### What? A social form of [[ideation]], used within [[Design Workshops|workshops]] during the design process. The aim is to rapidly sketch ideas for interface, journey, copy and other surface elements. ### Method 1. Start with a statement or hypothesis of what you are hoping to solve 2. Every participant gets a piece of paper (A3 is best) which is folded into eight equal pieces.[^1] 3. A facilitator starts an **8 minute** timer, and each participant takes roughly a minute to create an idea each of the eight panels. The facilitator calls out each minute mark. 4. After the time is elapsed, each participant quickly present their idea, time limit to it 3 minutes or so.[^2] 5. Cut or tear up the sheet and as a group try to group each idea into similar or connected themes. Use a sticky note to label the emerging themes. Some discussion should emerge over [[defining terms|terminology]], which can align understanding.[^3] 6. Each participant then has three(ish) votes, and sticks a voting dot or other mark on their preferred ideas. These can be their own, a strong feeling can be expressed by using more than one or even all the dots on one idea.[^4] 7. The ideas with no votes can be removed, but it should be explained that any good ideas contained within these ideas are up for grabs in other parts of the ideation process. ([[Ideas are cheap and disposable]]) 8. The ideas left can then be used for further ideation and more details follow up. ### Why? Usually we don’t have more than a few in built assumptions about how a design *should* work, the Crazy 8’s method forces a participant to think beyond their existing assumptions and access new ideas *even* though these ideas may not be worth pursuing beyond the present. Every participant is a similar place of *relative* vulnerability and even the most creative brain will have to sketch out a *rubbish* idea or two or three, to fill the squares ([[Being comfortable with ignorance can be a powerful way to stay intellectually supple]]). Eight ideas is too many to produce without some creative thinking, but not too many to bog down a process. The shared experience lowers the emotional stakes of *being wrong* to allow space for interesting, radical or unthought of ideas to be expressed. Like many [[Design Workshops]], the aim is to create a consensual space free from as many [[Power Relations|power dynamics]] as is feasible to remove. The activity creates a balance between visual, written and auditory communication, where in other traditional [[meetings]], the preferred style of the lead is usually dominant. Communicating around a concrete idea, a sketch, a hypothesis is a more effective than conjuring verbal images based around internalised ideal. [^1]: Fold in half and half again in the same direction, and fold once in the opposite orientation. Score the edges for easy ripping apart later. [^2]: There *should* be some themes and repetition emerging so it is fine to point to previous descriptions by other participants. [^3]: Doing this on a board or on a wall lets people move about, which keeps energy in the meeting. [^4]: Like many workshops, you can choose to acknowledge or mitigate the ‘decision maker’ by giving them an extra dot or not. This choice should be communicated to acknowledge and not leave unspoken the presence of power within a workshop.