Creativity

CreativityFun & GamesIdea & Iteration

Struggling to be Creative

At a dinner party in New York, I was talking to a fashion designer who owns her own business. At one point in the conversation she told me that she struggles to be creative. I could relate. There are times when you hit the wall and all your ideas are stale and over-used cliches. A voice whispers that you don’t have what it takes. It’s easy to feel discouraged and just give up. But, we all experience this struggle. In fact, it is part of the creative process.  As a creative professional for 20 years, I feel like I understand a lot about creativity and I’m still learning.   What is Creativity? Ask yourself: What is creativity? What does it…

CreativityStorytelling

The Creative Process

What is creativity? What does that look like? What does a creative person do? Are these types of people creative – artists, poets, musicians? Most people would say yes. What about people who are mathematicians, computer programers, engineers, administrators. Are they creative? It really depends on how they approach their work and lives. Today I parked in a far off lot and making my way to my office I decided to take a different route. Because I took a different route, I hit a dead-end, I got lost and had to ask directions from another person. I accidentally ran into an old friend and had a good conversation. Then I met an student from a previous class who gave me a good idea.…

CreativityStorytelling

Brainstorm & Ideation

Thinking Inside the Box: When I teach my Visual Design course I have students participate in the following brainstorming activity. I ask them to pair up. I tell them that they are working for the breakfast cereal company Post, and Post wants to get more children to eat Honeycomb Cereal. The bosses have decided that the best way to appeal to kids is to include a prize in the box. They’ve gotten a deal with the movie company that produced the Harry Potter movies. So, the theme will be Harry Potter books and movies. The Goal: The team to come up with the most ideas (doesn’t matter how good they are) wins. Next I list the the Restrictions of the Game (which…

CreativityVisual Communication

Getting Up Early

About four years ago I started getting up an hour earlier in the morning. In the early morning our house is quiet. I love to just sit and listen to the silence. It's like a healing peace. Sometimes dreams linger in my head and I work through them. They linger and color our mood. What are dreams? Where do they come from? What sort of toxins get into our brain that are expelled through these night visions? Is it just the cares of life? Emotions working out their vibrations, rippling out from our sub-conscious? Whatever they are, paying attention to them for a few minutes in the morning gets me past whatever they meant to tell me. Getting up early…

CreativityIdea & Iteration

Recording your Voice

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