Purdue University Problem Brainstorming Essay
Purdue University Problem Brainstorming Essay
Ideas that Changed the World
Problem Brainstorming
“Patience,” an old saying goes, “is a virtue.” This week you will be applying the slow hunch to your own life. Begin by identifying a problem of some kind in your personal or professional life that stands in need of a solution. This could be something as mundane as figuring out how to fix a leaky faucet within a fixed budget, or it can be something as significant as finding a new home or buying a new car.
Spend several days thinking about how you can tackle the problem at hand. Along the way, you will be writing a “mini journal” in which you record and monitor your day-to-day progress towards developing a solution. As new ideas come to mind, write them down. If you do research, make note of it and provide the details. If an idea turns out to be unfeasible, make note of it and explain why. At the end of your journal, you should include a short reflection essay in which you reflect on the progress you’ve made during you rbrainstorming period. How did taking your time influence the quality of your thinking? Did building on each day’s thoughts improve your thinking?
Note: you should spent at least three days on this assignment. As such, this is not an assignment that can be completed at the last minute or done in one sitting. You should give yourself plenty of time to brainstorm and let your mind ruminate.
Tip: Although the slow hunch is more of a process than a moment, there are factors that can “speed up” the development of a solution. The presence of an open and interconnected environment is one such factor. The more minds working together, the faster things will progress. Just imagine working on a puzzle by yourself versus working on it with a group of friends. Which is faster? For your assignment, you might consider soliciting input from friends, family, or even your classmates.
Your essay must be written following APA Guidelines. It should be 2-3 pages in length, not including your title page and references.
