Archive for Principles

Creating the killer party theme: Paradox

July 8, 2008 at 4:37 pm · Filed under Practical Tools, Principles ·Tagged

The toga, 1980s, the costume… the I am so bored of the same old party themes. Aren’t you? Creativity is enhanced when a person needs to stretch their thinking. Whenever creativity is required to solve a problem, adding an unrelated paradox is a sure fire way to identify gaps, create novelty, and establish a killer theme.

Paradox

null

The paradox process is at the heart of a problem solving approach called Synectics. Using metaphor, it takes a person along an excursion to take a break from a problem and then jump into how that metaphor relates to the problem. The paradox is an example of a metaphor on steriods. These are just example of paradoxical themes: cool fire, relaxed tension, repulsive beauty, tamed wildness, sweet Sara (Sara isn’t so sweet). Notice how these phrases catch you for a split second? It is that feeling that attempts to make sense of two unlike concepts that leaves a lasting impression. The metaphor is also the source of themes like toga or the 1980s; it refers to another moment in time.

When making a paradox for a themed problem solving party, it will have the most impact if the theme is short and slightly ambiguous. It will resonate more with participants if they can understand it in their own way. Set the stage, turn on the music, and make the themed party of year fruitful. :-)

Leave a Comment

Myth: Sugar rush

July 3, 2008 at 11:16 pm · Filed under Nutrition ·Tagged

Glucose is the only form of energy that the brain can use to remain alert and active. With this in mind, I remember that test prep courses for the ACT and SAT in high school prescribed that students should take an oral shot of M&Ms to boost brain power during the test. I did that and had a soda afterwards. My brain shut down after 30 minutes. The sugar rushed and wore me out!

Anyhow, the sugar rush according to studies appears to be a myth. The body has many processes in place to control the amount of blood sugar that there is in the body. When my processes kicked in as a response to that sugar, according to the book Your Brain: The Missing Manual, my body expended more energy than it would have normally and resulted in the crash of 1994: the incomplete ACT exam.

When planning that party with a purpose, food selection is indeed important. If the party is intended to be short, pass out the candy and hotwire your crowd. Pray that the party ends before you short circuit the crowd’s brain. For events that have the potential to last a few hours, stick to delivering to your crowd complex carbohydrates so that the sugars are processed smoothly over the event or test.

Leave a Comment

Guidelines for convergence

June 22, 2008 at 12:29 am · Filed under Principles ·Tagged

Audrey's Explosion

Southern Explosion

Walking into a designers’ studios, the fashionista Audrey stands in shock. The studios share a space called “Collective”, where 7 designers with divergent backgrounds display and share their latest designs. Influences from South America to the country south and China, India and the Outback welcome the normally surprised guest into the Collective.

Not Audrey. She was on a mission to create the perfect outfit, ideallic and most of all, make it stand out only as Audrey could. Her criteria for this outfit, it had to look like Audrey. (Yes, it is a disappointing reality, but people do exist who think that they are their own style. What the heck does this mean????!!!)

She first walked into Devante’s Southern Spice. The hottest trends imported from Brazil decorated his walls. Bright, vivid colors dyed the lightest fabrics cut with the most exquisite of tastes. It was said that the most dull of people would end up smiling from the energy exuding from his style. Not Audrey, she walked in and immediately felt overwhelmed by the color. It was too much for her too handle and she exploded.

The guidelines for converging on ideas, options, and solutions are essential when using this games. A closed attitude will make you explode, like Audrey, if there is too rigid of a selection process. These guidelines have been developed to help develop the best ideas, options, and solutions when addressing a problem. Practicing these guidelines will help keep the party going and develop the best possible outcome in relation to a problem that is being addressed.

  1. Keep in mind the goal and objectives of the party.
  2. Be deliberate.
  3. Be affirmative.
  4. Consider novelty.
  5. Build and combine on ideas.

If all else fails, just rely on a game of darts to make your decision, check out the Pointed Hits game.

For more information on these guidelines, read Roger Firestien’s book, Leading the Creative Edge.

Leave a Comment

The Party Host: The Role of Facilitator

June 21, 2008 at 4:22 pm · Filed under Principles ·Tagged

Party Hostesses

Just as a great party has a great host, the problem solving party needs to someone guide the party itself: a facilitator. The facilitator plans how the party will flow, who shows up, how the environment of the party is set up, and helps everyone to have fun.

The responsibility of the facilitator in these processes is to ensure that everyone keeps to the objectives set for the party (remember this party has a purpose), tries to help everyone get involved, and stays out of the content of the problem. (A BIG SECRET)

At the end, the facilitator debriefs the process and figures out where to go next with the owner of the problem. Sounds easy? Depends on your personality, your preferences, and other factors. It could be. In any case, it is a process of being the great party host.

The best place to learn how to be a great facilitator is at the Creative Studies program at Buffalo State College where they offer a certificate for Creativity and Change Leadership.

Leave a Comment

The importance of deferring judgment

June 20, 2008 at 8:00 pm · Filed under Principles ·Tagged ,

Dropping Ducks

Two hunters watching flocks of geese and ducks at lake loading their rifles. The first hunter, John, loads his gun, cocks it, and points it in the air.

“This won’t work!” exclaims Burnie, the second hunter. A round shoots prematurely in the air.

“What won’t work?”

“This chair. It won’t work.”

With every word that Burnie said, a duck in flight fell to the ground.

“It can’t support my weight when i fire my rifle. It is just too small and flimsy.”

Trying to ignore the comments made by his friend, John loads up a new round, steadies his aim…

“I am telling you it won’t work!”

The gun fires prematurely, and in frustration John tells Burnie to shut up and then loads a new round. This time, he sees the ducks dropping out of the air at alarming rates. At first, the phenomena was too small to notice behind the sights of a rifle, but now entire flocks don’t make it beyond 10 feet from the ground when they drop.

“Hey, Burnie… look.”

Burnie was fixated on he seat, when John made his statement.

“Look, look, the ducks are hitting the ground from mid-flight…”

Burnie turns his eyes towards the ducks and sees the ducks taking flight. John, though confused, loaded a new round and started to steady his aim.

“The ducks are taking flight. They were on the ground the entire time. They never hit the ground…”

When Burnie spoke his last sentence, all the ducks and geese plummeted to the ground. John missed his shot, again.

The ducks drop from the ground due to wrong judgment

Deferring judgment is the first step to using this games. Many times in groups, individuals find a reason to pass a judgment and starts a process that unravels any problem solving session. Rather than focusing their energy on the real issue, they choose to judge themselves, their teammates, the process, or the idea.

Research has indicated that practicing an approach that defers all forms of judgment when seeking opportunities, seeking ideas, or generating solutions produces better results when addressing a problem that requires some creativity. It sacrifices a potentially great solution for a mediocre one and destroys a positive and conducive problem solving climate. Like the inevitable dynamic between hunters in the narrative, the introduction of ill timed judgment creates tension and reason to not enjoy hunting.

Be patient when trying these games and feel free to experiment. Change the game up and try different combinations. They are, after all, a part of a problem solving party.

For more information on the principle of deferred judgment, check out the work of Alex Osborn in Applied Creativity published by the Creative Education Foundation.

Leave a Comment