Edward De Bono On Creativity

Creative thinker Edward De Bono talks about creativity and thinking out of the box.

Leadership As A Creative Act

Why leave a cushy job for a challenging one? The need to engage the artist within, according to Harvard Business writers John Maeda and Becky Bermont. Read the complete story.

Staying Motivated

Whether your chosen medium is pictures or language, food or formulas, everyone has the capacity to be creative in their work. But we can often lose our motivation to create, making it difficult to stay focused and excited on a project. So how does one keep their creative well from drying up? Read this fantastic article by Kevin Cornell.

 [Via Navin on Creativegarh]

Happiness: Good For Creativity, Bad For Single-Minded Focus

Happy people are open to all sorts of ideas, some of which can be distracting.

Despite those who romanticize depression as the wellspring of artistic genius, studies find that people are most creative when they are in a good mood, and now researchers may have explained why: For better or worse, happy people have a harder time focusing. University of Toronto psychologists induced a happy, sad or neutral state in each of 24 participants by playing them specially chosen musical selections. To instill happiness, for example, they played a jazzy version of Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3. After each musical interlude, the researchers gave subjects two tests to assess their creativity and concentration. Read the complete article.

Night Owls Are More Creative

Not a morning person? Take solace — new research suggests that “night owls” are more likely to be creative thinkers.Scientists can’t yet fully explain why evening types appear to be more creative, but they suggest it could be an adaptation to living outside of the norm.

“Being in a situation which diverges from conventional habit — nocturnal types often experience this situation — may encourage the development of a non-conventional spirit and of the ability to find alternative and original solutions,” lead author Marina Giampietro and colleague G.M. Cavallera wrote in a study to be published in the February 2007 issue of Personality and Individual Differences. Read the complete article here.

 [Via Manoj on Creativegarh] 

Don’t Wait For Opportunities To Knock

In fact, find opportunities, hold them by the neck, drag them to your door, punch them hard, push them down, pull them by the collar and make them knock till the cows come back home. To get creative, don’t wait for problems to happen. Look around you and you will see there is still a lot to improve. There’s always around you a leaking faucet, a poem unwriten, a picture unclicked, a masterpiece unpainted, a child neglected, a recipe untried and a call unanswered. If you see problems, look at them as opportunities to find new ideas.

Add Humour To Work

Came across this very interesting article by Michael Kerr. Michael in this article outlines 130 ways to bring humour into the workplace and thus helping organisations embrace a creative attitude (something that we have been talking about lately).

Going On Your Own? Some Tips For You.

Having been a working-out-of-home-design-entrepreneur for close to four years now, I often get mails from many young writers and designers asking for advice and tips on what to expect and the do’s and dont’s. So, I thought it might be a good idea to write a post on this based on my personal experiences and what I’ve learnt from other SOHO entrepreneurs. 

Assuming that you are going on your own and will be working out of home, here are some quick tips on what to do and what not to do when there’s no assured monthly paycheck coming in.These tips are best applicable to writers but barring a point or two, these work for anyone who is looking at moving out of the corporate world and being his / her own boss. Read on.

1. Get a business card in place. It’s your ad / TVC / promotional leaflet / POP / resume rolled into one. Don’t waste money on letterheads, envelopes and other stuff. That can come in later after you’ve made some money.

2. Invest in a good computer / laptop that also comes with reliable service. Club this with a hi-speed, reliable internet connection and you are ready to rock and roll. Honestly, as much as many people will tell you, that’s all you need to start your home based writing business.

3. Get an official phone / mobile phone (if you have to travel) with a post-paid connection.

4. Don’t spend foolishly on office supplies. Fax machines, scanners, printers can wait.

5. Pick up any work, any. When you are starting off, don’t be choosy. Pick up anything closely related to writing / copywriting and do a good job of it.

6. When starting off, don’t let go off any work because the client is not paying you a lot. Atleast you have work. And that’s important.

7. Talk to friends. Write for them at a nominal cost. Ask friends, family and ex colleagues if they have any writing work for you. Ask them for references. Scratch corners and you’ll find something. Every extended family has atleast one businessman / woman. Convince them that you can write their brochures / leaflets / promotional collateral.

8. Your business and your need is bigger than your ego. Always keep that in mind.

9. Work for a ‘bigger’ / more established freelancer. Get work outsourced from him / her.

10. Over time, pick up one client on retainership. That eases the pressure and atleast gets some assured bread on the table every month.

11. Find a comfortable corner in your house which is ‘YOUR OFFICE’.

12. Get serious. When working out of home, the temptations are endless. The bed, the TV, the fridge are just 10 steps away. Put down a schedule and stick to it. And yes, enjoy the afternoon nap and the TV. These are benefits of working out of home, so avail of them.

13. Remember, everyone you meet is a potential client. Don’t be afraid of asking for business. One out of 10 proposals will work out.

14. Take a break everyday. Join a book-reading group / walking club / common-interest group. Sometimes the lack of professional human interaction can get to you when you’re working alone. Meet up with your clients / asociates / ex colleagues atleast once a week.

15. Network. Network. Network. Network. Network. Subscribe to common-interest groups online. Attend offline meets / networking events of your favourite groups. If your online group does not have an offline presence in your city, take the initiative to start one.

16. Work atleast 16 hours a day. Provide unmatched service. If you can solve a client’s problem at 3 in the night, he’ll swear by you.

17. Be professional in your dealings with clients. But remember, clients become fans if you can do something for them at a personal-professional level.

18. Invest in reference books related to your line of work. These are more important than fax machines.

19. Make a job list everyday. Understand the power of lists. And try to strike off everything in your list in a 24-hour day.

20. Stick to commitments of costs and timelines, come what may.

21. If you can’t handle lots of work, pass it on to someone who has the time. But DONT refuse work.

22. Exercise everyday. Take one short vacation every three months. File your returns every year.

23. When you make some money, invest in a comfortable desk with lots of drawers and a comfortable, ergonomically-designed chair.

24. And finally, don’t lose hope when business looks difficult to come by. Give yourself atleast 8 months to allow things to work out.

25. Drink plenty of water.

26. Honesty and openness still matter in business. [From KM] 

All the best!

~ Arun Verma

Good News? My foot!

Don’t Say You’re Not Creative

A few years ago, my mom bought a mop for cleaning the floor. Soon, she was using the floor mop – mind it, a floor mop – for clearing cobwebs from the ceiling. Very soon, she was using the floor mop for doing her daily exercise. And then one day she using the floor mop to keeping her bedroom door open by propping it against the door. And she says she isn’t ‘creative’.

Gautam, my investment banker friend says he is in a boring and ‘uncreative’ profession. Everyday he spends all his time thinking and implementing new ideas to invest his client’s money and give him maximum returns. And he says he isn’t creative.

Ajit, a 20 year old Engineering student and my neighbour uses his deodorant as a room fresher whenever his parents have to visit him. And he says he isn’t creative.

Sudhir, a friend, aiming to get his PhD in Inorganic Chemistry spends 14 hours a day finding solutions to avoid fungus on fruits. He has already found 3. And he says he isn’t creative.

The above mentioned people think that only writers and painters are ‘creative’. Photographers for them qualify as creative… homemakers don’t! Filmmakers qualify, teachers don’t. And based on this assumption, they’ve started thinking that they are not creative.

Creativity is about finding solutions. And that is something that we all are capable of. And saying or believing that we are not creative is one of the biggest creativity killers. Everyone is creative to some extent. Most people are capable of very high levels of creativity. Take children for example. Look at they way they play and imagine. But over the years, this creativity is suppressed by education.

So, all you need to do is pull yourself together and start finding solutions. You will soon discover that you are surprisingly creative. And if you’re already someone who finds solutions to everyday problems, please start considering yourself ‘creative’.

~ Arun Verma

Inspiring Others To Be Creative

My dad is a (as today’s generation would call it) ‘fuddy-duddy’ Chemistry professor in a university. Till 5 years ago when he retired, all that mattered to him was his research and his family (not necessarily in that order). He would come back from work, sit in the balcony, have tea with mom and then he would bury himself again in his research papers. 9 in the evening he would get up, watch the evening news, have his dinner, talk to us (mom, my bother and I), and call it a day.

Eleven years ago, his younger son (that’s me), a ‘conventional’ production engineer decided to join an unconventional profession after graduating. He agreed. And within six months of my joining a ‘glamorous and creative’ profession, he was a changed man. He started taking special interest in advertising. Started watching more TV (mostly for the ads) and whenever we would meet, he and I would have charged and animated discussions on advertising. He would tell me why he liked a particular ad, why he hated that one and would ask me of what the ‘big idea’ was behind a particular campaign. And soon, he was throwing ideas at me. “You know Arun, this ad should have been done this way.” “You need a bigger ad for a product like this… you have to have a big ad to show that you’re a big company, even if you’re small’. Yes, he was becoming an everyday creative person.

On one Sunday of the month, he would go to get his car serviced. While the mechanics replaced the old clutch plates and oil filters, he would read the Sunday paper. All fixed, he would come back home. Five years ago he discovered my love for scrap, for found material, for junk, for old auto parts. And then, on his regular trips to the mechanics, not only from his car, he would ask the service station for old auto parts that they didn’t need. “Mujhe chahiyae, mera beta iska lamp banayega”, (I want this, my son will make lamps of this) is what he would tell them. A few months later I visited him, and he proudly showed me all the ‘junk’ he had collected for me to make lamps out of. And not only that, he kept telling me how it would look the best if I fitted a bulb inside an oil filter and not on it.

We’re not a very demonstrative family, but I just went ahead and hugged him. For, this fuddy-duddy Chemistry professor – my dad had discovered and was showing his creative side to me, the second time in my lifetime.

He was pulled into conventional ‘creativity’ not because of his interest in ‘creativity’ but because of his interest in me and what I did. And over the years, he has learnt the art of creative appreciation.

The art of creative appreciation. And creative judgement. It’s up to each one of us ‘creative’ people to learn and teach. It’s up to us to inspire people, to demystify creativity for them and bring them into the fold. And for those who think they’re not creative, you just need to look around, find things that interest you, be inquisitive, make things better, find solutions, and soon, you’ll be appreciating creativity. And of course, creating.

~ Arun Verma

You Are An Everyday Creative Person

Ever used a deodorant as a room freshener when your girl was visiting your bachelor pad for the first time?

Ever used henna not only to paint your hands but also to give colour and bounce to your hair?

Ever used lemon to add that tang to your salads? And then also to give brass and copper, a new fresh look?

Then be assured, you are creative. And an everyday creative person!

Ever used a floor mop of all the things to remove cobwebs from the ceiling? Ever used a large trunk as a centre table or settee in your humble yet cosy home?

Ever designed your company logo using Microsoft Word – a software meant for lot of things… the last of them being designing logos?

Then, be proud, for you are an everyday creative person.

Ever fixed a leaking water pipe by tying an old cloth around it?

Ever wrote a letter to your dad on a crumpled brown shopping bag… just to prove a point that you’re broke?

You never thought of yourself as a writer but you did help your son write his first essay in school. Didn’t you?

Then, call yourself an everyday creative person.

Ever played a prank on your boss on April Fool’s Day? Ever used the door hinge to crack open a walnut? Ever used a bathroom slipper to squash a bug? Ever used a safety pin as an alternative for a broken button? Ever used an unconventional approach to negotiate a business deal? Ever used a broken mirror to cut an apple? Then you are creative.

We all are.

But that’s hard for many of us to swallow. Because conventional definitions don’t define `everyday creativity’ as creativity. For ages now, creativity is linked in our and everyone’s minds with poets, artists, inventors and people of that sort. But we all know, that’s not the truth.

Every job can be done creatively and every day can be lived creatively. But to change this perception, you need to change a little. Starting with thinking of yourself as a problem solver, a trouble shooter, an experimenter, a creative person. You need to use your imagination a little more and approach the world with passion and curiosity.

~ Arun Verma

How To Be Creative At Work

Besides delivering deliverables and meeting deadlines, one of the biggest expectations from employees in the 21st century workplace is to me “more creative.”

Now what does that mean? Are all employees expected to write ads, make radio jingles, produce power presentations in flash? Are employees expected to fill out forms in different coloured ink? Are they supposed to design their own desks?

No. Not at all!

What the management is looking for is for employees to approach common work practises in new ways. Making processes. Figuring out how to streamline operations. Even listening to customers. And maybe thinking of new products and features that meet his expectations. It also means means thinking out of the box, thinking the unconventional, which might sound ridiculous… but could possibly change the way business is done.

Undoubtedly, there’ll be tons of employees who’ll be saying that its NOT their job and would be shaking their heads wondering how to cope with this ‘creative’ expectation. Mainly because, so many employees have been in such restrictive environments for so long, doing ‘operational’ work… that coming up with alternative (read creative) thoughts can be a little frightening andintimidating.

For such people, there are thousands of companies who still believe in the conventional. Office starts at 9. Ends at 6. One lunch break in between. Loads of work. Work work work. Meetings. Deadlines. Everything but creativity. But then, in order to survive in the 21st century, dog eat dog, company eat company world, managements are beginning to realize that they must get those creative juices flowing.

Great! So, the creative juices need to flow. Can it be done overnight? No way! Creativty is a process that needs to be honed over days, months, years and lifetimes. So, the best way to start is by giving yourself time. But making an effort. At every given point in time.

Here’s some ideas to begin thinking creatively: Try these.

1. Leave your workstation:
In fact, leave your workplace for a quick stroll in the park, a quick lunch with your spouse, or even a walk down to the ground floor (or top floor, depending on where u are). Sitting at your desk endlessly can suffocate your creativity — because of the same colleagues, same walls, same environment, same coffee cups, same screensaver. And if it’s difficult to get out during office hours… maybe after calling it a day you might want to do something that is not related to what you do between 9 and 6. Doing this helps you see a bigger world around you. Much bigger than your workplace. Sometimes, you’ll find the best of solutions, when you take your mind of the problems.

2. Read. As if your life depends on it:
Read anything and everything. From back pack labels to philosophy to pornography to garden magazines to travel guides. Anything that you can get your hands on. This helps your mind wander and open your perspectives. Come on, give those sales reports, style guides and briefs a break once in a while.

3. Have a hobby. That you start taking out time for:
Start painting. Or collecting bottles. Or writing one letter (mind you, a letter… not email) a day to friends. Or take your backpack and head for the road every weekend. The idea is to broaden your horizons… and not only to think, but live out of the box.

4. Rest:
Sleep at a reasonable hour every night. Or for a reasonable number of hours. Depending on your lifestyle. While in office, sit back in your chair and take a short 15 minute nap if you’re feeling washed out. Because you just cant think creatively when you’re pooped.

5. Be passionate:
Be passionate about whatever you do. And that means being passionate about your work as well. Because if you’re not passionate about what you spend 8 to 9 hours doing everyday… it’s time to look for a change. And only when you do something with passion, will better ideas come to you on their own.

6. Feel free to fail:
No idea is a good idea unless it’s not attempted. Same goes for a bad idea. Unless you don’t attempt it, you’ll never know if it’s bad. The point is to try. And if it doesn’t work, well, it doesn’t work. But you will have learned something in the process. Let your imagination fly.

~ Arun Verma

The Power Of Creativity

Last year Shalini and I took off for a vacation to Corbett Tiger Reserve – a Tiger sanctuary 300 kilometers north-east of Delhi.

What we thought would be one chilled out getaway, ended up being one of our most enlightening creative journeys.

We had travelled just 100 kilometers out of Delhi when we encountered a ‘Jugaad’.

Jugaad? Wassat?

Very popular in western Uttar Pradesh (and Punjab), a Jugaad is a cross between a bullock cart and a small truck. And it’s not manufactured on any state-of-the-art automobile shop floor. In fact, it’s assembled just 10 meters from a sugarcane field outside a village hut.

Jugaad in Hindi translates into English as “a quick fix” solution. Though the Jugaad-quick-fix solution is widely prevalent in India right from sharpening knives on bicycle wheel concoctions to even running governments, the Jugaad in question here provides the basic bare bone transportation to farmers in Uttar Pradesh. It is fashioned from a pump mounted on wooden planks that have tyres underneath. A steering is jacked into the shaft, the 12 horsepower pump-engine is hand cranked and voila… it runs on diesel and gives a maximum speed of about 20 kilometers an hour. There’s more. It doesn’t have a roof, the driver sits on a wooden bench and the rear which is usually a bullock cart trailor with wooden side panels provides room enough for about 20 passengers or 12 feet stacks of sugarcane.

Technically, the Jugaad is illegal under India’s Motor Vehicles Act. It is not officially registered, has no license plates and can supposedly be seized by the highway police when they choose to look at it. But the law is happily ignored and life and creativity goes on.

That’s not all. There’s more to this ingenious creative expression than meets the eye. In Punjab, the Jugaad is called ‘Maruta’. A word play on Maruti – India’s largest selling family car.

Once we had left the Jugaad behind, in distance and thought, it was time for us to be entertained by stories of the Indian tiger by the Mahook (the elephant trainer) during our first elephant safari at the Corbett Tiger Reserve. Stories of how it creatively uses the environment to its advantage to track its prey. Of how it gets to the jugular vein of the unsuspecting deer. Of how it uses the echo effect in the mountains to misguide poachers and prey.

Day three, it was time to head back home. 150 kilometers from home in this small town near Moradabad, we saw a group of men lumberjacking and sawing. Suddenly seeing logs by the dozen ready to be lugged on to a lorry, we forgot the tiredness of the three days and the boredom of the drive back home. What they saw as 2 feet logs ready to be sold as cheap fire wood, Shalini and I saw the same as stools, peg tables, centre tables and interesting lamps.

120 rupees for a quintal (100 kilograms) said the chief lumberjack and we jumped. For, that was just 1/20th of the price that you would pay for the same quantity in Delhi. Only if we had got a lorry along!

Both of us carefully started selecting the pieces that we thought fitted well in certain corners of our house. Selecting single pieces of stumps that we sell by the dozen? It was a little hard for the chief to swallow. “What do you want this for?” he asked rather suspiciously. “Oh! We want these to make some stools and tables at home” said Shalini.

And that did it!In four seconds flat, four men jumped on the stack of logs taking out small, medium and large stumps and asking and telling us every time they chanced upon an unusual log. “Ma’am, this can become a good table”, “Sir, these two logs can be the two legs of a table”, “Sir, this will look nice. Should I get it chopped a little so it become flat?”

In 3 minutes, we had about 20 pieces of logs standing at our feet and the men still running around bringing logs from here and there and everywhere. And when we didn’t like a certain piece, we would reject it and the men, we could clearly see, would be really dejected. But still, they would dump the piece and run away to come back with another one as if their lives depended on their selection getting approved.

The entire feeling was overwhelming and unexplainable. Four men, who’ve never really found a vent to their creativity were suddenly woken up and willingly were a part of a creative process in action. They were helping us create without being self-conscious, without caring about their day job, without a formal education in creating something.

That is the power of the creative expression, I told myself, it can turn the most unassuming of people into passionate creators.

~ Arun Verma