Refining Ideas

Once you’ve come up with your ideas, our refining guidelines will help you get creative in developing them further.


Six guidelines are listed below, for the full set of thirteen guidelines we recommend downloading our PDF here.

  • WHAT DO I NEED AND HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE?

    Duration


    You can refine some ideas in just 5 minutes. 


    Refine as many ideas you want, using as many guidelines as needed, but it is better not to develop any one idea for more than 5 minutes at a time. 


    If you run out of steam, switch to a different guideline.


    What you need


    • One or more ideas for resolving your challenge
    • Yourself or a small group of colleagues
    • Post-it notes and pens 

  • WHAT DO I DO AND HOW DOES IT WORK?

    Develop and refine your ideas in three simple steps:  


    1. Choose an idea 


    Look at the ideas you've already created and select one you'd like to refine.


    2. Apply the guidelines


    Select a guideline, or several guidelines, and write down your thoughts on the post-it notes. 


    Don’t worry if these are fanciful and unrealistic. Non-sensical ideas tend to become sensible over time.  


    3. Keep refining


    Carry on developing your idea using the guidelines until you run out of ways to refine it.


    Use any refined or defined ideas that can form part of your action plan. If needed, pick another guideline, and repeat steps 2 and 3. 

THE REFINING GUIDELINES

Some of our refining guidelines are listed below as questions, along with examples of how they can be applied to a coaching challenge. Choose one of the guidelines to begin boosting your ideas. For the full set of thirteen guidelines, download our PDF here.

 

COACHING CHALLENGE EXAMPLE 

 

‘A swimmer has asked for strategies to reduce her tiredness. She has not reported a lack of sleep, her nutrition and diet are balanced, and she undergoes regular recovery processes.’  

HOW COULD YOU INCREASE FEEDBACK RELATED TO THE IDEA AS PART OF YOUR ACTION PLAN? 

Set the swimmer the task to take personal responsibility for their fatigue and ask them to develop an action plan to reduce their fatigue through their daily activities.  

 

Ask the swimmer to start with a goal and outline the steps needed to reach it. 

HOW COULD YOU SIMPLIFY THE ACTION PLAN BY REMOVING SOMETHING FROM IT?

Review the current training plan to spot possible causes of stress or fatigue. In the plan, create targets to reduce or remove the stress and fatigue.  

 

Run the plan past the swimmer and note down any benefits which appear.

HOW COULD YOU MAKE THE IDEA MORE RESPONSIVE TO DIFFERENT COACHING SITUATIONS?

Invite a coach from a different sport to work with the swimmer on land-based activities that focus on rest and recuperation.  


If the activities help reduce the swimmer’s fatigue, try adding them into future training plans.  

HOW CAN COACHES AND ATHLETES BE EMPOWERED TO IMPLEMENT THE IDEA THEMSELVES?

Find legitimate resources focussed on mindfulness techniques and make them available to the swimmer. 

 

Encourage them to use these tools and techniques before bed to improve sleep and focus. Track the impact of using the techniques over time. 

HOW COULD YOU MAKE THE IDEA MORE TRANSPARENT AND EASIER TO UNDERSTAND?

Encourage the swimmer to read about another sport and to think about their problem in a different context. 

 

Guide the swimmer to take note of the challenges the author writes about, and what they can learn from them. 

HOW COULD YOU MAKE THE IDEA WORK MORE HARMONIOUSLY WITH THE REST OF THE ACTION PLAN?

Show the swimmer training plans for other swimmers who have experienced similar challenges.  

 

Discuss approaches other athletes have taken and what could work for them. Take it one step further by linking the swimmer’s training to the training of the whole team or club that they belong to. 

  • MORE INFORMATION

    TRIZ was developed by Soviet inventor Genrich Altshuller and his colleagues in 1946, and is still evolving to this day. 


    For more information on TRIZ visit https://www.triz.co.uk  

  • HOW DOES IT WORK IN SPORT SPARKS?

    Sport Sparks uses the guidlines to help you refine your ideas in the app.


    Explore them by clicking the Sign In button on our website.

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