By Amber Alarid, JVA Consulting

As I mentioned in last week’s blog, this graduation season has given me a lot to think about in terms of the advice I received when entering college and then the career world, the advice I wish I had received and the advice I want to pass on to other young professionals. To make this collection of top advice for young professionals more fun and informative, I have enlisted the help of numerous JVAers who will share their best advice.

This week’s tip comes from Managing Associate, Western Colorado Office, Angie White. Angie’s advice is to recognize and utilize the power of brainstorming with others. This advice came out of a recent JVA brainstorming session in which I sought the advice of JVA peers, including Angie. Upon recognizing the instant success of the session in generating new and exciting ideas, Angie made a great suggestion that I share that advice with my readers and offered that as one of her top pieces of advice.

While brainstorming may sound easy enough, I have a few tips on how to make the most of your time-sharing ideas with peers.

Identify a specific problem or set of questions

Brainstorming works best when you have a specific goal in mind and tangible ways your peers can help. First share your goal, then share the problem that is preventing you from achieving it and/or the types of ideas you want your peers to contribute to your project. These questions will save time and ensure that everyone is on the same page.

Enlist the help of multiple people whenever possible

Even if the group size is small (say you and two coworkers), there are increased benefits to brainstorming with more than one person. Having multiple people present encourages dialogue and the generation of diverse ideas. This also alleviates any pressure a coworker might feel when having to come up with a slew of ideas alone.

Take careful notes and follow up immediately

The value of the brainstorming session is lost if you get back to your desk and forget key information or quotes. By recording thoughts and reactions in real time, you make it easier to think back on the session when you are implementing the ideas that came out of it. If someone has offered to send you something (like a link or a document), or to assist you in some specific way, it’s best to follow up immediately when you get back to your computer. Send an email, Doodle, Google doc or any other appropriate follow up to remind your coworkers and yourself of next steps while it’s still fresh in everyone’s mind.

Do you often brainstorm with a group? What makes the sessions most productive? Share your questions and ideas in the comments section below.