Blitz in a Box
Now that you and your class have had one Pando-led Blitz experience, you have a new tool in your kit to use when stuck on a problem. At the core of a Blitz is not a set of steps but, rather, a way of thinking about things a tad differently.
Any time your team runs into an issue or a sticking point, try and re-create a mini-blitz on your own to solve the issue. The following questions and process can guide you throughout your own mini-blitz. Remember, we are learning to be self-sufficient problem solvers here!
With your group, define the challenge you are facing. Everyone can write down their own ideas of what the challenge is and then get together to share. After everyone has shared, try and narrow down the problem to one or two sentences.
As a group, ask “wait… why?” Try and ask as many “why” questions as possible regarding your challenge. Why is it important? Why is it hard to solve? Why, why why. Do not be afraid to question deeply and go all over the place here.
Start thinking up solutions with maybes. Write as many “maybe” statements as possible. Remember, the world of maybes has no limits. Do not be afraid to dream.
Use the Thinknado cards to try brainstorming just like we did in class. If you do not have any prompt cards, try either brainstorming random ideas yourself or try a random idea generator by searching google for one. Come up with as many ideas as possible to try and solve your challenge.
Share your ideas to each other and then come up with easy, actionable steps to try and implement your ideas and solve your problem.
Remember, a Blitz is not a guarantee of an answer. A Blitz brainstorm is just a way to get ideas flowing.
Sometimes, finding an answer just takes time, lots of thinking and lots of questions. A Blitz is just one more tool to get that process moving along in the right direction.