The random input technique was developed by de Bono in the 1960s and was described by him as the “simplest of all creativity techniques”. It is particularly helpful when stakeholders are at an impasse during an ideation process, have just started on a greenfield site, or have an idea block. However, this method is just as helpful when searching for even completely different ideas that you have suspected so far, but have not yet found with the methods applied.
In this method, one links a term of the current idea search with a purely random term (or randomly selected image). Following the provocation method, the nonsense word PO should also be placed in front of the random term to make it clear that this is not a serious term, but a mental provocation.
With the help of this coincidental linking, it is almost always possible to leave the well-trodden paths of thought and to change perspectives to new, previously unseen approaches.
The method is based on the consideration that often new ideas are generated only if one is ready to take up by new – not with the ideas already grasped – information, in order to admit new ideas.
