Shelley-Ann.com | Living On Creative Juice » creativity

How to – Not Make a Decision

Shelley — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 13:30:57 +0000

So you have an idea? What to do next? Well you think about everything that can go wrong. You worry about how it will affect everyone…yourself included. You do research…maybe read a few books. But ultimately you do nothing because you can’t decide whether it’s the right thing to do.

You know what I mean? You analyze and think so much and eventually do NOTHING!

It’s the wrong time, you’re broke, what if people don’t like me! Good lord we drive ourselves nuts worrying about what might happen instead of actually DOING something. Most of the things we worry about never happen.

All this spinning around actually gives us the illusion that we are getting somewhere. I do it. So do other people I know. It’s a lie. So what’s stopping us?

Fear.

Fear of failure. Fear of success. Who knows, it’s different for everyone.

So what would happen if we took the risk? Just went for it? Well, if we failed we would end up back where we started but at least we took a leap. Not doing it well; we’d still be in the same place. But only then we’d be wondering what would happen if we had. We might even still keep doing “research”.

Just stop. Failure doesn’t kill you. It might feel soul crushing at times but ultimately it’s a growth experience.

Take a risk. Start with something small and build to the stuff outside your comfort zone.

Start today.

If not now, when?

You do NOT have to have everything figured out in order to succeed in business. You just have to know what the next question is, and who to ask. – Pamela Slim

That quote applies to life as a whole in my opinion. We don’t have to have all the answers to be happy and fulfilled.

A Design Thinking Mashup

Shelley — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 01:42:02 +0000

Can innovation be reduced to a process? Well that debate has been raging about design thinking for several years. Some think it’s a failure others believe it works. With any process or idea the question ultimately is..does it work? It depends. Not every process works for every situation.

Thinking like a designer can transform the way you develop products, services, processes—and even strategy. ~ Tim Brown

Here are several articles, resources and videos about design thinking. Some are for it, others describe its failures and other discuss what it is and how to use it.

Design Thinking video from The Institute of Design at Stanford University.

Tim Brown, CEO and president of IDEO, author of Change By Design talks about design thinking in this TED presentation.

So what process works best for you or your organization?

The 5 Best Visual Thinking Videos You May Have Missed

Shelley — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:00:05 +0000

What is Visual Thinking? Visual Thinking = Picture thinking, visual thinking, visual/spatial learning or right brained learning is the common phenomenon of thinking through visual processing using the part of the brain that is emotional and creative to organize information in an intuitive and simultaneous way.

You can look at my post A Simple Lesson in Visual Thinking to get a brief introduction.

RSAnimate, adapted from Dan Pink’s talk about his book Drive.

David McCandless: The Beauty of Data Visualization

SXSW 2010: Dan Roam on Visual Thinking from Teehan+Lax on Vimeo.

Have a favorite visual thinking book, video or article? Tell me about it!

Want to be more productive and creative?…TAKE A BREAK!

Shelley — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 21:30:37 +0000

The average American takes about 15 minutes for lunch and usually eat at their desk. Oh and before I forget they don’t stop working while they eat either. What sort of a lunch break is that?

I can’t tell you how many people I’ve met who never leave the office during the work day. People who smoke have a built in excuse to leave the office. Depending on their habit a few times a day and usually with friends. So it’s a social activity.

In a study from 1999 Cornell found that -

Workers who used computer software to remind them occasionally to assume good posture, take short breaks and occasionally stretch do more accurate work and as a result are more productive

Most “traditional” creatives need time away from their desk to come up with ideas. Forcing yourself to sit at a desk to produce usually leads to frustration. Everyone creates something…needs an idea to spark their work.

Go to the gym, a yoga class, take a nap, go on a coffee run with a co-worker or your pet if you work from home but take a break…especially if you’re stuck. No excuses.

The “I don’t have time” is just that an excuse. Make the time to take a break. Your work will improve and so will your mood.

Working non-stop only leads to one thing…BURNOUT.

Idea Making and How I Make Something

Shelley — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 15:00:34 +0000

Idea making?
Well ideas are a dime a dozen. I have ideas for all kinds of crap all the time. Deciding whether an idea is worth pursuing well that’s another matter entirely.

Some ideas really are utter rubbish.

But there are others that need or should be acted on. For me the ideas I usually act on are the ones that don’t go away but stay at the back on my mind like an annoying pest.

Keeping track of it all
Typically I make an effort to document ideas as I have them. In a scratch folder of some kind. I have separate notebooks in Evernote for ideas relating to different areas of my life. When I get an idea I usually put it in there. Links, photos, books, blog posts..whatever seems relevant at the time. I go back later and weed out the stuff that isn’t helpful or no longer relevant to what I want to do.

I create mind maps of projects I want to work on. I’ve talked about mind mapping a lot on this blog. So it’s pretty obvious if you’re a regular reader that I use them often. I documented my entire graduate school thesis in a mind map. I take notes at meetings using iBlueSky or when I’m at home I use Mindjet’s MindManager.

What to avoid in order to make an idea reality?

Analysis paralysis – doing research and not doing is just a strategy for avoiding failure. Failure is not a bad thing. It just is. It has much to teach. You either repeat the same mistakes or you learn and grow from the experience. But not trying is the true tragedy, not the failed attempt at pursuing an idea
Understand your motivation – if you aren’t passionate about your idea frankly no one else is going to care about it. People who aren’t passionate don’t get people to listen. Even if someone doesn’t like your idea most will admire your passion and conviction to get it done

Taking action
Sometimes to get things done you just have to tell others. Some people get a coach. But if you have a friend who has something they want to get done as well an accountability buddy is also a great option. For an accountability buddy system to work you both have to make a commitment to be there for each other even if you get busy with other areas of your life.

Create reminders
I use Lifetick to track my goals and it has the ability to send email reminders. I also have an RSS feed of due dates in my calendar so I know when things are due. In addition to this tactic I create visual reminders to put around my apartment. I make collages of what I want to achieve or I make mind maps of the project or idea I am working on. I post it in a place I can see everyday. For me I have to be able to see myself doing something in order to accomplish it. If I can’t create a picture in my mind of what something will be or feel like it’s much harder to make it happen. If I’m working on something that has an emotion or situation I haven’t experienced before I try to find either a book or movie that’s relevant to watch to create a picture in my head. If I see it I can do it.

Resources

My top 5 Books for 2010

Shelley — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 09:00:58 +0000

The books I couldn’t put down in 2010

Self-Promotion for Introverts: The Quiet Guide to Getting Ahead by Nancy Ancowitz – as an introvert this book has been a great reference and affirmation for what works for me and what doesn’t when it comes to promoting myself. I learned I was already doing alot to honor my own style. Not necessarily the way an extrovert would but one that works for me. I wrote several posts about my experiences with Nancy both as an instructor for self-promotion and presentation skills for introverts.
Below are the posts: –
Follow her on Twitter for Self-Promotion for Introverts® tips – @NancyAncowitz
The Female Brain by Louann Brizendin – in my post “What makes women unique? “The Female Brain” reveals many secrets.” I discussed what I learned from reading this book. It’s funny as a woman you’d mistakenly think you know everything about your brain but there is a lot that science can teach about why and how we do the things we do. This book answers some of those questions.
Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith – a solid overview of social media and why it’s more about relationship building than the tools you use.
Broken Open: How Difficult Times Can Help Us Grow by Elizabeth Lesser – Sharon Salzberg, is one of America’s leading insight meditation teachers and spirituality writers said it best when she said that the book

“bravely and beautifully explores one of the most compelling questions of life: How do we emerge from suffering and challenge with real, encompassing wisdom and love? Broken Open is personal, pragmatic, and enlightening.”

Broken Open presents some great questions to ponder: Do we give-up when bad things happen? Stay angry forever? Or learn and grow from the experience. The book is filled with stories. Yes, some tragic but how the individuals or families chose to live in spite of what happened is a testimony to what the human spirit can achieve. We can’t choose what fate throws at us but we can choose our reaction to it. One doesn’t have to live with the “why me” syndrome. Be like a Phoenix and rise from the ashes. Shit happens regardless of our best intentions.
Unfolding the Napkin: The Hands-On Method for Solving Complex Problems with Simple Pictures by Dan Roam the follow-up to The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures is a great book to learn how to solve problems visually. It is a workshop in a book. You just have to spend the time doing the exercises. Even if you think can’t draw it doesn’t matter. I plan to re-read both of Dan’s books in 2011 just to reinforce what I learned.

It’s no secret I read a lot. I have run out of space on my bookshelf at home. The next step is to go digital I suppose but I think I would miss the feel and smell of the real thing. I probably only read about 5% fiction books. In 2010, I only read 3 – The Host: A Novel by Stephanie Meyer, An Echo in the Bone: A Novel (Outlander) by Diana Gabaldon and Breaking Dawn (The Twilight Saga) by Stephanie Meyer (The movie adaptation will probably suck given it’s PG 13 rating. As my 1st and only Twilight book it was better than expected).

What’s on my reading list for 2011

The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t
Idea Mapping: How to Access Your Hidden Brain Power, Learn Faster, Remember More, and Achieve Success in Business
Buyology: Truth and Lies About Why We Buy
Iconoclast: A Neuroscientist Reveals How to Think Differently
How We Decide
Under Her Skin: How Girls Experience Race in America (Live Girls)
Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard
What’s Your Story? Storytelling to Move Markets, Audiences, People, and Brands
The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life

So what’s your top 5 books for 2010? Knowing myself as I do, my reading list will definitely get longer. Happy reading!

Why taking breaks are good :)

Shelley — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 13:00:44 +0000

A couple of months ago I took a course at the Open Center called Creativity Bootcamp taught by Julia Cameron. I mentioned one of the assignments in my last post “Can media deprivation improve creativity?”

Since then I’ve taken some time off from a lot of things to see what would happen. Sort of a cooling off period. I didn’t work on my own blog. I did start doing other things though. I started writing for the Awaken Your CAREERpreneur as the Technology and New Media Expert.

I signed up for mixed martial arts classes. Started taking dance classes again. I signed up for the second pilot program for the Relationship Mastery Academy from Keith Ferrazzi.

Taking Julia Cameron’s class opened me to taking risks again and not putting off things I’ve wanted to do forever like starting martial art classes again. Keith’s class changed the way I look at relationships especially business related ones. I plan to write about what my biggest take aways were from the class at a later point but it was money well spent.

Summer was great. I celebrated another birthday. I look forward to what the coming seasons bring. Taking a break has improved my ability to solve problems. I’m more relaxed. I have a greater clarity of purpose which has been missing in action since I left graduate school several years ago.

Can media deprivation improve creativity?

Shelley — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:30:29 +0000

I am currently taking “Creativity Bootcamp” taught by Julia Cameron the author of The Artist’s Way. We have had several homework assignments to complete over the duration of the course. For example, morning pages, artists dates, etc. For the 2nd week our homework was “media deprivation” which meant we couldn’t expose ourselves to outside media. This meant we couldn’t watch television, go to the movies, read books, newspapers or magazine and no music with lyrics. Social networking was out too…so no Twitter, Facebook or whatever other network you used just for fun. Work related stuff was ok. You couldn’t use the assignment as an excuse to not do your day job!

I’m a pretty connected person so I thought it might be difficult to not be updating my virtual worlds on a regular basis. But it wasn’t. Not to say I haven’t been tempted but I overall have found it a calming exercise.

I did slip once and watch TV but I was out with friends having brunch at a football bar during World Cup season. So I watched 1 game. 90 minutes of television in 7 days. That’s not too bad.

I haven’t missed watching the news. I got out of the habit of watching it when I cut off my cable last year and since I got it reconnected I rarely watch it anyway.

What I missed the most was reading. To say I am an avid reader is an understatement. I usually read about 2-3 books at a time plus I have about 12 magazine subscriptions. It was really odd to just collect the mail and put the magazines in a pile. And that’s just the print stuff. I have a ton of RSS feeds I read regularly too.

For 7 days the only ideas and input I was getting was self-generated. I got a lot done. Projects I’d been putting off I started to make progress on. I found it easier to write and come up with my own ideas. I felt more connected to my own inner wants and desires the longer I was away from outside stimulus.

After this experience I will be doing media deprivation at least once a week. It really is an exercise in mindfulness and awareness.

A Different Way to Think About Creativity

Shelley — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 02:07:58 +0000

From the woman that wrote “Eat, Pray, Love” – Elizabeth Gilbert a talk in which she discusses taking an alternate view of creativity.

How to find your creative muse:

What purposes define your life?
What enthuses and excites you?
What moves you — physically, spiritually, and emotionally?
What is really important to you?
What things do you cherish or revere?
On what aspects of your life are you unwilling to compromise?
What makes you feel vital and alive?
What inspires you?
What drives you?
What provokes you?
What lifts you out of yourself?
What things help you define and focus on certain goals?

Do Schools Kill Creativity?

Shelley — Tue, 25 May 2010 02:06:22 +0000

Interesting talk by Sir Ken Robinson about whether schools kill creativity.