When Ideas Simply Refuse to Come
Imagine you are sitting in a meeting room. In three days, your company is celebrating its 25th anniversary, and you have been asked to come up with ideas for the celebration. Something special, something memorable. Your boss said: "Get creative." So there you are. Pen in hand, blank paper in front of you. And in your head? Nothing. Complete silence. You think of balloons, cake, a speech. But that is not special. That is standard. That is what everyone does.
Or picture a different situation: you are self-employed and want to launch a new product. You have a rough idea, but you are stuck. You keep going in circles, thinking about the same things over and over, and at some point you wonder: is this really good enough? Is there something better out there?
Everyone knows these moments. Whether you work in an office, a workshop, or at your own desk. Creativity on demand does not work. But what if you had someone who could instantly deliver ten fresh ideas? Who thinks from a completely different angle? Who never gets tired and never considers any idea stupid? That is exactly what AI can do. And in this article, I will show you how to use it as your personal creative partner.
Brainstorming with AI: A Creative Partner That Never Gets Tired
Brainstorming (the process of collectively generating ideas without immediate judgment) is something most people know from their working lives. You sit down with colleagues and everyone shouts out whatever comes to mind. In theory, that sounds great. In practice, it often looks different: the loud voices dominate, some people hold back, and after ten minutes the suggestions start repeating.
AI fundamentally changes this game. Think of AI as a brainstorming partner that has an infinite supply of ideas, never takes offense, and never holds back a suggestion because it might sound embarrassing. You can think completely freely with AI, without any fear of judgment.
A simple example: you are planning an open house event for your woodworking shop and need ideas to attract visitors. Your prompt could look like this: "I run a woodworking shop and I am planning an open house event. Give me 15 creative ideas to excite visitors. Consider families, business clients, and young people who might be interested in an apprenticeship."
AI does not just deliver the obvious ideas like a factory tour and coffee. It might suggest: a live workshop where children build a small wooden toy, an exhibition of the most unusual customer projects, speed-dating for apprenticeship candidates, or a "from tree to table" presentation showing the entire journey of a piece of furniture.
The beauty of it: you do not have to implement every idea. You pick the ones that fit you and your budget. AI is the idea generator, you are the decision maker. And if you like an idea but it is not quite right yet, you simply say: "I like the children's workshop idea. Develop it further: what materials do I need, how much time should I plan, and how do I turn it into something parents will share on social media?"
This way, a single keyword becomes a well-thought-out concept. Step by step, in dialogue with AI. That is brainstorming on a whole new level.
From One Idea to Many Variations: Multiplying Creativity
Often the problem is not that you have no idea at all. It is that you have only one and you do not know if it is the best. You cling to that single thought and cannot move forward. It is like cooking: you always make the same recipe because it works. But maybe there is a variation that tastes even better.
AI is excellent at taking a single idea and developing it in many directions. Let us take an example from everyday office life: you need to write a company newsletter and have chosen "sustainability in the office" as your topic. Good, but what exactly? Your prompt: "I am writing a company newsletter about sustainability in the office. Give me ten different angles from which I could approach this topic. From serious to humorous, from practical to surprising."
AI might suggest: an interview with the cleaning staff about office waste, a self-experiment called "one week without printouts," a top-ten list of the biggest energy wasters in the office, a comparison with sustainability practices of a Japanese company, or a column written from the perspective of the office printer. Suddenly you do not have one topic, you have ten. And at least three of them will inspire you.
This technique works in every area. As a freelancer developing a new offering: "I am a yoga teacher and I want to offer a new course. Currently I teach classic Hatha yoga. Give me ten variations for new course formats that appeal to different target groups." As a hobby craftsperson: "I have old Euro pallets and want to build furniture from them. Give me 15 project ideas, sorted by difficulty level."
The trick is: you give AI a starting point and ask it to think broadly. Not deeper into the one idea, but wider. More options, more variations, more possibilities. After that, you can still select the best one and go deeper.
A helpful prompt for this is: "Take this idea and create ten variations. Five of them should be realistic and immediately actionable. Three should be unusual and surprising. Two should be completely crazy and bold." This gives you a healthy mix of the doable and the inspirational.
Perspective Shifts: Seeing Through Different Eyes
One of the biggest creativity killers is tunnel vision. You always see a problem from the same perspective, namely your own. That is human and completely normal. But it limits your range of solutions.
AI can help you consciously shift perspectives. It works like a role-play: you ask AI to look at a problem from the viewpoint of different people. And suddenly, aspects emerge that you would never have thought of on your own.
An example: you own a small cafe and are considering whether to introduce a lunch menu. Your prompt: "I run a small cafe and I am considering whether to offer a lunch menu. Look at this decision from five different perspectives: as a regular customer, as a kitchen employee, as an accountant, as the neighboring restaurant owner, and as a supplier."
The regular customer is excited about more choices. The kitchen employee wonders if the equipment is sufficient. The accountant calculates the costs. The neighboring restaurant owner sees competition. The supplier sees an opportunity for larger orders. Five perspectives that give you a much more complete picture than your own viewpoint alone.
Perspective shifts also work for personal decisions. Considering a career change? "Look at a career change at age 45 from the perspective of a career counselor, a financial planner, a psychologist, and someone who has actually done it." Each perspective illuminates different aspects: opportunities, risks, emotional factors, practical experiences.
This technique is also perfect for teamwork. The next time you are stuck in a meeting, try this approach: have AI look at the problem from the perspective of your customers, your competitors, and your newest employees. You will be surprised how many new ideas emerge.
By the way, perspective shifting is not an AI invention. In creativity research, this method has existed for a long time. It is called "Six Thinking Hats" (a method by Edward de Bono where you consciously adopt different thinking roles). AI simply makes it much easier because you do not need six different people, just one good prompt.
Decision Support: Pro-Con Analyses with AI
Having ideas is one thing. Choosing the right one is another. Maybe you know this feeling: you have three good options and simply cannot decide. You weigh things up, think it over, sleep on it, and the next morning you are just as uncertain as before.
AI cannot free you from your decisions. But it can help you think more clearly. A proven tool for this is the pro-con analysis (systematically listing arguments for and against an option).
An example: you are considering whether to switch to a new booking system in your company. Your prompt: "Create a detailed pro-con analysis for switching from our current Excel booking system to a cloud-based booking software. Consider costs, time investment, employee acceptance, data security, and long-term scalability."
AI delivers a structured analysis with clear arguments on both sides. And unlike your own deliberation, it does not forget important aspects. You might think primarily about costs, but AI also reminds you about training requirements, the transition period, and the question of what happens with historical data.
You can take the analysis a step further: "Now weight each argument on a scale of 1 to 10 by its importance for a company with 15 employees and a limited IT budget." This gives you not just a list, but a prioritized decision-making foundation.
It gets especially interesting when you want to compare multiple options at once: "Compare three options for our team-building event: outdoor climbing park, cooking workshop, and escape room. Rate each option by cost, team building potential, fun factor, organizational effort, and inclusivity." AI creates a comparison matrix that you can immediately use as a decision template for your team.
Important to remember: AI does not make the decision for you. It provides the foundation so you can decide better. It is like a good consultant: they show you all sides, but the choice is yours.
Overcoming Creative Blocks: When Nothing Seems to Work
Creative blocks are real. There are days when every thought feels like chewing gum: sticky, sluggish, and somehow going nowhere. This does not only affect artists and writers. In everyday office work, you sometimes get stuck too. The project report that simply will not start. The product idea that refuses to take shape. The solution to a problem that has been nagging you for weeks.
AI can break through creative blocks in several ways. The first and simplest: it gives you a starting point. Often the hardest thing is not the thinking itself, but the beginning. When you have a blank page in front of you, the first sentence is the most difficult. Simply ask AI for an opening: "Give me five possible opening sentences for a project report about the introduction of a new inventory management system." Once you have a beginning, your own thoughts often start flowing naturally.
The second method: random impulses. In creativity research, this is called "Random Input" (deliberately introducing a random thought to break up stuck thinking patterns). Try this prompt: "I am stuck finding ideas for a new product at my flower shop. Give me ten completely random terms from different fields and explain for each one how it could lead me to a new product idea."
AI might give you: "space station," "children's birthday party," "night shift," "museum," or "rainy day." And then it explains: "space station" could inspire you to offer flower arrangements in floating vases. "Night shift" could become a flower delivery service for night owls. The point is not that every idea is perfect. The point is to untangle the mental knot.
The third method is reverse thinking: "What would be the worst possible solution to my problem?" Sounds strange, but it works surprisingly well. When you know what definitely would not work, you often also see what could work. Ask AI: "What would be the ten worst ideas for a company event? Then turn each bad idea into something positive."
And finally, AI also helps with a block that is often underestimated: perfectionism. When you think your idea has to be perfect right away, you block yourself. Ask AI for a deliberately imperfect first version: "Write me a rough, unpolished first draft. It does not have to be perfect, just a starting point." This lowers the barrier and gets you moving.
Hands-On Exercise: Generating Ideas for a Company Anniversary
Now it gets practical. In this exercise, you will use AI to develop creative ideas for a company anniversary, or alternatively for a new product launch. We will work with the prompt generator at optiprompt.io using the Creative variant.
Step 1: Open the prompt generator
Go to optiprompt.io and select the category LLM. Choose the Creative variant.
Step 2: Describe your situation
Enter something like: "Our company is turning 25 years old. We are a mid-sized company with 50 employees. I need creative ideas for an anniversary celebration that will excite both employees and customers. Budget: 5,000 euros. Give me 15 ideas, from classic to wild."
Step 3: Generate the prompt and use it
Copy the generated prompt into ChatGPT, Claude, or another AI tool. Look at the results: which ideas surprise you? Which ones are immediately actionable?
Step 4: Develop your favorite idea further
Choose the idea that appeals to you most and enter a new prompt: "Develop the idea [your choice] into a concrete concept. What do I need, how much does it cost, and how do I plan the schedule?"
Step 5: Shift perspectives
To wrap up, have AI review your concept from different angles: "Look at this anniversary concept from the perspective of a long-time employee, a new employee, an important customer, and an intern. What would each of them find great, and what could be improved?"
Reflection: How did it feel to receive so many ideas at once? Which method surprised you the most: the broad brainstorming, deepening a single idea, or the perspective shift? Try the same exercise with a new product launch or another project that you are currently working on.
Conclusion: AI Does Not Make You More Creative, but Freer in Your Thinking
In this article, you learned how to use AI as a creative partner. You now know how to take brainstorming to a new level with AI, develop many variations from a single idea, consciously shift perspectives, create structured pro-con analyses, and overcome creative blocks.
The most important takeaway: AI does not replace your creativity. It expands your thinking space. It gives you a push when you are stuck. It provides options when you only see one. And it helps you make better decisions because you are considering more perspectives.
In the next article, "Documentation and Knowledge Management," I will show you how to use AI to capture knowledge, document processes, and prepare information so that everyone on your team benefits. Because the best idea is worthless if it disappears in a drawer.
Until then: give it a try. Take a problem or task where you are currently stuck and start a brainstorming session with AI. You will be surprised how quickly new paths open up.