Crowdsourcing is the process of collaborative thinking and problem-solving either for the benefit of the entire group, or for the benefit of each of the group's members in rotational fashion. Many a brilliant soul who is otherwise profitably occupied will enter into a crowdsourcing platform or conversation out of sheer intellectual curiosity, hubris, or a desire to be a part of a greater mind; some of these wonderful participants simply jump into the fray faced by many project managers and business planners simply to keep their problem-solving skills sharp and at the ready.
In a world where everything seems so expensive, good relationships with peers, colleagues and crowdsourcing-friendly industry groups (and even generic groups, for some better, broader perspective) merely costs some time -- and the results of this coodinated brainstorming process can be wonderfully useful, rather than trying to think through a process or plan in a solitary vacuum.
The crowdsourcing mechanism not only provides for a variety of findings from individuals of different backgrounds, but it also has a synergistic element of interactivity which helps to more clearly refine and troubleshoot the group's findings.
Looked at for the "old school" perspective, crowdsourcing provides the leverage of FREE GENIUS. It is like having a virtual advisory staff. You just cannot overlook this tool
From my personal experience, I have found that the greatest Brainstorming groups can be found through the following platforms, listed from most crowd source-oriented to least crowd source oriented as of the date of this brief article:
1) Linked In - Feel free to join through my portal at
http://www.LinkedIn.com/in/douglascastle.
2) Quora - Feel free to join through my portal at
http://www.quora.com/Douglas-E-Castle
3) Pinterest - This one requires a bit more imagination and creativity to turn into a thought-provoking forum, but it's certainly worth a try. Again, feel free to join through my portal at
http://Pinterest.com/douglasecastle
There are many other crowdsourcing platforms and more specialized groups throughout the internet, Find a few and multiply your creativity, problem-solving ability, and pre-process troubleshooting. As a matter of self-preservation in a very challenging economy, it has become increasingly important to develop your network of outside contacts and relationships.
Crowd sourcing might just be your bonding agent and catalyst of choice in order to broaden the scope of your career opportunities, as well.
Douglas E. Castle
