Maximize quantity of ideas before evaluating
Set an explicit quantity target — generate at least 20 ideas before reviewing any of them.
Key takeaways
- What it is: Set an explicit quantity target — generate at least 20 ideas before reviewing any of them.
- Why it works: The most creative ideas tend to appear later in a generation sequence, not earlier. Early ideas are the most accessible — the most familiar, the most expected. Quantity pressure forces the thinker beyond those accessible ideas into less familiar territory where the genuinely novel candidates live. Without a quantity target, most people stop when they have a good-enough answer, which is usually one of the early, obvious ones.
- Evidence: Backed by observational / correlational evidence.
- Avoid: Stopping at three to five ideas because one seems good enough — which never reaches the ideas that would have emerged after the obvious ones were exhausted.
Why it works
The most creative ideas tend to appear later in a generation sequence, not earlier. Early ideas are the most accessible — the most familiar, the most expected. Quantity pressure forces the thinker beyond those accessible ideas into less familiar territory where the genuinely novel candidates live. Without a quantity target, most people stop when they have a good-enough answer, which is usually one of the early, obvious ones.
How to do it
- 1State the target before starting: "I will generate 20 ideas before evaluating."
- 2Keep a running list — even obviously bad ideas count; they may combine with later ideas.
- 3When you feel stuck, generate deliberately implausible ideas to break the stall.
- 4Only after hitting the target, evaluate the full list — and pay particular attention to the ideas generated after the first ten.
What the evidence says
ObservationalResearch on brainstorming and creative ideation consistently finds that quantity of ideas predicts the probability of generating a high-quality idea — the most original ideas tend not to be among the first generated.
Honest caveat: The "quantity predicts quality" finding is robust in individual brainstorming; group brainstorming often produces fewer ideas than the same number of people working individually (production blocking, evaluation apprehension).
- — Diehl & Stroebe (1987), productivity loss in brainstorming groups, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
Common mistake
Stopping at three to five ideas because one seems good enough — which never reaches the ideas that would have emerged after the obvious ones were exhausted.
IX Coach holds you to your idea-quantity target during ideation sessions and prompts "what else?" until the target is reached — preventing premature closure on early ideas.
Practice this with IX Coach →