NAMING is one of the most popular techniques in Ideation "séances".
First, I want you to know that I like calling the Ideation sessions, "séances", because in a way, I find many similarities between (not that I attended ever a séance, but movie thing, you know), like:
-a preparation or sequence is needed,
-a predisposition is needed,
-one has to be relaxed,
-there is a medium or moderator who guides through the process of idea generation,
-one you see the ghost or the muse, you're a believer!
-etcetera
I use and recommend to insert a Naming technique in all Ideation sessions. Everybody loves this technique, which basically consists of.....giving a name to something (a new company, a product, a technology,...).
NAMER professionals are at the summit of Ideation and Creativity process. In the process of choosing a NAME for something or somebody, one has to pass through many stages to finally produce a NAME. It is a very difficult creativity work since your only result is a bunch of letters (not a spot, or a painting, or a project).
If one tries to name, let us say a new product in the pharmaceutical industry, many things have to play in the choice: has to be catchy but elegant, remind the active ingredient or company, not to remind a bleach or fairy liquid, has a global sound,...And in all this process of searching there is, as in no other ideation search, a constant and fast process of trial-and-error.
In fact, it is after all the methods based in Concept Association by De Bono (Creativity workout book, e.g.), my second option for PRACTISING lateral thinking:
Try to NAME things around you: on your way to work, while watching TV,...
Try to find funny meanings to acronyms
Try to find catchy acronyms to projects or studies, etc
I recommend the technique to be placed after a brainstorming or concept-bridging or some other OPEN technique, in order for a preparation of a Solution generation or some other CLOSED technique further in the session.
A funny thing to name can consist of picking some Company's has-been trade mark and re-name it.
It is the switching open/close effort (generate/yield) that helps the brain for a further solution generation. It is just a matter of warm-up exercise in lateral thinking (usually with a bit of humor included).
Naming forces to close up and yield a result, while the Brainstorming only generates and casts ideas.
Hope this is useful.
