You may be in this situation before. There are times when creativity is needed: Ideas are flowing, someone says a sentence like “We don’t have the time”, and flows stopped.

Dave Dufour developed a list called Fifty Phrases that Kill Creativity in the late 80s, to create an awareness not to kill off ideas – even if it is a bad one. As we hear on this saying – “bad idea generates good ideas”

Couple of common ones like:

# I don’t like the idea.
# I’m not saying you’re wrong but…
# You’re two years ahead of your time.
# Now’s not the right time.
# It isn’t in the budget.
# Can’t teach an old dog new tricks.
# Good thought, but impractical.
# Let’s give it more thought.
# We’ll be the laughingstock of the industry.
# Not that again.
# Where’d you dig that one up?
# We did alright without it before.
# It’s never been tried.
# Let’s put that one on the back burner for now.
# Let’s form a committee.
# It won’t work in our place.
# The executive committee will never go for it.
# I don’t see the connection.
# Let’s all sleep on it.
# It can’t be done.
# It’s too much trouble to change.
# It won’t pay for itself.
# It’s impossible.

There are fifty more. Have you heard of anything that stop you to brainstorm for an idea in a meeting?

Fifty Phrases that Kill Creativity – [Dave Dufour]