Bruce Honig, Chief Executive Facilitator at IdeaGuides

During today’s episode, we are speaking to Bruce Honig.Bruce is the chief executive facilitator (CEF) of Honig IdeaGuides, which focuses on boosting leaders to facilitate meetings that are productive, engaging, and inspiring to teams both on- and off-site and virtually. With 24 years of experience, Bruce was the creativity guru way before it became a thing. He is a cultivated facilitator and trainer, author of a good number of books on creativity,  a creator of board and card games around the same topic, a workshop facilitator, as well as a featured speaker in the Playful Creative Summit.  Meeting up virtually in the sunny Bay Area, Bruce tells me how we can get out of our rut and into a more creative thinking process. Bruce has come up with 4 stages in the creativity process known as B.E.T.A. He compares these creative stages to an individual’s fingerprint. As an individual, you must be aware of what’s unique to you, what generic stage you’re in, and what kind of environment harnesses your creativity. For Bruce, that awareness of his creativity helps him and others he is working with.How does Bruce use BETA to unlock the creativity process?   B- Blocked; Be aware of any internal and external factors blocking your fate. Internal factors would be assumptions you have of the world.E- Exercise; The only way to be creative is to go right ahead and just be creative! Exercise being creative by doing something you haven’t done before.T - Tools; For ideation to occur you need tools for Brainstorming, Focusing, and Decision- making.A - Awareness; Be aware of your generic creativity. Just like a toddler, walking is something that they are inherently born with the knowledge to do. When it comes to facilitating a group, ensure you’re not the one coming up with the new ideas, but you are steering your team to generate these ideas. A good facilitator will ensure the team has all the materials needed, and all resources that are there, and instructions on how to do it. Group creativity sessions follow the BETA process but you move beyond focusing and defining the problem to exploring ideas and solutions together.Embracing technology using tools like the breakout rooms in zoom, Mural for collaboration, is key to facilitating virtually.Other resources mentioned in this episode:Bruce’s Idea guides websiteDownloadable tools and resourcesLinkedIn Bruce the CEF SummaryOverall. Bruce teaches us how to use the BETA steps in cultivating the creativity that is inherently within us and as a facilitator how to achieve the same results in a group setting, moving beyond ideation to problem-solving. Listen in to hear the full interview and hear what else Bruce has planned. If you’d like to contact Bruce, you can reach Bruce on LinkedIn here, check out his facilitation processes on his website while you can download tools and resources which are available.