Book of the Month – September 2023

Great things don’t happen in a vacuum. But creating an environment for creative thinking and innovation can be a daunting challenge. How can you make it happen at your company? The answer may surprise you: gamestorming.
This book includes more than 80 games to help you break down barriers, communicate better, and generate new ideas, insights, and strategies. The authors have identified tools and techniques from some of the world’s most innovative professionals, whose teams collaborate and make great things happen. This book is the result: a unique collection of games that encourage engagement and creativity while bringing more structure and clarity to the workplace. Find out why — and how — with Gamestorming.

• Overcome conflict and increase engagement with team-oriented games
• Improve collaboration and communication in cross-disciplinary teams with visual-thinking techniques
• Improve understanding by role-playing customer and user experiences
• Generate better ideas and more of them, faster than ever before
• Shorten meetings and make them more productive
• Simulate and explore complex systems, interactions, and dynamics
• Identify a problem’s root cause, and find the paths that point toward a solution

“Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rulebreakers, and Changemakers is a transformative book penned by Dave Gray, Sunni Brown, and James Macanufo, first published in 2010. This engaging guidebook delves into the realm of creative problem-solving and presents a treasure trove of strategies for individuals and teams seeking to revolutionize their approaches to innovation and change.

In a world where traditional brainstorming often falls short, this book heralds a fresh perspective. It champions the concept of ‘gamestorming,’ a dynamic methodology designed to unlock creativity and ignite collaboration. The authors urge readers to break free from the confines of conventional thinking and embrace a new mindset that fosters ingenious solutions and dismantles obstacles impeding progress.

Dave Gray, Sunni Brown, and James Macanufo illuminate their insights with a tapestry of real-world instances where ingenious companies and leaders harnessed unconventional tactics to achieve extraordinary outcomes. These vivid case studies unearth recurring themes and principles, universally applicable to organizations spanning the spectrum of industries and sizes.

Central to the book is the resounding call to cultivate a culture that reveres innovation. It spotlights the significance of empowering individuals at every echelon to contribute their insights and viewpoints, thereby forging a collaborative environment primed for breakthroughs. This comprehensive guide delves into the multifaceted facets of transformation, ranging from visionary strategy and customer-centricity to talent cultivation and operational finesse.

‘Gamestorming’ emerges as a strategic compass, navigating readers through the intricate labyrinth of change. Within its pages, a toolkit brimming with pragmatic methodologies, frameworks, and actionable wisdom awaits. It beckons readers to embrace calculated risks, challenge conventions, and steer clear of complacency – the very essence of driving growth and prosperity amid the dynamic tapestry of today’s business landscape.”

Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rulebreakers, and Changemakers is an invigorating masterpiece by Dave Gray, Sunni Brown, and James Macanufo. This book is a vital compass for those in pursuit of groundbreaking strategies to challenge norms and catalyze innovation.

Through engaging anecdotes and real cases, the authors introduce readers to ‘gamestorming,’ an electrifying approach to problem-solving that breaks free from convention. This book urges individuals to dismantle traditional thinking and embrace creativity to birth revolutionary solutions.

Bolstered by vivid examples, ‘Gamestorming’ showcases pioneering companies and leaders who harnessed unique strategies to redefine success. These narratives offer both inspiration and universal principles for driving innovation.

The book underscores the essence of nurturing a culture that thrives on innovation, championing diverse perspectives and enabling all to contribute their ideas.

Crafted for accessibility, ‘Gamestorming’ equips readers with a toolkit of practical techniques, frameworks, and actionable insights, primed to reinvigorate any endeavor.

In a world of constant change, this book shines as a guiding light, illuminating the path to transformative change. If you crave inspiration, actionable advice, and triumphant change stories, this book is an essential and enlightening read.

Dave Gray is the founder and chairman of XPLANE Corp., an information design consultancy serving Fortune 100, NGO and government clients around the world, and co-founder of Vizthink, a global community dedicated to the use of visualization in all forms of learning and communication. An artist, journalist and information designer, he is passionate about applied creativity.

Sunni (Sun) Brown, M.P.A., is a social entrepreneur, best-selling author, keynote speaker, and expert meeting facilitator. She and her team have designed and led hundreds of multi-sensory group problem-solving sessions and she’s delivered countless interactive “playnotes” in environments around the world. She’s the author of Gamestorming and The Doodle Revolution and is currently authoring a book on collaboration as a force to unlock potential, strengthen relationships, and soften resistance to change. Her TED talk on doodling has drawn more than 1.6 million views on and her work has been featured in every major U.S. publication including The New York Times, The New York Post, The Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, WIRED, and Entrepreneur, as well as being featured twice on CBS Sunday Morning and on The TODAY Show. She was named one of the “100 Most Creative People in Business” and one of the “10 Most Creative People on Twitter” by Fast Company ands she served as the Innovator-in-Residence for MURAL. Sunni has trained for thousands of hours in inner sciences including meditation, Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, Right Use of Power, and a potent mind-body practice called Internal Family Systems.

James Macanufo is a senior consultant who works with clients around the world using visualization to help them unravel complex challenges, develop solutions and implement change.