If you ask my wife she’ll tell you that I vary between the ages of 12-15 on any given day. And I’m proud of that.
As a person in the “creative industry” it’s important that I never forget to play. It’s vital that we all never lose that child-like hope and optimism for fun things. It’s super easy as a “grown-up” to come up with all of the reasons that something just won’t work.
Have you ever watched a child with their mind set toward accomplishing something? They will try anything and everything in the pursuit of this goal. Sometimes it won’t work. Sometimes it will.
One of the biggest challenges that we face as grown-up, professional, business people today is that the things we used to do and the ways we did them simply aren’t relevant any more. What are we to do?
Before we go any further I’m going to tell you a big secret.
“Creative” is not a person and it certainly is not a department. True creative is a mindset. It’s a way of letting go of adult constraints and reverting back to the way we were when we were children, always looking for new possibilities and ways of doing things. It’s taking what you have available to you and making the absolute most out of it. Don’t let what you don’t have be the excuse for doing nothing.
It’s time to PLAY.
There are two benefits to just playing. The first is that we get to escape from the pressures weighing down on us every day. And often times when we take a step back and escape from what we have to figure out the answer is sitting there, in plain sight and we couldn’t see it because we were too focused on the end result.
The second benefit is that the mindset of play broadens our thinking with opportunities that our “grown-up” mindset wouldn’t allow. Playing and problem solving becomes habit, and a valuable one at that.
Baby steps.
The next time you have to solve a seemingly unsolvable issue, try these simple steps.
1.Start with no limitations. Take the word “no” out of your vocabulary. Open the child in you. Think “why not?” and “what if?”. Be completely open to new ideas.
2.Create a complete list of ALL of these thoughts and walk away. Don’t edit any of these ideas yet.
3.Play! Do something now that that had absolutely nothing to do with what your challenge is. Something that lets your mind escape and wander. For some people this is driving, for others it’s crafts, for some it’s tinkering in the garage, for others it’s cleaning (I’ll never understand that one). Whatever it is for you, step out and play.
4.Now go back to your list of ideas. This is your toolbox. Examine the tools you have and create the best possible plan to solving your problem.
5.Now try it. If you don’t try something you’ll never know if it’ll work.
6.Don’t be afraid to be wrong. Thomas A. Edison said “Just because something doesn’t do what you planned it to do doesn’t mean it’s useless.” Take that new knowledge you’ve gained and use it as part of your new toolbox.
Play to pay
If you ask my wife she’ll tell you that I vary between the ages of 12-15 on any given day. And I’m proud of that.
As a person in the “creative industry” it’s important that I never forget to play. It’s vital that we all never lose that child-like hope and optimism for fun things. It’s super easy as a “grown-up” to come up with all of the reasons that something just won’t work.
Have you ever watched a child with their mind set toward accomplishing something? They will try anything and everything in the pursuit of this goal. Sometimes it won’t work. Sometimes it will.
One of the biggest challenges that we face as grown-up, professional, business people today is that the things we used to do and the ways we did them simply aren’t relevant any more. What are we to do?
Before we go any further I’m going to tell you a big secret.
“Creative” is not a person and it certainly is not a department. True creative is a mindset. It’s a way of letting go of adult constraints and reverting back to the way we were when we were children, always looking for new possibilities and ways of doing things. It’s taking what you have available to you and making the absolute most out of it. Don’t let what you don’t have be the excuse for doing nothing.
It’s time to PLAY.
There are two benefits to just playing. The first is that we get to escape from the pressures weighing down on us every day. And often times when we take a step back and escape from what we have to figure out the answer is sitting there, in plain sight and we couldn’t see it because we were too focused on the end result.
The second benefit is that the mindset of play broadens our thinking with opportunities that our “grown-up” mindset wouldn’t allow. Playing and problem solving becomes habit, and a valuable one at that.
Baby steps.
The next time you have to solve a seemingly unsolvable issue, try these simple steps.
1. Start with no limitations. Take the word “no” out of your vocabulary. Open the child in you. Think “why not?” and “what if?”. Be completely open to new ideas.
2. Create a complete list of ALL of these thoughts and walk away. Don’t edit any of these ideas yet.
3. Play! Do something now that that had absolutely nothing to do with what your challenge is. Something that lets your mind escape and wander. For some people this is driving, for others it’s crafts, for some it’s tinkering in the garage, for others it’s cleaning (I’ll never understand that one). Whatever it is for you, step out and play.
4. Now go back to your list of ideas. This is your toolbox. Examine the tools you have and create the best possible plan to solving your problem.
5. Now try it. If you don’t try something you’ll never know if it’ll work.
6. Don’t be afraid to be wrong. Thomas A. Edison said “Just because something doesn’t do what you planned it to do doesn’t mean it’s useless.” Take that new knowledge you’ve gained and use it as part of your new toolbox.
7. Repeat.
Now wasn’t that fun?