That's not a typo... it's not a PodCast... but a CODcast... it stands for Creativity On Demand.

Jeff Brainard from Catch Your Limit Consulting: Management, Marketing & Fish Cleaning Services recently hosted and posted an interview with me (Paul Williams) to get my point of view on creativity.

Through the magic of editing, Jeff made me sound pretty professional! Below is the audio interview.

Visit the Catch Your Limit Consulting when you have the chance.

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If there is a book about creativity, brainstorming, or creative problem solving... Idea Sandbox has probably read it. It's not often that a book comes along that stands out among the rest.

"Creativity Today" is that sort of book. It is one of - if not the - best books written on how to be creative. Idea Sandbox highly recommends it.

Overview

"Creativity Today" is a great first book on 'creativity and problem solving' because the authors address the key challenges facing someone who feels they aren't "creative enough" and offer simple steps to draw out personal creativity. They debunk the misconception that people are born creative (or not)... and then outline and describe the basic creative process. The book doesn't talk down to the reader or dumb down the subject. After reading this book, you will have more confidence in your creative skills and will be armed with the tools needed to practice creativity.

Easy to Read and Use

The book breaks up and reinforces key points with case studies, relevant graphics, and exercises. They combine insights with training activities that reinforce what you just read.(But not in a dry textbook style).

Content Overview

1. Understanding Creativity - addresses common misconceptions about creativity
2. A Creative Mind - discusses how are minds work
3. The Creative Process - introduction to the three key stages of the Creativity Today process
4. The Starting Phase - getting started, problem identification stage
5. The Diverging Phase - the idea generation stage - offers both logical and imaginative techniques.
6. The Converging Phase - making choices and narrowing to the best solution.
7. Creation Today - The closing section of the book offers case studies featuring real-world, actual examples of the creative process (outlined in the book) put to use.

Where to Buy It

This book is currently only available in North America through 1800CEORead. In Europe and the UK visit Amazon UK.

Details

"Creativity Today"

• By: Ramon Vullings, Godelieve Spaas, Igor Byttebier of New Shoes Today
• Book Site: Creativity Today
• Genres: Brainstorming, Creativity, Decision Making, Problem Identification Problem Solving, and Decision Making
• Paperback book of 238 pages
• Published on January 2007 by Bis Publishers (NL)

Idea Sandbox Rating

Dog Ear Score: n/a
(this is one of those books where nearly every page would be dog-eared.)
Usability (5/5)
Coverage of Subject (5/5)
Contribution to Topic (4/5)*
Ease of Read (5/5)
Visually Pleasing (5/5)

*NOTES: Creativity Today doesn't introduce a load of concepts new to the topic of creativity and problem solving... but that's not a bad thing. (Some books re-brand traditional methods as their own new fangled method - that's bad.)

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categorized as CREATIVITY , FIGURE IT OUT > brainstorming , FIGURE IT OUT > decision making , must reads , FIGURE IT OUT > problem identification , FIGURE IT OUT > problem solving

Are you still looking for easy-to-approach process for coming up with ideas and problem solving? Do you still not feel you are "good" at being creative?

Sam Harrison's book "Zing!: Five Steps and 101 Tips for Creativity on Command" offers simple, but effective tools as well as solid and doable tips to be creative. His process takes creativity from "zero to zing" in five steps.

The book is thin (in a good way). He breaks the process down into easy to digest chunks and the book can easily be read in one or two sittings.

Here is how Harrison describes his book's approach...

Some books zigzag. This book zings.

Many books on creativity hide their nuggets of wisdom in hundreds of fluff-filed pages. Zing! gets right to the point. Powerful, single-page messages offer:

• five action steps for creating with zing
  
• fast examples of creative triumphs
  
• rejuvenating quotes from creative gurus
  
• real-life tips and hands-on tools

I have run several challenges through the Zing! process and have been pleased with the results.

Here's a summary of the Zing! steps...

1. Explore: Observe & Research - Gather all the information possible about the challenge. Become a sponge. Notice people. Anticipate. Don't just look, see!

2. Freedom: Brainstorm & Visualize - Have a "free-range brain" and come up with as many solutions as possible. Judge not. Assume nothing is impossible. Observations + Connections = Ideas.

3. Pause: Pause & Detach - Step away from the problem and let it stew in the back of your mind... Einstein said his best ideas came while shaving.

4. Embrace: Edit & Select - While you were pausing "the subconscious mind was doing the heavy lifting. Now the brightest idea floats before you." With the embrace step, "we find a solution that zings."

5. Life: Prototype & Implement - "Breathe life into your idea... In this step you add flesh, bones and heart to your idea. You make it lively and likable." Verify the idea. Modify it to make it better. Be the idea champion.

If you've read a lot about creative problem solving, you'll notice that Harrison hasn't created a new process... He's boiled the key "creative problem solving" steps down to their basic chunks. He provides enough detail, examples, quotes, and tips to take out the frustration and get you to solving problems as quickly as possible.

Details

"Zing!: Five Steps and 101 Tips for Creativity on Command"

• By Sam Harrison
  Genres:
• Brainstorming | Creativity | Problem Solving
  
• Paperback book of 149 pages
  
• Published 2004 by MacHillock Publishing

Idea Sandbox Rating

Dog Ear Score: n/a
(this is one of those books where nearly every page had good nuggets on them - too many pages to dog-ear)
Usability (5/5)
Coverage of Subject (4/5)
Contribution to Topic (3/5)
Ease of Read (5/5)
Visually Pleasing (4/5)

Comments: This book is extremely usable. Nearly every page offers a tactic or method for problem solving. While Harrison doesn't go very deep in the topic, he provides all the key information to effectively use the Zing! process. The book offers little that's new... But that's okay, Harrison allows you to work swiftly with his cut-to-the-chase approach. Can't get much easier to read than this. Big type. Quick examples. Lots of inspirational quotes. Visually simple and clean.

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Whether you're a Mac fan or not.
Whether you think the iPhone is the coolest thing, or a flash in the pan...

You've got to check out the iPhone "Hello" ad... it was played during the Oscars, is featured on the Apple website, and is posted multiple times on YouTube. It's clever and fun.

It features "Hello" clips from a myriad of different movies... It's neat to watch and recognize the different characters and movies. (I'm certain someone has already mapped which films the 'hello' clips are from).

It's also fun to watch the phone itself progress from that big, black box on the wall to the closing image of 21st Century technology - the iPhone.

It's amazing to witness the progress of telephone communication... That 'black box on the wall' had to be hand-cranked to generate a spark to signal a local live operator. She would ask who you're calling and would then connect you to a series of other human operators... each plugging in another wire until they daisy-chained you to the person you wanted to reach. Back then, they could never imagine where we are today. I'm certain we can't imagine where we'll be in only 10, 15 and 20 years from now.

Enjoy.

Visit the Apple website for the high-quality Quicktime versions of this commercial.

RSS Subscribers click here.

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On Friday I posted a list of existing and potential Oktoberfest-like traditions (Bachtoberfest, Spocktoberfest...) A comment was left by a guest who needs to be called out... The father of Whack himself, Roger von Oech! Roger is recognized throughout the world as a leader in stimulating creativity and innovation.

If we had a Whacktoberfest it would be about inspiring your brain with the ideas found in Roger's suite of books, tools and on his blog...

Ball of Whacks

A new tool from Roger. Built on science and experience indicating that having something to manipulate, fidget with and to keep the hands busy helps get the mind working. (That's why you'll often find Plah-Doh, pipe cleaners and other type objects in brainstorming sessions).

"A Whack on the Side of the Head:How to Be More Creative"

The book does just what it suggests... Roger provides scores of 1 to 3-page suggestions offering different ways to approach and solve your challenge.

Creative Whack Pack

A deck of 64 cards each with a different exercise to spark ideas.

Innovative Whack Pack

A deck of 60 cards, each with exercises to shift your perspective on your challenge.

A Kick in the Seat of the Pants

Roger encourages us to utilize different roles to help the creative process - from idea to launch... The Explorer (seek information), Artist (create), Judge (decide), and Warrior (implement).

"Expect the Unexpected or You Won't Find It: A Creativity Tool Based on the Ancient Wisdom of Heraclitus"

A really cool concept. Roger uses the 500-year-old writings of the Greek Heraclitus as lessons to generate creative solutions to current problems.

And finally, here's Roger's Creative Think blog.

If you need ideas to stimulate your creativity, these resources should do the trick.

Thanks for stopping by, Roger!

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All this month Washington DC-based classical radio station WGMS has been celebrating "Bachtoberfest." All during the month of October, when the station plays a Bach composition, listeners can call and win prizes. Maybe they'll do this again next year. After all, if it ain't baroque, don't fix it.

Of course, Bachtoberfest is a spin-off and commercial derivation of the Oktoberfest beer and food celebration held at the end of September and beginning of October in Munich, Bavaria, and Germany.

We enterprising American business-folk can't turn down the opportunity to spin culture for commercial benefit... So we have events like... Bachtoberfest.

However, I suggest there is money being left on the table... Many other industries and businesses should leverage this annual event. Besides, what else is there between the Columbus Day sales and Halloween?

Here are my suggestions for next year...

2007 "___berfest" Events

Clock-toberfest



Get your clock cleaned this month... (I don't mean get beat-up)... I mean any antique wind-up clocks can get cleaned at a special price.

Dock-toberfest



A great month for a boat show.

Frock-toberfest



Vintage clothing stores as well as monk enthusiasts will appreciate this special day. Perhaps offer a two-for-one offer. Rent one frock, get the other at half-price.

Brach-toberfest



The candy company should offer pre-Halloween specials on all of their tasty candy treats.

Cock-toberfest



Celebrate all things chicken. Rhode Island - the Rooster State - should be able to leverage this one.

Hock-toberfest



Celebrating ham hocks and everything 'the other white meat'-related.

Jock-toberfest



An opportunity for the Nike Store or Foot Locker to offer specials on athletic shoes for kids returning to school. Alternately, like the annual replacement of batteries in smoke detectors... annual replacement of the jock strap.

Lock-toberfest


During the month of October if you lock yourself out of your house 10 times, the 11th is free!

Pock-toberfest



Visit your dermatologist and see about getting those facial blemishes and marks taken care of.

Rock-toberfest



MTV should be all over this one. Back-to-back classic rock.

Spock-toberfest



Star Trek fans get treated to back-to-back episodes featuring that emotionless Vulcan.

Wok-toberfest



Panda Express at the malls... or your local Pan-asian cuisine restaurant could leverage this play on words...

What ideas do you have? Add your comments!

Actual "___berfest" Events

• Blocktoberfest - This is a music event which takes place in the Washington DC area. Their version of an Oktoberfest celebration.
• Pup-toberfest- the Delaware Puppy Rescue had a fundraiser for their rescue and adoption center.
• Polka-Toberfest - was held in Minneapolis last Saturday.
• Golf-Toberfest - was held by the Duran Golf Club in Viera, Florida.
• "Doc"toberfest - is celebrated in East Central Indiana as an opportunity to offer Indianians free health answers.
• Oink-toberfest - a BBQ Cook-Off at the Great Pumpkin Farm in the town of Clarence, New York.

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To be productive, many of us start the day with a cup (or cups) of coffee. The daily ritual and caffeine helps to jump start our day.

To be productive in problem solving or idea generation, I have found Idea A Day (idea-a-day.com) to be an excellent resource to jump start brainstorming.

United Kingdom based David Owen launched the Idea A Day website in August 2000. With ideas suggested by readers, he has published a different idea each day since launch - they are on day 2108.

Ideas span from silly to serious - but all interesting.

Some recent ideas that I found interesting include...

• Design wine bottle labels so that they can be peeled off. Consumers can stick the labels somewhere safe to remind them at a later date of a bottle they enjoyed should they wish to buy it again. - day 2107 by Rebecca Wood
• Manufacture a disposable microwave liner which allows the oven to function normally but which protects the walls from getting dirty. - day 2099 by David Herrington
• Create a carbon offset tax. People would be taxed a certain percentage a month based on their carbon footprint. By doing things to lower their carbon footprint, the percentage would be lowered. For example driving a car that gets more than a 30 mpg, buying locally grown organic produce, or not spraying the lawn would cut back the tax. The revenue raised could in turn be used to develop green technologies, plant trees and protect rain forests. - day 2092 by max

You may subscribe to the site as an RSS feed and/or as an e-mail sent daily.

Enjoy!

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When I was a kid I tried to be late for the dinner table explaining to Mom that Atari's Yar's Revenge was making me "smarter and more alert..." She was much smarter and more alert than that...

Kids (and adults) in the 21st Century have a real excuse. Check out the on-line story Brain Teasers by Clive Thompson at Wired about a video game called "Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day" that claims to challenge, grade and strengthen your intellect.

From the Brain Age Nintendo website...

What is Brain Age?

Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day for Nintendo DS is a fun, rewarding form of entertainment everyone can enjoy, as it helps players flex their mental muscles. Brain Age is inspired by the research of Professor Ryuta Kawashima, a prominent Japanese neuroscientist. His studies evaluated the impact of performing certain reading and mathematic exercises to help stimulate the brain.

Brain Age presents quick mental activities that help keep your DS brain in shape. Activities include quickly solving simple math problems, counting people going in and out of a house simultaneously, drawing pictures on the Touch Screen, reading classic literature out loud, and more. You can also play sudoku, the number puzzle game which has become an extremely popular feature in U.S. newspapers.

On your first day of exercise, you will take a series of tests and get a score that determines how old your brain is. This number is called your "DS Brain Age". By performing daily exercises just minutes a day over weeks and months, the better you'll get at the exercises and the lower your DS Brain Age will become.

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The January 16th issue of TIME magazine has a major section on "How to Sharpen Your Mind."

One of the key articles explores the best times of day for both "Morning People" and "Night Owls" to create, problem solve, rejuvinate and rest. I've re-worked the graphics presented in TIME for this post.

For the Morning Person
TIME says, for the early riser, "creativity generally peaks early in the wake cycle before distractions can impede the brain's imaginative focus."

For the Night Owl
The most productive time for Night Owls is "long after they've shaken off morning groginess." While working past midnight can be effective, experts agree "sleeping less than the optimal eight hours can impair cognitive performance."

• Low Concentration - the body's clock shifts, lowering concentration.
• Creativity - best time for brainstorming and open-ended thinking. Before the brain is flooded with the day's stimuli.
• Problem Solving - The brain is warmed up and at its peak for activities from analysis to memorization.
• Rejuvination - 'To stay sharp, experts suggest refreshing the mind with daily exercise and brain-building activities like reading, artistic exploration and puzzle solving.'

Check out Michael Kaplans "The Best Time to Do Everything"... TIME references this book in the article.

For more, pick up this issue of TIME.

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