What Is The 635 Method

Your best ideas can die in a “brainstorm” for two predictable reasons: it gets personal, and it gets loud. We start with a simple real-life moment where a quick conversation with my fiancée flips a stuck problem into an easier path forward, then we use that as proof of something most of us forget when we’re grinding solo. A fresh perspective can save you hours, but only if you know how to invite it without turning the room into a debate.

We dig into the hidden friction inside collaborative brainstorming: when someone challenges your intuition, it can feel like they’re challenging you. To stop that spiral, we talk about zooming out, building a wider mental frame, and separating facts from assumptions so feedback becomes useful instead of personal. That shift alone can change how you handle creative thinking, decision-making, and problem solving at work or in your own projects.

Then we get practical with a simple, structured brainstorming technique: the 6-3-5 method (brainwriting). Six participants write three ideas in five minutes, pass the paper, and build on what’s already there. The result is calmer meetings, more equal participation, less chaos, and up to 108 ideas generated through iterative collaboration. If you want a repeatable way to run better brainstorming sessions and improve idea generation, this is a strong place to start.

Subscribe so you do not miss the next episode, share this with a friend who needs a creativity reset, and leave a review if it helps. What brainstorming method has worked best for you lately?

Transcript

A Simple Moment Sparks Insight

SPEAKER_00 0:00

A few months ago, I was sitting at a table with my fiancee, and I I was thinking deeply about something that I I can't even remember right now, honestly. And uh I shared my thoughts, I shared my thoughts with her, and at some point she said, Do you know what you can do? You can do uh you can do it in this way. And in that moment, it felt like a light bulb went on in my head, unlocking a solution that seemed much easier than I thought. It's one of those experiences, guys, that you realize that it would have taken much longer to figure it out all your own, right? Whatever um whatever thought you you want to to unlock, whatever solution you want to achieve.

Why Group Brainstorms Go Wrong

SPEAKER_00 0:56

So today we're gonna discuss the collaborative brainstorming, especially the 635 method, the technique often ignore. But before we go forward, as always, please subscribe so I know this is the right direction to lead you guys, to drive you and to guide you towards your journey to success. And let's get started, right? As always. So, collaborative brainstorming. Collaborative brainstorming involves bringing a group of people together in one place to discuss a specific topic, or right, particularly the one you are facing challenges or your own. However, there are two main problems associated with uh collaborative brainstorming. The first issue is that it can feel personal. So when someone shares their intuition, you know, their idea, when they propose solutions, it can be challenging if their ideas don't align with yours. Okay, and this can lead to feelings of being touched or defensive. This happened to me, and I'm sure it happened to a lot of you guys. The second problem is that when uh everyone speaks at once, it can create chaos. Communication becomes overwhelming, making it difficult to understand what is happening and uh leading to uh you know a loss of direction. This has become a problem because it can lead to even more confusion than before, you know. You're frustrated because the idea of bringing a group of people together maybe didn't work out as you hoped, and instead it may have made things worse, okay.

Zooming Out To Avoid Defensiveness

SPEAKER_00 3:03

So before we talk about the first problem, the first problem is about the fact that you can feel touch and can feel very personal, you know, whatever you do, and uh of course you don't want that the people around you like it's for most of the times it's okay to receive feedback from our perspective, but the truth is that we don't want to get touched so much, right? So let's find a solution about this problem. The first solution is to try to zoom out, for example. So as human beings, we have the ability to zoom in and zoom out in various situations, right? Am I going to give you an example? If your best friend comes to you crying because her boyfriend is not giving her the attention she deserves, you would likely zoom in on her story because you know you trust her. However, you don't know the other side of the story. It could be that the the girlfriend, I'm just making an example, guys, yeah, is psychologically or even physically abusing the man, you know. You might not be aware of that. But you trust her, you trust her because she's your best friend, okay? So when uh we zoom out, we start to ask the right questions and create a mental framework to understand what is factual and what is not, what is an assumption and uh what is grounded in reality, you know. So at first, this might seem like an example that doesn't relate to our topic, but it actually does. Because when you zoom in and you zoom out, you know, I mean, this is part of brainstorming in our daily lives. It doesn't matter if it is collaborative or individual brainstorming, it is still brainstorming, even when you do all your own, okay, even if when you are with someone that doesn't brainstorm with you.

The 6-3-5 Method Explained

SPEAKER_00 5:08

The other issue to solve was you know the one that I highlighted before. When I say, you know, the second problem is that when everyone speaks at once, it it can create chaos, you know, it can generate a mess. So in this case, we are talking about a situation where people lack a framework for effective brainstorming, generating a mess. So to solve the the messy situation and overcome the challenges of messy collaborative brainstorming, you need to consider using the six, three, five methods. And here is how it works. So you take ideally six participants sit together around the table. Number two, each person writes down three ideas related to a specific problem or challenge. Number three, they have five minutes to brainstorm their ideas. Number four, after the time is up, everyone passes their shit to the next, you know, person, to the next participant. And number five, the next person reads the ideas and can either expand on them, improve them, combine them, or create new ideas inspired by the existing ones. So this process, guys, restarts until everyone has given their contribution to each sheet. By the end, the group can generate up to 108 ideas using the formula six participants that you need to multiply on to three ideas each, and you need to multiply on uh six rounds. So in total, you have 108 ideas. Okay, and this method not only simplifies the brainstorming process but also promotes collaboration while minimize minimizing chaos.

Recap Of The Framework

SPEAKER_00 7:16

Now, before we up, right, what do we talk about today? Today we focus on the concept of collaborative brainstorming and delved into a specific technique called the 635 method. I began by sharing a personal experience with my fiancé, which highlighted the value of collaborative thinking and how a fresh perspective can unlock solutions. We discussed the two primary challenges of collaborative brainstorming. So write the personal nature of sharing ideas and the potential cause when everyone communicates all together. These issues can lead to confusion and frustration as the collaboration doesn't always deliver the desired outcome. Okay, so to address these challenges, I introduced the idea of zooming out and uh zooming in, but I mean in this case, especially zooming out. This approach allows us to gain a wider perspective and ask the right questions, okay? Helping us distinguish between facts and assumptions. This concept connects to effective brainstorming, guys, as understanding the bigger picture is crucial, you know. We then outline the 635 method as a structure solution to messy brainstorming sessions. Okay, in this method, six people, six participants generate ideas in rounds, allowing each person to build on each other's uh thoughts. The process encourages collaboration, guys, simplifies idea generation, and uh significantly increases the total number of ideas produced. So, in summary, to resume, we explore uh the importance of collaborative brainstorming, identify common traps, and present the 635 methods as a practical strategy for effectively enhancing group creativity.

Your Turn To Share Techniques

SPEAKER_00 9:23

Now, I would love to hear from you. How do you approach collaborative brainstorming your project? What techniques or methods have you found effective in generating ideas? Send me a message, share your insights, or connect with me on Soupsacks. So I would love to learn from your experiences. And if you found value in today's discussion, guys, please consider subscribing to ensure you never miss an update. And don't forget to share this episode with a friend who might benefit from a fresh perspective on brainstorming and creativity. Thank you for being here. Thank you for joining me on this journey to success. Together, we're gonna unlock new ideas and uh yeah, and embracing uh I would say uh collaboration, digital collaboration, right? I'll see in the next episode. Cheers.