Card Description

In response to a prompt, have participants generate 100 ideas on sticky notes, one idea per sticky. Set a short amount of time and emphasize that all ideas count, including the bad, boring, or impractical, as long as they do not repeat.

How to Run 100 Ideas

Provide materials for participants (markers and sticky notes, or a blank digital whiteboard)
Provide the prompt
Explain the length of time they have and how many ideas they should aim to generate in that time, providing an overall group goal (for example, for a group of 10, each person should get 10 ideas in two minutes, for a total of 100 ideas)
Emphasize that any idea counts and they should not judge what they’re writing down as good or bad. All ideas count towards the total!
Start the timer
When the timer has finished, have everyone tally up their ideas. If the final number has not been reached, have the group continue generating ideas until the number you stated at the beginning

Longer Context

The magic of 100 Ideas happens when participants are pushed past their self-judgment instincts and all ideas make it to a sticky note. If you have a group that is hesitant to share an idea unless they think it’s the right idea, 100 Ideas breaks them out of that box.

Setting the “ambitious goal” is key. It should feel like a large number but be reasonable enough that the group could achieve it with a little encouragement. If they haven’t after the first time, have them brainstorm again (solo or as a full group this time) to get to the final number, reiterating that any idea, even ones they don’t like, counts towards the total.

It’s very satisfying to see all the ideas in this exercise up on the board together, which is why we encourage the combination of markers and sticky notes to help keep things legible from afar.

When to Use 100 Ideas

When brainstorming for breadth over depth, going for a range and trying to capture as many different ideas as possible
When breaking groups out of a self-judgmental headspace
When you want folks to think BIG!
When the possibilities feel endless and getting all the ideas out (even if 99 won’t be used) will be helpful

Examples & Prompts

You can run 100 Ideas to brainstorm…anything! Quarter goals (and how the team will celebrate completing them!), newsletter topics, items to put on sale, or even ways to improve retention rates.