Creativity Unbound [5 ed.] 1941798004, 9781941798003

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I An introduction to creative process 5th edition

Blair Miller Jonathan Vehar Roger Firestien Sarah Thurber Dorte Nielsen

Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2021 with funding from Kahle/Austin Foundation

https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781941798003

Blair Miller Jonathan Vehar Roger Firestien Sa rah Thurber Dorte Nielsen 5th edition, © 2011

For more inlol'mation about trcinin9 materiofs in creativity, innovation ond pl'obfem solving, contact: info@fo urs,g htonline. com. 201I ni..,tk )\!tu I k, )0'11,\,lllA~' VEH,Ut,. f:OCEII l•!Rlt'>11DI, ~Aft.\H T!-ILU~ &: Dolt 1 t,,.'n l~t\J AU ll!Qfli 1,v,:v Ill:

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l!£Tli.lEl,'Al. ~ITT.!IIOII n.u.S\IITifl) I!\ " ~ hlll~I ()It BY Al',.') M)l\.'(f,, WCfllOSIC,. MEP-!At,.J(.,u, l'UCJll)lX.!l'YIM;,. R!.OJJltll.y. You ell.I'\ l~l>.rl'\ to solve prob Iems tr,ore effectively.

12

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Cre1>.tivity skills cl>.h be t1>.u1kt.

You

cl>.h

become more cre1>.tive.

© 201 1 Miller, Vehor, Fircslien, Thurber, Nielsen

Ck£Al1VITY IJNBOUNC

In and Out Thinking Around the world in 80 seconds To help you get the most out of this book, we thought we'd share some researd, findings from the American Psychological Association. They studied w hat people do during a semina r, speech or workshop and found that at any given time:

: OUT

~

:•• ~

18% ore really listening to the presenter

25% ore having erotic thoughts 57% are thinking about something else This phenomenon is called "in and out thinking." Most people can speak about 150 words per minute, but they can hear and comprehend 900-95C words per minute. Because your mind thinks faster than people speak, you're only ni lly attentive during the first 13 to IS seconds of auy presentatio,-., discussion or con ver;ation. Then you fade out and tl1frtk about other things.

Take

11

in" and

11

•

IN

• • • •• • •• •

out" notes

Get this natural tendency to work in your favor. Draw a line dow11 the center of your note paper. On the left s ide, record "in" thoughts: an)•lhing you wanl to remember from lhc presc11t,lion. On the right side, record 'out" thoughts: any related ideas, new ideas or connec-

tions; the phone number of someone you need lo call; something you have to rcmesnber to do; anytJ1ing unrelated so you can free your

mind to listen to the presentation. TI1is "in and out thinki11g" note-taking tecluuque is designed to free you from lrying to remember "out" thoughts and cncou rage you to generate ,w,_. ideas without losing track of the presentation.

I" ll.hd out tk ihkiho/ is hotkih7 to b, .,,>.ss,J >.bout.

© 2011 Miller, Vehor, f ire$tien, Thurber, Niehen

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CREATIVITY UN $0UNO

A Working Definition You could spend a lifetime trying to defin e creativity, but in the interest of expedience, we'll start off with the deiinition set do"11 by Stan Gryskiewicz ()f the C~nter for Creative Leadership in Greensboro, North Carolina. He defined creativity as follows:

Creativity ~ Novelty that's useful N,n,e/ty, newms~, origi,,a/ity, afresh approacl, Useful: scn>es a purpose, lras value I

t

- /4 .

· More definitions of creativity ... ' ~ ti

~

Ability to overcome self,imposed constra ints." A7.KOFP & VF.RCARA (191'18)

"The ability to see what isn' t there, to recognize its power, ond to make that power manifest." T 1!Uf-WER & Mil.I l;.R (2001)

becoming sensitive to or aware of problems, deficiencies, gops in knowfedge, missing elements, disharmonies a nd so on; bringing together available information; defining the difficulty or identify, ing the missing element; searching for solutions, making hypotheses and modifying and retesting them; perfecting them; and finally communicating the results. " ti ...

E. PAUL

'ft>RKAr,..:cE

& R..E. MYERS (1970)

"Creativity is the process of generating unique products by tronsformolion of existing products. Those product,, tangible and intangible, must be unique only to the creator, a nd must meet the crite• rio of purpote a nd value e t toblithod by ♦ho cro

otor." W,i.>CW (1980}

l.d

© 1011 Miller, Vehor, Firestien, Thurber, Nielsen

CR.EATIVITY UNBOUND

The Four P's A model of creativity Admittedly, some people chafe under a single, restrictive definjtion of creativity. Ar.er all, what about creative people? C reative products? Creative e,wcronments? Creative approaches? Creativity manifests itself in all kinds of w,, ys, making it hard lo settle on a universal definition or explanation. Those loo king for a more holistic approach wi ll appreciate the work of lvlel Rhodes, considered by some to be the Don Quixote of creativity. Mel :,.cl v U 0 11 d ..,1,:r::,o.nc1I t.jt.1\:!:>( lv flud an eill ..1;:m.. umvd~i11g PruN'-C"lt'""''" R.,rl((,· O., ,1'!l"Jir111 t11.V 11J:untagc ") Ii? l)l'Mt•mr,1llir S~~·

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© 2011 Miller, Veho,, FirHtien, Thur~er, Nielsen

CREAHVHY UNBOUND

The Triune Brain •••the li:r:ard in you llrufcrsta11di11g the l,rniu cnn bolster creativity. Hert is ,I simplified (a very ,implifted) model of the l>rnit1. A more detnilrd d,>scriplio11 nppenrs i11 Dr. Paul McLttm's book The Triune Brain. But in esse•Jce, t1Je brain has I/tree basic pnrls ... A "cw idu~...

...the Brain Stem At the core of Olll" brains is the brain stem. Mcleru, calls it the "reptilian brain" bccau1e it's essentially the same brain reptiles have. The reptilian brai11 figures out how to get food and not be food. ft's about survival - both physical and psychological. It's about territory, protection, instinct and automatic action. The reptile's response to anything new is likely to be "attack it, nut from it, eat it...or not even notice it."

C"'" I ,,.t t~.1.t?

...the Limbic System Surrom1ding the brain stem is the limbic system which moderates hormones an:1 other chemicals that affect our moods. I t's the governing body for ~motions. Chemicals here can make us sick or well, happy or frightened. The limbic system's motto: "feel, feel, feel." limbic System

... the Neo-cortex Sitting a top the limbic system is the neo-cortex or "new brain." This is headquarters for s peaking, thinking a nd problem solving. The neo-cortex is the learning brain - the source of creative thinking. It's motto is "learn, learn, learn and create, create, create."

Upshifting and Downshifting According to Dave Meier, director of the Center for Accelerated Learning, you can s hift into a creative mode by being conscious of "where" your thinkjng comes frorn. Threatening situations produce

negative feelings. The limbic system actually releases cl,enuc.-tls that depress IJ,c thinking part of the brain. People automatically "downshi ft" into the reptilian brain. They react. A boss might tell employees, "Screw up, and you're outta here!" lm;;igine what kind of work envi-

ronment this ~eates. Up shifting is thinking from the neo-cortex. \~'hen in need of 11cw ideas, make n conscious "up shill" &om Lltc reptilian brain to the nao-cortex. Up shifting lets us learn, create and succeed.

-© 20 11 Miller-, Vehor, Fire~lien, Thurber, Nielsen

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CREAtlVITV UN6OUN0

Creative Product What makes n creative prod,,ct? Cool pnckngmg? Hip 11n111e? Usef11fr1Pr picture), what ideJ(Gt o.f'iGtu.-( , wl-11.t id(II.S do you j(t fo.solvihj ti-is l'.-ol,l(i.-?"

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© 20 1 1 Miller, Vehor, Fire$1ien, Thurber, Nielsen

CR.E.A, JIVTTY UN&O UN D

Musical chairs with words /fall your ,iffo.-ts to restate the problem begi11 to sound the same, try Word Dance. It 's a great tool for expandi11g the staleme11t of the ,,rob/em.

Direction$: ·1.) Start w ith your s tatement of the problem. Cirde

the verb and generate a series of verbs that could be used in ils place. 2.) Now drde lhc "object" or "ou tcome" words. Again, generate a serie~ of po:.,;sib1e .:;ubstitutes.

Don't hesitate to be playful, Un us ual choices often open promising new a venues. 3.) Mix and match, exp loring va rious new combina•

tions, a nd look for new insights into your pro blem. 4.)

Choc)se the s tate ment that expresses the problem i,1 the most a ppeaung and powerful way.

Fo.,

q;xz.i..-rl-i:

A social group wants lo expa11tl its membership. They haw expressed their challe11gc as:

Playi11g Word Dance, they swap the verb "get" amf fhe object "members" with a series ofsubstihdes. They end 1111 with simi/1Jr thnllmges, with a new twist: uHow ""i,~t we '"ticc sopp,orh:r-s?"

\\ How ""i'1lt we

&ttrAc.t

c.~r.Jicl~h s?"

"How ....,;7U "'' sol,.;t ,,,,,r, ....t.,,but;.,...?"

© 2011 M ilter, Vehor, Fire$tien, Thurber, Niel$en

GET

ME MBERS

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surrorhrs

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lo .Jc ,..s JO i l\US

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Appl i, ....... t.s re7 i Str"Ati o "S

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eor.t ,.ibut io hS 'f"O\lp i U

~"f"'

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CREATIVITY U NeOUND

SCAMPER Divergent spark plug "The be• t way lo hove good ideas is to have lots o f

ideas." LINUS P,A.ULINC

"The importont thing is not to stop quesl ioning .'1

£xpcrie11ce Tins sliown tlrat tire best ideas are most often found among the Inst 3311erc,mt of the ideas generated. Timi's why it 's important to stretch prop/e's tl1i11ki11g and ge11erafe lots of idws. Alex Osborn, i11 liis brcakth.-ough hook, Applied Imagina tion, liet•elopcd a series of questions that spark ideas d11rir1g clivergence. Bob £l1a/e categotiud these questions in Iris book Scamper: Games for ln1agination Development, a11d created tf,c umemonic SCA.A1.PER to 1w1.ke IIH!m easier to remember.

S ubstitute C

o,-._b i "~

A Ji.rt M odify P ut to otl-~., uses E

li"'i"i.te

R ~i. ......i."1~ (See next page for questi.,11s.)

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© 20 11 M iller, Vehor, Fire,rjen, Thurber, Nielsen

CAEATIVITY UNBOUND

SCAM PER ao~stiohS To genernte more idea~ while brainstorming, ask the fallowing questions i.n mttJ ,mi1,r. Rel'cnl the q11eslic11s ns "ecessnry, Im/ don't ove,wl,e/111 yourself or 11,e ·· gro11J1 by wuling them i11 rapid succession. Ti1ke time lo thi11k and respond,

Substitute What can you substitute? \l\1hat else can you u..se. instead?

Who else can be i.nduded instead? What other group can be included? What other process can be used i,1stead? What other material can be used instead?

Combine What can be combined? How about a blend? What sort of ensemble could be used or created? How cnn you combine parts? How can you combine purposes? How can you combine applications? How Ciln you combine materfalls? Adapt Whal other thoughts does this suggest? What else is like this? Does the past offer a similar situation? Modify How. about a new lwist? How c.u, you change the meaning? How can you change the color or shape? I low about the sound? \>Vhal can you add? How can you increase the height? How can you increase the weight?

© 2011 Miller, Vehor, Fire$tien, Thurber, Niel$en

I-low can you add strength? Jiow can you increase frequency? How cm, you ii1crease value? What can you subtract? Wl1at can you shrink? What can you streamline? What can you understate? How can you reduce the s ize? J-fow can you reduce the weight?

Put to other uses What e lse can it be used for, a$ is? Whal might other uses be, if changed? What other markets might be intereste-d? Eliminate What can you gel rid of or omit? What can you do without? What can you sacrifice? What can you give away? Rearrange What other patterns might work? What other arrangement:, could be used? What other layout mii;ht work? What can you interchange? What can you transpose? What can you reconnect? What if you reversed it? What if you turned il upside down? What if you turned it inside out?

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CREA TfVll'i' U t,,f80U ND

Combine key ingredients for novelty Tire Idea Box is a great tool for genernting lots of ideas i11 uew and origirial co111biirnlions. Start by nmui1Jg tire esse1Jtial characteristics of your cltallenge. Then build co/11111ns 11uder each of //rose characteristics and fill the111 will, relevn11/ options. Tire J,111 starts when yorr begin com/1i11illg 011tions-011e fi'om encl, column - to discover originnl ideas. Directions: Birtid..y ol,qeklist:

V"C .. k, V"Gift V"So,,.., ti; ,.., rerso ..... l

vw...

y

..

suit

l . Pick the essential characteristics. To create an ldea Box, s tart with your statement of the ch,, llcnge, (e.g. How might 1 create a great , tor y?) The challenge, then, is to create a story. What do you consider to he the essential characteristics of a story? You might decid e: people, $etting, timeframe and ~vent are the essential characteristics you want lo focus on. 2. Create column heading,. Take each characteristic you chose and put it al the top of a column. 3. Fill in op~on,.

Under each characteristic, list a variety of options. For example:

T; "'~ f,,i. IT,(I

Pathtul>, ask the group to act out taking a haith; pla)' the part of the faucet o r the tub; role-play a pa rent trying to get a tod dler into a bath. Get ideas by springhoarding off what the observers (or the role-players) notice. "Fi, ld Tri ps" Take an actual tTip to the store, the zoo, cl,e skating rink or the bus station. See what you can ~ee. Be open to stimuli and ready to draw links to your own challenge. C~Ar Aohr AnA l01i• S Tap into the minds of favori te teachers, famous inventors or even past presidents? Pictu re the person in your mind (i.e. Jsaac Newton, Abraham Lincoln). Take a minute to think about his or her traits, personality and world view. Then generate ideas from that person's perspective. P,rsonA I AnAl01i« Look al the challenge from the chaLienge's point of view. Tc> build a better couch, imagine yourself to be a cushion. Generate ideas on the cha I• lcnge from that pcsspcctive. Then change perspectives. Now you are one of the Jegs of the couch. Whal ideas does this perspective give you? fl really works. Just ask Einstein! He solved many of his theoretical questions only after he imagined himself to be an actual beam of light.

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© 20 11 Miller, Vehor, Fireslien, Thurber, Nielsen

CREATIVITY UNBOUND

"When I become o scientist, I would

Ready, set, novelty!!! Usi11g cxcursio11s d11ri11g sessions can be f,m, cl,alleugiag nm/ highly effective. This may be a uew e:rperiencc fiw mauy people aud using a warnH,p is recam111,:11ded. Excursio11s ca11 be 11:'ed i11di11id11nlly or with groups.

picture myself as a virus or cancer cell ond try to rmagine

what it would be like.''

Directions:

E,·ery excursion will be unique, but you can use !hcsc guidelines: • Review the ground rules for divergent thinkin g.

• R,;view the challenge statement and lead the g roup or your~elf through the excu rsion. • Generate ideas ins pired by the excurs ion. • Repeal lf desired, using a different excursion.

Character Exc,;rsion for

"How might we grow our widget market share?" Stel' 1: "Please close your eyes." Step 2: "I'd like you to picture Abraham Lincoln." (Wait ·15 to30 seconds.) Step 3: Trunk about some of Abraham

Lir,coiJ,'s 11aits-his personalit)\ his pe rspective on the world. (Again give 45 seco,tds to trunk.)

Step 4: "Now turning to our challenge s tatement, w hat might be all the ideas that Abraham Lincoln would have for how we grow widget market ,hare?" Step 5: "Please record you r ideas." Initial ideas might include: give away s~mples along a train route; produce widgets with the Gettysburg address printed on them; hold an annua I widget conf.,rence and invite dignita ries from around lhe world. Step 6: Repeat from another perspective, say the Rolling Stones.

@ 201 l Miller, Vehor, Fire$tien, Thurber, Nielien

Personal A11alogy E.rc11rsio11 for "How to improve a bathtub?" Stel' 'I : Have the participants pretend the)' are the bathtu b, the faucet or the bottom of the tub. "Tmagine that you are the bottom of the tub. What do you

feel? Want? Necd?"(60 seconds) SteI' 2: "From that perspective, wl,al ideas do )'OU have for how lo improve a bathtub?" Step 3: "Please record your ideas." Initial ideas might include: a selfdeaning tub; a textured tub bottom; a tub that changes color as it gets dirty; a tub that read the mind of the person entering it and changes to their favorite color. Sh1J 4: Repeal, if desi red from ano ther perspective. For example, the showerhead.

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CREAtlVITV UN$OUND

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© 2011 Miller, Vehor, Firestien, Thurber, Nielsen

CREATIVITY UN,60UND

Tools for Converging ritical judgnwnt is essential for solving problems. The hazard rome, in judging loo soon-or choosing ,1mong oplions lhat are tO of ideos.11 LtNU!'.t, P Atl..l.N(.;

No,m. Pk!Zlc \VN N[R

Explore Idea,

Now that you've got the "challc11ge questi()n," start e,'Ploring possibi lities, idea~ and options that might work. Start with the obvious and then go wide. Follow the divergent g uideline>

More than ever, this is a time to defer judgment, strive for quantity, seek wild and unusual ideas, and bu ild ()n other ideas. Bump your brain out of its comfo,·t zone aJ1d consider novel approaches. Look at silly