Don’t Do Drugs?

Posted on February 21, 2008 - Filed Under On Ideation | Leave a Comment

Do you remember when you were in Grade 9 English and you had to read Hamlet? Did anybody else watch the movie instead of reading the play? I just want to know that I’m not alone.
Inspired by Hugh’s manifesto “How To Be Creative”, some design students have put together a short video version of […]

Why You Don’t Need A Macbook

Posted on February 13, 2008 - Filed Under On Ideation | 4 Comments

There is no correlation between creativity and equipment. None. Zilch. Nada. You don’t need a shiny new Macbook to create brilliant ideas. The more talented someone is, the less they need the props. There are too many people that focus on acquiring the tools to be creative instead of working on developing the ideas themselves.
Instead […]

The Power of Small Ideas

Posted on February 8, 2008 - Filed Under On Ideation | 1 Comment

Not all ideas have to be big. They don’t all have to change the world. As a matter of fact, many of the big ideas out there today started as small ones targeted at a specific market. It just so happened that the value that a small group of people found in the concept could […]

Don’t Covet Your Ideas

Posted on December 19, 2007 - Filed Under On Ideation | Leave a Comment

I got a Christmas present today. It was a book. It’s called “It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want To Be.” To be honest, I haven’t had the opportunity to read through it all yet, but it looks promising at a first glance. It’s written by a guy name Paul Arden […]

7 Ways to Boost Creativity

Posted on November 30, 2007 - Filed Under On Ideation, Inspiration | Leave a Comment

1. Listen to Lupe Fiasco. His lyrics are sick. If Lupe doesn’t inspire you, we are obviously from different generations.
2. Always carry a small notebook and a pen or pencil around with you. That way, if you are struck by an idea, you can quickly write it down.
3. If you’re stuck for an idea, open […]

Humour and Creativity

Posted on November 15, 2007 - Filed Under On Ideation | Leave a Comment

I was on Fast Company’s site yesterday and noticed this article called “Why You Should Include a Joker in Every Brainstorming Session.” Finally, some validation! Some expert has given me a legitimate business argument that explains how my sometimes effervescent behaviour improves creativity. That’s right. And that person is John Morreall, a professor at the […]

Similarity vs Complimentary

Posted on October 2, 2007 - Filed Under On Ideation | Leave a Comment

Great minds think alike. That’s the problem. I was away for the past week in Europe on vacation and it gave me some great time to ponder relationships. The most fruitful relationships are those where each party compliments the other. This principle applies to all relationships, whether it’s the relationship between […]

Six Principles of Creativity

Posted on September 18, 2007 - Filed Under On Ideation | Leave a Comment

I was in a meeting this morning and someone brought up the term “greenhousing” and how it relates to ideation and creativity. I thought the concept that they were talking about was so steeped in truth, that I decided to do a little research. Apparently, greenhousing is one of six creative behaviours […]

The Importance of Stupid Ideas

Posted on August 28, 2007 - Filed Under On Ideation, Brainstorming Techniques | Leave a Comment

Stupid ideas are stupid. Right? Wrong. Granted, there are always instances where you look back and regret acting on a silly whim or drunken idea. But that’s the point. “Stupid” ideas are not at fault. It is acting on them that is.
Stupid ideas are fantastic because of their ability to lead us on […]

The Six Principles of Sticky Ideas

Posted on August 20, 2007 - Filed Under On Ideation, Cool Ideas, Inspiration | Leave a Comment

You can learn how to create sticky ideas. That’s the premise of a new book by a Stanford biz school prof called Made to Stick. In 1999, an Israeli research team analyzed 200 award-winning advertisements and some 200 others (from the same sources and for similar products) that sucked.
The study found […]