Brainstorming is a creative technique designed to generate a high volume of ideas, either in a group or on your own, and the Cubing method turns it into a structured process that helps you analyze a problem from six different angles. If you've ever left a session feeling like you talked a lot but solved little, this approach gives you the framework to move from scattered thoughts to concrete next steps.

What rules should you follow before starting a brainstorming session?

Before throwing ideas into the room, set the stage. A session without direction usually ends in frustration, and that's the most common mistake teams make.

There are two non negotiables to respect:

• Don't judge ideas while they're being shared. Just listen and write everything down.
• Define a clear goal or a specific question the session needs to answer.
• Communicate the topic to everyone before the meeting, so participants arrive with small ideas already forming.

What is brainstorming? It's a creative technique used to generate many ideas spontaneously, with no criticism during the session, and evaluate them later against the problem you need to solve.

The evaluation comes after, and it's not about labeling ideas as good or bad. It's about checking whether they work strategically for the solution you're chasing.

How does the Cubing technique work in a brainstorming session?

Cubing is a method that asks you to look at a problem from six sides, like the faces of a cube. You'll need six Post-its or six small sheets of paper, and each one gets assigned a specific role.

What are the six Post-its you need to fill out?

Each Post-it focuses your thinking on a different layer of the problem. Here's how to use them:

1. Describe the problem. Write down what you're trying to solve. For example: our podcast needs a refresh.
2. Compare. Ask what competitors or others in your field are doing about the same problem. The point is to read the scene, not to copy.
3. Associate. Connect the problem to its possible cause. If your project needs a refresh, maybe the audience is getting bored, and that connection is what's draining engagement.
4. Analyze. Generate actionable ideas for the short term. Something like let's do something we haven't done before, the way creating a Platzi course opens a new path.
5. Apply. Define where the idea lands. It could be a new audience, a local activation, or a global rollout.
6. Pros and cons. List the upsides, like innovation, and the downsides, like the time and effort the project will demand.

Why is it called Cubing? Because a cube has six sides, and the technique forces you to examine the problem through six distinct angles before deciding what to do.

The magic of this structure is that it prevents tunnel vision. You're not just brainstorming solutions; you're stress testing them against context, causes, applications, and trade offs.

How long should the Cubing exercise take and what comes after?

Time matters here, and it changes depending on whether you're flying solo or working with a team.

• If you're doing it on your own, spend at least 15 minutes moving through the six Post-its, and try to write more than one answer per sheet to widen your options.
• If you're working with a team, give each member 10 minutes to fill out their own set.
• At the end, everyone reviews all the Post-its together to spot recurring ideas and surprising ones.

Two Post-its deserve extra attention during the review. The analyze sheet matters because actionable ideas are what keep creativity from becoming a treasure chest of ideas that just sit there. The pros and cons sheet matters because ignoring the warnings someone took the time to write down is, honestly, a waste.

What's the biggest mistake in brainstorming? Starting a session without a clear goal or question to answer, which leads to frustration and ideas that never get implemented.

Taking action is what creates real synergy inside a team and a project. The Post-its are only useful if they translate into movement.

Your challenge

Run the Cubing exercise on a project you're working on right now. Take a photo of your six Post-its, share it in the comments, and tell me which one revealed a blind spot you hadn't noticed before.