One day, my wife Lisa and I were driving together on our way to the church. Lisa was getting ready to lead a day of creative brainstorming with all the ladies on staff, focused on upcoming women’s event.

Lisa asked me about my thoughts on creative brainstorming, and I began to unpack my thoughts on the subject. I shared with her that in a brainstorming session, I am always looking for the sparks that have the potential to be a creative flame. As, Josh Linker puts it, “an idea is like a spark.” Following that line of thinking, Dante Alighieri, a major Italian poet of the late middle ages said, “From a little spark may burst a flame.” It is all about the idea.

Our conversation continued, and I laid out the types of people who are often found in and are essential to the life and success of the creative idea becoming a reality, ready to inspire, innovate, and bring expression into the environment in which the creative flame is carried. So, the following is what I shared with Lisa and I think is a helpful tool in the creative process.

There are four types of people needed in the creative process and a fifth type that should be avoided at all costs. The four are Generators, Expanders, Refiners, and Implementers.

GENERATORS
The Generators are the people the “generate” lots of creative ideas. Although not all their ideas are brilliant, there is typically a multitude of them, and usually, there are a few sparks that have the potential for combustion. Generators tend to think without boundaries or restrictions. Generators need the right environment for ideas to flow. Setting up a space that stimulates creativity will encourage the flow of potential genius. Provide resources that will stimulate creative thought. Simple tools like crayons, markers and moldable clay can open up the opportunity for ignition of a fabulous idea.

EXPANDERS
Expanders are the people who may also have a lot of creative ideas but thrive on helping a spark catch flame. I love the show “Duel Survival.” It features two guys, placed in various survival situations, where they are required to use all their skills to survive until they find a way out of the geography where they are stranded. I love watching their various techniques of starting a fire. Usually, one survivor creates some contraption out of different materials that they have salvaged to ignite a small burning ember in what looks like a bird’s nest. The other survivor blows on the ember, while at the same time shielding it from the wind until it is a small flame. In a similar way, the Expander fosters a creative spark into a more defined idea by breathing into it. The Expander can often be heard saying “Yes and…”, “that is good, and you could…”, either drawing more out of the idea or adding to it. Expanders have the ability to add depth, texture, and substance to the creative spark until it is a small flame of potential.

REFINERS
Then there are the Refiners. These people are vital to the creative process. They tend to be more concrete in their thinking. Refiners determine if and how a creative concept can happen. These people tend to be concerned with the logistics, finances, legalities, etc. of the creative idea. As a warning, be careful about having Refiners in the creative brainstorming session. When creative sparks begin flying, Refiners get nervous. They see every spark as a potential flame that will need managing. Another reason you want to be careful of a Refiners involvement in creative brainstorming is the threat of drowning creativity. If you put to much structure to a spark too soon, it can extinguish the spark before it has a chance to catch fire. With that said, Refiners are vital to the creative process in bringing reality and clarity to the creative idea. As an individual who tends to flourish in the Generator/Expander world, I have found that many of my great ideas cannot and don’t happen unless I have some strong Refiners on my team.

IMPLEMENTERS
The last group that is vital to the creative process are the Implementers. These are the people who can take content, after it has been through the creative process, and manage the execution. Like an Olympic torch carrier, they transport the flame from one location to another. The role of Implementer is vital in a multi-site church like Christ Fellowship, where the same program, creative element, and experience is reproduced at all locations at the same time. The Implementers own the creative flame as their own and make sure that it is presented with the passion and intention of the creative team.

Every year at Christ Fellowship, we do three days of Christmas services leading up to Christmas day. We put a lot of effort and energy into making our Christmas services fresh, inspiring and highly creative. The creative brainstorming usually happens several months before, during the summer. A room full of creatives spends the day throwing ideas up on the board seeing what will stick. Generators and Expanders work together to find that one idea and fan it into a flame. Over the next four to five months, Refiners are working with the Generators and Expanders to bring resource and logistics to make the flame a thriving fire ready to be delivered to the church. All this is wonderful, but if there are not effective Implementers of the fire to each one of our locations, the execution can take some of the heat out of the fire. When all four groups are working together in unity, a creative spark becomes a fire that dances, inspires, and brings a sense of awe and excitement in the execution.

Oh, there is that fifth group that I mentioned should be avoided in the creative process. They are the Quichers! These people seem to carry a fire extinguisher where ever they go. They carry an “it can’t be, shouldn’t be, won’t be done” attitude that can dampen any potential for a creative spark to take place. Protect the creative process from these people at all costs.