Week 4 Reading Reflection

I loved the excerpt from “Think Big,” Developing Creativity. It includes several methods to unlock your mind’s creativity. What really caught my attention was method number 2: opposites attract. The concept of synectics is fascinating, putting two “nonsensical” things together. At first, this seems like just another farfetched idea that only artists and musicians would make the most sense of. “The brushstrokes of this painting are smooth and elegant, though the emotion of its contents are bold and enraged,” is what originally comes to mind. But the examples provided illustrate the concept in a real-world, never-looked-at-it-that-way angle. “Imagine a restaurant with no waiters, tables, or silverware (McDonald’s); imagine a bookstore with no books—and no store (Amazon.com); imagine moving trucks with no movers (U-Haul).” Wow. Mind officially blown.

I found myself having to reread the section titled The Process of Knowledge and Learning several times. Perhaps it was the wording that was confusing, or perhaps it was its dullness. Fortunately, the reading gets easier with the following subsections, Entrepreneurial Imagination and Creativity and The Role of Creative Thinking. Table 5.2 also helped with a T-table format for the Two Approaches to Creative Problem Solving.

I like to think I’m a creative individual but I find myself struggling with breaking the boundaries of what I know with certainty, or coloring outside the lines. The author explains a few exercises to help with expanding creativity. I would like to know more ways the author exercises creativity development. And I would also like to know how someone with an “adaptor” mindset can become an “innovator.”

 This chapter covers many processes and ideas that are generally accepted by professionals for creativity and innovation. The author does a good job of explaining most of these processes are general concepts that vary in order and structure, so he understands that not everything is the way always it happens. For example, I like to think the idea experience, phase 3 of the creative process, usually happens before the incubation process, phase 2, and then one might accumulate knowledge and research after, phase 1. Such innovator might come up with a great idea one day, sleep on it for a while or incubate, and finally research the industry.