A person especially skilled at generating useful possibilities and fresh approaches.
Reach for it when praising creative range before execution roles have been assigned
As the group's idea person, Noor proposed three ways to reuse the empty depot.
| playful | |
|---|---|
| everyday |
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| professional | |
| formal |
playful
brainstormer
Fits when rapid group ideation is the person's useful contribution
Careful Brainstormer can trivialize disciplined research behind the ideas.
professional
conceptualizer
Fits when abstract possibilities need to be shaped into coherent concepts
Careful Conceptualizer is technical and awkward in warm team praise.
professional
creative thinker
Fits when original thought is the strength without implying a team role
Careful Creative thinker may focus on art or theory rather than a stream of practical proposals.
professional
Fits when the person turns novelty into adopted change
Careful Innovator implies implementation or impact that an idea person may not yet have.
formal
Fits when credit for the first conception must be clear
Careful Originator fits one idea and says little about repeated ideation.
formal
Fits when far-reaching direction matters more than numerous suggestions
Careful Visionary overstates foresight when the person mainly supplies workable options.
team's idea person
The team's idea person kept a notebook of questions from every site visit.
natural idea person
A natural idea person still benefits from a partner who tests assumptions.
resident idea person
Their resident idea person turned a storage problem into a modular display.
Keep in mind
Some dictionaries list this as idea man; idea person keeps the same meaning in inclusive wording.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Updated
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