pulling every stakeholder toward or away from itGreat for: Strategy
Quantum TunnelingAssume the idea can pass straight through the 'impossible' barrier instead of over it — what's on the other side, reached cheaplyGreat for: Get unstuck · Novel concept
✨ Invent a Quantum techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Quantum

## Wild & Playful

## Wild7

Chaos EngineeringDeliberately break your idea every way it could fail, then rebuild only the parts that survive the wreckageGreat for: Build a feature · Diagnose · Strategy
Guerrilla Gardening IdeasPlant your solution in the least expected place and let it grow underground until it surprises everyoneGreat for: Strategy · Get unstuck
Pirate Code BrainstormSteal the best bits from anywhere, remix without asking permission, grab what works and runGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck
Zombie Apocalypse PlanningSociety just collapsed — strip your idea to only what survives with no power, no rules, no backupGreat for: Build a feature · Strategy · Get unstuck
Drunk History RetellingExplain it like you're three drinks in: no filter, no jargon, just the raw stupid-simple truthGreat for: Get unstuck · Diagnose
Anti-SolutionBrainstorm how to make the problem spectacularly worse, then invert every sabotage into a fixGreat for: Diagnose · Get unstuck
Elemental ForcesLet fire, water, earth, and air each sculpt your idea their own brutal way and see what survivesGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck
✨ Invent a Wild techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Wild

## Absurdist6

Villain's MonologuePitch your problem as an evil mastermind gloating about their scheme; the diabolical plan reveals the real solutionGreat for: Diagnose · Strategy · Get unstuck
Explain It to a Golden RetrieverRe-pitch the idea to an excitable dog who only cares about treats, balls, and naps; keep only what survivesGreat for: Get unstuck · Diagnose · Build a feature
Infomercial at 3AMSell your half-baked idea as a desperate late-night infomercial: 'But wait, there's more!' until features fall outGreat for: Strategy · Novel concept
Drunk Uncle at ThanksgivingHave your loudest, least-filtered relative rant about the problem; mine the unhinged hot takes for buried truthGreat for: Get unstuck · Diagnose
Cursed GenieMake a wish, then let a malicious genie grant it in the most technically-correct disastrous way; patch each loopholeGreat for: Diagnose · Build a feature
Three Rounds of StupidRound 1 absurd ideas, Round 2 make each MORE absurd, Round 3 find the smallest serious thing hiding in the silliestGreat for: Get unstuck · Novel concept
✨ Invent a Absurdist techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Absurdist

## Theatrical7

Time Travel Talk ShowHost a talk show interviewing your past, present, and future selves to mine each era for advice on the problemGreat for: Novel concept · Personal / life
Alien AnthropologistBecome a baffled alien studying the problem and narrate aloud what seems strange, arbitrary, or insane about itGreat for: Diagnose · Get unstuck · Strategy
Dream Fusion LaboratoryVoice the impossible fantasy solution first, then reverse-engineer the bridging steps back to realityGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck
Emotion OrchestraRun a separate ideation round led by each emotion (rage, joy, fear, hope), then harmonize their conflicting ideasGreat for: Personal / life · Strategy
Parallel Universe CafeRewrite one fundamental rule of reality (physics, economics, social norms) and solve the problem under those lawsGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck
Persona JourneyEmbody an archetype and solve the problem in-character, naming what that persona sees that you normally missGreat for: Build a feature · Strategy
Devil's Advocate CourtroomStage a trial: prosecute the idea, defend it, then deliver the jury verdict, each role argued fully in characterGreat for: Strategy · Diagnose
✨ Invent a Theatrical techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Theatrical

## Constraint7

Kill the Crown JewelDelete the single best, most beloved feature — now redesign the whole thing to win without itGreat for: Build a feature · Strategy · Get unstuck
1000x BudgetPretend money, time, and people are infinite — design the absurd version, then mine it for ideas you can actually stealGreat for: Novel concept · Strategy
Ship in 60 MinutesYou launch in one hour with what's already on hand — name what you cut, fake, or borrow to make it realGreat for: Build a feature · Planning · Get unstuck
The $0 MandateAchieve the goal spending literally nothing — no tools, hires, or ads; only people, favors, and what you ownGreat for: Planning · Strategy · Build a feature
One Feature OnlyYou may keep exactly ONE capability and nothing else — pick it, then make that single thing unbelievably goodGreat for: Build a feature · Strategy
Crank the Dial to 11Pick one dimension and exaggerate it to a ludicrous extreme — fastest, biggest, cheapest, weirdest — and see what breaks openGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck
Constraint RouletteEach round draw a brutal random limit (no screens, half the team, one day) and re-solve under it; survivors become real ideasGreat for: Get unstuck · Build a feature
✨ Invent a Constraint techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Constraint

## Introspective & Personal

## Introspective Delight8

Inner Child ConferenceAnswer as your 7-year-old self: ask naive 'why why why' questions, chase wonder, ban every boring adult thoughtGreat for: Personal / life · Get unstuck
Shadow Work MiningName what you're avoiding, resisting, or scared of about this — then dig there for the buried insightGreat for: Personal / life · Diagnose
Values ArchaeologyKeep asking 'why do I care?' until you hit bedrock: the non-negotiable value secretly steering the choiceGreat for: Personal / life · Strategy
Future Self InterviewInterview your wise 80-year-old self about this problem and write down the advice they give youGreat for: Personal / life
Body Wisdom DialogueScan for the tension, flutter, or gut pull each option triggers; let the body's yes/no drive the ideasGreat for: Personal / life
Permission GivingWrite yourself an explicit permission slip to think the forbidden, impossible thought — then think it out loudGreat for: Personal / life · Get unstuck
Secret Wish ConfessionWhisper the embarrassing thing you secretly want here but won't admit, then build the idea honoring itGreat for: Personal / life
Mood Weather ReportName the inner weather right now (fog, storm, sun) and let that exact emotional climate generate the ideasGreat for: Personal / life · Get unstuck
✨ Invent a Introspective Delight techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Introspective Delight

## Collaborative8

Yes And BuildingNever negate; each person opens with "Yes, and..." and adds to the last idea, stacking a chain of accepted additionsGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck · Planning
Brain Writing Round RobinEveryone writes ideas silently, then passes their sheet; you build on whatever lands in front of you, round after roundGreat for: Novel concept · Build a feature
Random StimulationPull a random word or image and force a link to the problem: "how does THIS spark a solution?"Great for: Get unstuck · Novel concept
Role PlayingEach person speaks as a different stakeholder, voicing what that role wants, fears, and would demand of the ideaGreat for: Strategy · Personal / life · Build a feature
Ideation Relay Race30-second turns, no pausing: add one idea, slap it to the next person, keep the baton moving before anyone overthinksGreat for: Get unstuck
Idea Hot PotatoOne idea gets tossed around the circle; each catcher must mutate it in 10 seconds before passing, no repeats allowedGreat for: Get unstuck
Steal And UpgradePick a neighbor's idea you envy, claim it out loud, then make it visibly better before handing it back improvedGreat for: Novel concept · Get unstuck
Fold The PaperEach person adds one line to a hidden drawing or sentence, sees only the previous fragment, then unfold the surreal wholeGreat for: Get unstuck · Novel concept
✨ Invent a Collaborative techniqueMake up a brand-new technique on the fly, in the spirit of Collaborative