Crazy Eights

Introduction

Crazy Eights is a rapid ideation technique often used in product management to generate a broad range of ideas and solutions to a problem. It’s part of the Design Sprint process, and it’s used to stimulate creative thinking and break out of conventional solution paths.

When to Use This Pattern

This pattern is particularly effective during the brainstorming phase of product development, when trying to come up with innovative solutions for a problem. It can be used in the context of new features, user experience design, process improvements, or any scenario where diverse thinking can be beneficial.

Benefits of Using This Pattern

Crazy Eights helps foster creative thinking, breaks through decision-making bottlenecks, and generates a large number of ideas in a short time. It encourages participants to think beyond obvious solutions, leading to innovative product features or strategies.

Potential Drawbacks

As a rapid ideation technique, Crazy Eights may not allow for deep exploration of each idea. It also requires a certain level of facilitation to ensure that the process remains focused and productive.

Key Steps in Implementing This Pattern

1. Define the Problem: Clearly articulate the problem or challenge you’re trying to address.

2. Prepare Your Workspace: Each participant needs a sheet of paper. Fold the paper twice to create eight rectangles (representing eight sections).

3. Set a Timer: The essence of Crazy Eights is speed. Set a timer for eight minutes – one minute for each idea.

4. Generate Ideas: Each participant should quickly sketch one idea in each section of their paper. The goal is to generate eight distinct ideas within the eight minutes.

5. Share and Discuss: After the eight minutes, each participant shares their ideas with the group. Discussion follows to understand each concept better.

6. Vote: Participants vote on the ideas they believe are most promising. The most popular ideas can then be developed further or tested.

7. Refine and Iterate: The chosen ideas are refined, developed further, and potentially used as the basis for prototype development or further exploration.

Real-Life Examples

Companies like Google and Spotify use Crazy Eights in their Design Sprints to stimulate creativity and speed up the ideation process.

Tips for Successful Implementation

Encourage participants to focus on breadth rather than depth of ideas, to move quickly, and not to judge or discard any idea during the ideation phase. The aim is to stimulate creativity and promote out-of-the-box thinking.

Conclusion

Crazy Eights is a powerful tool in product management for stimulating creativity and rapid ideation. It can lead to innovative solutions and features that might not emerge from more conventional brainstorming techniques.

Related Patterns

Crazy Eights is often used in conjunction with other Design Sprint techniques such as Storyboarding and Prototype Development.

Resources for Further Reading

• “Sprint: How to Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas in Just Five Days” by Jake Knapp.