Difference between revisions of "Disney Method"

Latest revision as of 14:02, 2 April 2024

Type				Team Size
Me, Myself and I	Group Collaboration	The Academic System	Software	1	2-10	11-30	30+

What, Why & When

Disney Method is a fairly simple (group) brainstorming technique that revolves around the application of different perspectives to any given topic. One person or a group comes up with ideas, then envisions their implementation and finally reflects upon their feasibility in a circular process. The Disney Method may be used to come up with ideas for projects or products, to solve problems and conflicts, to develop strategies and to make decisions. The method was invented by Walt Disney who thought of a movie not only as a director, but also as an audience member and a producer to come up with the best possible result.

Goals

Productive brainstorming
Understanding for other perspectives
Strong team spirit

Getting started

The Disney method process is circular. A group of people (ideally five or six) is split into three different roles: the Dreamers, the Realists, the Critics.

The Disney Method process

The Dreamers...

try to come up with new ideas
are creative and imaginative and do not set themselves any limits
everything is possible!
Guiding questions: Which ideas come to mind? What would be an ideal solution to the problem?

The Realists...

think about what needs to be done to implement the ideas
are practical and realistic
Guiding Questions: How does the idea feel? How could it be implemented? Who should do it and at what cost?

The Critics...

look at the idea objectively and try to identify crucial mistakes
are critical, but constructive - they do not want to destroy the ideas, but improve them constructively.
Guiding Questions: What was neglected by the Dreamers and Realists? What can be improved, what will not work? Which risks exist?

Each role receives a specific area within a room, or even dedicated rooms or locations, that may also be decorated according to the respective role. The process starts with the Dreamers, who then pass on their ideas to the Realists, who pass their thoughts on to the Critics. Each phase should be approx. 20 minutes long, and each phase is equivalently important. After one cycle, the Critics pass back the feedback to the ideas to the Dreamers, who continue thinking about new solutions based on the feedback they got. Every participant should switch the role throughout the process (with short breaks to 'neutralize' their minds) in order to understand the other roles' perspectives. The process goes on for as long as it takes, until the Dreamers are happy about the ideas, the Realists are confident about their feasibility and the Critics do not have any more remarks.

A fourth role (the neutral moderator) may be added if the process demands it. He/she is then responsible for starting and ending the process and moderating the discussions. The method may also be applied by an individual who goes through the process individually.

Links & Further reading

Sources:

Tools Hero - Walt Disney Method
Arbeit Digital - Walt-Disney-Methode
Karrierebibel - Disney Methode: Denkblockaden überwinden
Impulse - Walt Disney Methode

YouTube MTTM Animations - The Disney Strategy
A video that (in a nicely animated matter, with dreamy guitar music) explains the method.

You might also be interested in 'Saving Mr. Banks', a movie starring Tom Hanks that focuses on Walt Disney.

The author of this entry is Christopher Franz.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-== Why & When ==
+{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: center; width: 100%"
-- brainstorming technique that revolves around the acknowledgement of different perspectives on any topic
+! colspan = "4" | Type !! colspan = "4" | Team Size
-- may be used to come up with new ideas, solve problems and conflicts, develop strategies, make decisions
+|-
-- a fairly simple approach to (group) brainstorming
+|[[:Category:Me, Myself and I|Me, Myself and I]] || '''[[:Category:Group Collaboration|Group Collaboration]]''' || [[:Category:The Academic System|The Academic System]]  || [[:Category:Software|Software]] || [[:Category:Team Size 1|1]] || '''[[:Category:Team Size 2-10|2-10]]''' || '''[[:Category:Team Size 11-30|11-30]]''' || [[:Category:Team Size 30+|30+]]
-- invented by Walt Disney who thought of a movie not only as a director, but also as an audience member and a producer
+|}
+== What, Why & When ==
+'''Disney Method is a fairly simple (group) [[Glossary|brainstorming]] technique''' that revolves around the application of different perspectives to any given topic. One person or a group comes up with ideas, then envisions their implementation and finally reflects upon their feasibility in a circular process. The Disney Method may be used to come up with ideas for projects or products, to solve problems and conflicts, to develop strategies and to make decisions. The method was invented by Walt Disney who thought of a movie not only as a director, but also as an audience member and a producer to come up with the best possible result.
-== Goal(s) ==
+== Goals ==
-- come up with a wide range of new ideas
+* Productive brainstorming
-- critically reflect on these ideas from different perspectives
+* Understanding for other perspectives
-- assess them in the frame of possibilities and thus make brainstorming enormously productive
+* Strong team spirit
-- strengthen team spirit
+== Getting started ==
+The Disney method process is circular. A group of people (ideally five or six) is split into three different roles: the Dreamers, the Realists, the Critics.
-== Getting started ==
+[[File:Disney Method.png|450px|thumb|right|The Disney Method process]]
-- there are three roles:
-* Dreamers
-Creative and Imaginative, see limitless opportunities
-Questions: What comes to mind? What would be ideal?
-* Realists
+The '''Dreamers'''...
-looks at practical possibilities to check whether an idea is really feasible
+* try to come up with new ideas
-Questions: How does the idea feel? How could it be implemented? Who should do it and at what cost?
+* are creative and imaginative and do not set themselves any limits
+* everything is possible!
+* Guiding questions: ''Which ideas come to mind? What would be an ideal solution to the problem?''
-* Critics
+The '''Realists'''...
-looks at the idea objectively and tries to (constructively) identify crucial mistakes - not to destroy the idea, but to improve it
+* think about what needs to be done to implement the ideas
-Questions: What was neglected? Is this realistic? What can be improved, what will not work? Which risks exist?
+* are practical and realistic
-* (a fourth role may be added) neutral observer, who may serve as a moderator
+* Guiding Questions: ''How does the idea feel? How could it be implemented? Who should do it and at what cost?''
-- neutral observer may start the process
+The '''Critics'''...
-- one person goes from Phase 1 (Dreamer) to Phases 2 (Realist) and 3 (Critic)
+* look at the idea objectively and try to identify crucial mistakes
-- or a group is distributed among these roles and then switches throughout the process - every person should take up each role at some point
+* are critical, but constructive - they do not want to destroy the ideas, but improve them constructively.
-- each role inhabits one spot in the room (or different rooms for each role) - it may also be more diverse: the dreamer goes for a walkl, the realist works at his desk, the critic seeks a quiet spot to reflect
+* Guiding Questions: ''What was neglected by the Dreamers and Realists? What can be improved, what will not work? Which risks exist?''
-- each role is just as important as the others
-- by switching roles with a little break in between, every person can understand the other perspectives which strengthens the team
-- when the critic is done, the process begins again - the current idea is given back to the dreamer who continues to spin up ideas
+Each role receives a specific area within a room, or even dedicated rooms or locations, that may also be decorated according to the respective role. '''The process starts with the Dreamers, who then pass on their ideas to the Realists, who pass their thoughts on to the Critics.''' Each phase should be approx. 20 minutes long, and each phase is equivalently important.
+After one cycle, the Critics pass back the feedback to the ideas to the Dreamers, who continue thinking about new solutions based on the feedback they got. Every participant should switch the role throughout the process (with short breaks to 'neutralize' their minds) in order to understand the other roles' perspectives. The process goes on for as long as it takes, until the Dreamers are happy about the ideas, the Realists are confident about their feasibility and the Critics do not have any more remarks.
-- as soon as the critic does not have any more questions, the realist is confident that the idea is feasible and the dreamer is happy about the idea, the result is optimal
+A fourth role (the neutral moderator) may be added if the process demands it. He/she is then responsible for starting and ending the process and moderating the discussions. The method may also be applied by an individual who goes through the process individually.
-- the process goes as long as necessary to achieve a satisfying result - may be ended by the neutral observer
 == Links & Further reading ==
-Sources:
+''Sources:''
-https://www.toolshero.com/creativity/walt-disney-method/
+* Tools Hero - [https://www.toolshero.com/creativity/walt-disney-method Walt Disney Method]
-https://arbeitdigital.de/wirtschaftslexikon/kreativitaetstechniken/walt-disney-methode/
+* Arbeit Digital - [https://arbeitdigital.de/wirtschaftslexikon/kreativitaetstechniken/walt-disney-methode/ Walt-Disney-Methode]
-https://karrierebibel.de/disney-methode/
+* Karrierebibel - [https://karrierebibel.de/disney-methode/ Disney Methode: Denkblockaden überwinden]
+* Impulse - [https://www.impulse.de/management/selbstmanagement-erfolg/walt-disney-methode/3831387.html Walt Disney Methode]
 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQOnsVSg5VQ YouTube MTTM Animations - The Disney Strategy]
-A video that (in a nicely animated matter, with dreamy guitar music) explains the method.
+<br/> A video that (in a nicely animated matter, with dreamy guitar music) explains the method.
 You might also be interested in 'Saving Mr. Banks', a movie starring Tom Hanks that focuses on Walt Disney.
 ----
 __NOTOC__
-[[Category:Skills_and_Tools]]
+[[Category:Hacks, Habits & Tools]]
+[[Category:Group Collaboration]]
+[[Category:Team Size 2-10]]
+[[Category:Team Size 11-30]]
+The [[Table_of_Contributors| author]] of this entry is Christopher Franz.