--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nearly everyone in a major corporation…" description: "\"“Nearly everyone in a major corporation has participated in a brainstorming session in which, without knowing the customer’s needs, they were encourage..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/anthony-w-ulwick-126665_bad-idea_nearly-everyone-in-a-major-corporation-h_974559.jpg" --- # Nearly everyone in a major corporation has participated in… ![“Nearly everyone in a major corporation has participated in a brainstorming session in which, without knowing the customer’s needs, they were encouraged to generate hundreds of ideas and were told that there is no such thing as a bad idea. You can probably still picture walls of Post-It notes.” quote by Anthony W. Ulwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/anthony-w-ulwick-126665_bad-idea_nearly-everyone-in-a-major-corporation-h_974559.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/anthony-w-ulwick-126665_bad-idea_nearly-everyone-in-a-major-corporation-h_974559.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/anthony-w-ulwick-126665_bad-idea_nearly-everyone-in-a-major-corporation-h_974559.jpg) > ““Nearly everyone in a major corporation has participated in a brainstorming session in which, without knowing the customer’s needs, they were encouraged to generate hundreds of ideas and were told that there is no such thing as a bad idea. You can probably still picture walls of Post-It notes.”” [Anthony W. Ulwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-w-ulwick/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Brainstorming without customer focus yields many ideas but often irrelevant ones, leading to wasted effort. **In simple terms:** Ideas need real user relevance. Key Takeaway Focus ideas on user needs. Themes creativity brainstorming customer focus innovation Mood critical analytical Type advice process When to use this quote - product development - marketing strategy - team workshops Key Concepts design thinking ideation validation Questions to Reflect On - How can you integrate user insights early? - What methods ensure idea relevance? A Different Perspective May ignore practical constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-idea/) [Brainstorming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brainstorming/) [Brainstorming Session](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brainstorming-session-1019079/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Hundreds Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hundreds-ideas-1894834/) [Ideas Told](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-told-1815209/) [Participated Brainstorming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/participated-brainstorming-1894833/) ## Related quotes > [Generating diverse ideas requires being clear about the kind of input needed and creating multiple ways for diverse team members to share their ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-livermore/generating-diverse-ideas-requires-being-clear-about-the-kind-of-input/) [David Livermore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-livermore/) > [If the opportunity came my way, if somebody wanted me to look over a script or sit in a room in sort of like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-dini/if-the-opportunity-came-my-way-if-somebody-wanted-me-to-look-over-a/) [Paul Dini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-dini/) > [We're always pitching ideas and being told "no thank you." No offense taken, because I would so much rather be told the truth that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-j-abrams/we-re-always-pitching-ideas-and-being-told-no-thank-you-no-offense/) [J. J. Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-j-abrams/) > [I keep a list of TikTok ideas on my phone. I have hundreds of ideas. They can come from so many different places, fan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-mondo/i-keep-a-list-of-tiktok-ideas-on-my-phone-i-have-hundreds-of-ideas/) [Brad Mondo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-mondo/) > [The problem with most of the want-to-be authors is that they are unable to focus. Either they have no idea of where to begin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-subramanian/the-problem-with-most-of-the-want-to-be-authors-is-that-they-are/) [Ravi Subramanian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-subramanian/) > [“Maybe the key is that Big Ideas are Little Ideas but told in Big Ways?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-goldberg-sloan/maybe-the-key-is-that-big-ideas-are-little-ideas-but-told-in-big-ways/) [Holly Goldberg Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-goldberg-sloan/) > [Don't confuse being stimulating with being blunt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-walters/don-t-confuse-being-stimulating-with-being-blunt/) [Barbara Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-walters/) > [In a regular class I don't focus on the form, but I think that focus is helpful for brainstorming and coming up with ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-jo-campbell/in-a-regular-class-i-don-t-focus-on-the-form-but-i-think-that-focus/) [Bonnie Jo Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-jo-campbell/) > [Psychologists usually offer three explanations for the failure of group brainstorming. The first is social loafing: in a group, some individuals tend to sit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/psychologists-usually-offer-three-explanations-for-the-failure-of/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/if-at-first-the-idea-is-not-absurd-then-there-is-no-hope-for-it/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Two heads are definitely better than one and by sourcing ideas from each other, you have a better chance of coming up with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/two-heads-are-definitely-better-than-one-and-by-sourcing-ideas-from/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [“Writing isn't black magic. You just have to come up with an idea...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-ove-knausgard/writing-isn-t-black-magic-you-just-have-to-come-up-with-an-idea/) [Karl Ove Knausgård](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-ove-knausgard/) > [“Research tells us that brainstorming becomes more productive when it’s focused. As jazz great Charles Mingus famously said, “You can’t improvise on nothing, man;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-heath/research-tells-us-that-brainstorming-becomes-more-productive-when-it/) [Chip Heath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-heath/) > [“Osborn’s theory had great impact, and company leaders took up brainstorming with enthusiasm. To this day, it’s common for anyone who spends time in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/osborn-s-theory-had-great-impact-and-company-leaders-took-up/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [Held in the palms of thousands of disgruntled people over the centuries have been ideas worth millions - if they only had taken the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-hayes/held-in-the-palms-of-thousands-of-disgruntled-people-over-the/) [Robert M. Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-hayes/) ## More Bad idea quotes > [“In the parking lot, she drove and parked in a dark area with no other cars around. She reclined her seat, and listened to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/in-the-parking-lot-she-drove-and-parked-in-a-dark-area-with-no-other/) [Tao Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/) > [By the time I was seventeen, I was on my way to Hollywood and didn't look back. 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They produce middle-ground mush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/government-likes-committees-a-lot-committees-kill-all-the-really-good/) [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) > [It's not a bad idea to call this Cthulhuism & Yog-Sothothery of mine "The Mythology of Hastur" - although it was really from Machen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/it-s-not-a-bad-idea-to-call-this-cthulhuism-yog-sothothery-of-mine/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [More than any other personality trait, my mother seemed to be ruled by anger and sadness. She seemed to hate being a mother. Watching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merrill-markoe/more-than-any-other-personality-trait-my-mother-seemed-to-be-ruled-by/) [Merrill Markoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merrill-markoe/) > [“Sorry," he apologized. 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The unit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-hooper/jesus-chicago-kansas-city-denver-phoenix-l-a-and-seattle-plus-two/) [Kay Hooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-hooper/) > [“Civilization is an experiment, a very recent way of life in the human career, and it has a habit of walking into what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-wright/civilization-is-an-experiment-a-very-recent-way-of-life-in-the-human/) [Ronald Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-wright/) > [Idea-Advocacy Matrix highlights a couple of things: that good ideas need to be "sold" if they are ever going to see the light of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-daly/idea-advocacy-matrix-highlights-a-couple-of-things-that-good-ideas/) [John Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-daly/) > [“It is not a bad idea to get into the habbit of writing one's thoughts. It saves one having to bother anyone else with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-colegate/it-is-not-a-bad-idea-to-get-into-the-habbit-of-writing-one-s-thoughts/) [Isabel Colegate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-colegate/) > [“Medical research has revealed that in about one-tenth of the population, the liver processes alcohol differently, releasing a chemical messenger that creates the craving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaylie-jones/medical-research-has-revealed-that-in-about-one-tenth-of-the/) [Kaylie Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaylie-jones/) > [“Sometimes I have good ideas, sometimes I have bad ideas and sometimes I have colossally bad ideas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-cellier/sometimes-i-have-good-ideas-sometimes-i-have-bad-ideas-and-sometimes/) [Melanie Cellier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-cellier/) > [I have done conferences explaining that cloud is a bad idea. 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