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write reply Anne Laure Manwen Guo Catherine Meena Jing Shu Chen Sarah Firth Jeff Ben Nagata
Ashley Ashish Didwania Arjan Tupan Carole Fayard open IDEO ideo Hi Thanks also one profile photo
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Promoting Failure
Failure is often turned down in our society, which only promotes success and achievement. Failure is a
powerful tool for improvement though, and can lead to extraordinary creative results.
Audri's Monster Trap
Audri's Monster Trap Success of Failure
In order to foster creative confidence in children and young people, it is important to give a positive
value to failure and to shift the way we culturally perceive it.
I just invite you to watch these amazing videos, and hope you'll share your own in the comments!
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Inspiration submitted by: Carole
September 18, 2013, 04:49PM
1611 views 20 comments 38 applause Applauded
Mission #3 Interviews + Observations Find out more...
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Manwen Guo
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Link October 09, 2013, 09:02PM
Everyone will fail many times in his/her life. There is a Chinese saying that "Failure is the mother of
success." It means that success is born from failures. If you think failure from a constructive
perspective, it's not hard to think that we are closer to the success. With this kind of attitude, the person
may be more confident to phrase the problem and act positively.
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Rosie Dalton-Lucas
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Ha ha - it's very Wallace and Gromit, lovely set up! I've seen similar acceptance that several 'failures'
are likely before a success when kids try for the umpteenth time to move up to the next level of a
computer game, but it looks far more rewarding when you've created the challenge that you're also
testing.
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Rachael Tachie-Menson
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Link October 06, 2013, 06:27AM
Carole this is just amazing - the challenge literally in action! thanks for sharing! If you've ever watched
the Kid President videos, I was somehow reminded of those watching Audri's video. Audri needs his
own show! I love that he was so excited about his awesomely complex contraption, explained all of the
details, had a healthy outlook on how it might and might not work. The best part was the moment near
the end where he realized that he had beat the odds he set! :-)
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Rudolf Kutina
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Interesting, when we see start to see failure as NEGATIVE ?
Kids during play don't perceive failure negatively :-)
PLANKS Simply toys open space for complex play, Complex toys allows only simple play!
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/simply-toys-open-space-for-comlexplay-complex-toys-alow-only-simply-play/
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Hao Dinh
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Carole, we are experimenting with prototyping visual ways of connecting similar inspirations using
Pinterest – all in order to enable OpenIDEATORS to better collaborate and build on each other’s
inspirations.
Your posting is part of the "Embracing Failure" Pinterest board. Check out the field note detailing the
Pinterest board.
http://www.openideo.com/fieldnotes/openideo-team-notes/creative-confidence-challenge-communitychampion-update-2/
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Gaia Montelatici
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Link September 26, 2013, 09:22AM
BEAUTIFUL!!!!!! I live in Serbia and these days there is a lot of talk at the policy level on the need for
entrepreneurial education in schools!!!! Of course, in Mediterranean Europe "education" is interpreted
99% of the times as "formal education": teacher from their high status and podiums and students
listening to teachers. This video is educational in so many ways!!!! It is peer-to-peer (taken for granted
in Anglosaxon countries...:)), it is entrepreneurial, it is creative, it is encouraging, it is scientific...It also
is a great ground on which to strengthen social inclusion (not identifying failure with vulnerable
categories...and building potentials for success through failures...) :)
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Vishal Jodhani
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Carole, thank you! This is definitely some inspiration. There's just so much in that first video: knowing
that the system is often quite complex and has so many variables at play, preparing for success and
failure, framing the hypothesis and then observing what works, enjoying the ride, and above all - the
ability to think up a new idea AND actually acting on it. I hope this always acts as a strong reminder for
him to nurture his creative confidence!
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Michael Kupfer
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Link September 23, 2013, 11:59PM
Great videos; great inspiration!
Imagine the scenario that one would succeed always the very first time. The volume of information
learned would be very limited: one would miss out on so many things, miss so many other facets of
whatever the scenario was, that could have been encountered otherwise through failure.
As an example the second video: if the person would succeed with his wall-back-flip trick the first time
(hypothetically) he would have missed out on learning about firmness of the ground, falling strategies
that reduce impact, etc.
Thanks for sharing, Carole.
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Michelle Hill
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OMG! I'm crying. Inspiration for the day. Check! Thank you for sharing.
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OpenIDEO
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Congrats on this post being today's onsite Featured Inspiration!
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Carole 's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Carole
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Thanks! It's exciting to see how overwhelming the response is :)
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Christina Nesheva
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I totally love it! it is so amazing to see how excited he is about his failures! "if you don't succeed, try
again!"
Conditioning people to go after success kills all creativity and risk-taking. Failing is showing us what
has not worked and we know. it is as important as knowing what works because guess what environment changes and what works today, will most likely not work tomorrow.
amazing video!
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An Old Friend
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What is failure? what is success? I think failure is a by-product of the process. Rather than worrying
about failing we should be more concerned about achieving the goal. That's what he did to succeed.
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Paula Marra
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Loved it!
Mini Edison:
Negative results are just what I want. They’re just as valuable to me as positive results. I can never find
the thing that does the job best until I find the ones that don’t.”
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Paula Marra's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Paula Marra
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Had to watch again....absolutely brilliant!!!!
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Mathieu Chevalier
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fail fast !
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Hao Dinh
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Rube rocks! I love how he is so excited when it didn't work and embraced the learning from his
failures! Thanks for sharing Carole. Now I'm ready to start the day of promoting my failures!
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Ashley Jablow
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AMAZING!!!
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Meena Kadri
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Have to admit – I only watched the first one – but boy, I was inspired! Love how he took failure in his
stride as part of the process. So much to learn here.
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Cesar Lastra's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Cesar Lastra
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Brilliant! Never seen a kid expect lots of failures and be so excited to have only 3 before getting it
right. Fantastic!
The Story of Doug Dietz: Creative Confidence in the MRI Suite
A creative mindset can be a powerful force for looking beyond the status quo.
Transforming healthcare for children and their families
Transforming healthcare for children and their families Pirate's ship
One of my favorite stories of creative confidence is a story from Doug Dietz, a designer at GE
Healthcare. A few years ago, he wrapped up a project working on a brand new, beautiful MRI machine.
One day while he was proudly waiting to see his design live in the hospital, he encountered a young
patient in the hallway heading towards the scan room with her parents. She was clearly terrified, tears
rolling down her face. At the sight of the young girl, the MRI technician instantly called for the
anesthesiologist.
This moment changed his perspective forever and he knew he had to make a change. He enrolled in an
executive education course at Stanford's d.school and learned how to approach the challenge from a
human-centered design perspective that would ultimately help him make MRIs less terrifying for
children. This workshop is what ignited Doug's creative confidence.
Doug knew he wouldn't be able to secure significant funding to redesign an MRI machine from scratch,
so he focused on the experience instead. He and his team transformed the MRI machine into a kid's
adventure story with the patient starring in the lead role. Doug and his team applied colorful decals to
the outside of the machine and on every surface of the room, covering the equipment, floor, ceilings
and walls. They also created a script for the technician to lead their patients through the adventure.
Some of the prototypes included a pirate ship — a captain's wheel surrounding the opening of the
chamber made the area feel less claustrophobic, where the patient gets to pick a treasure from the
pirate's chest at the end. And another — a space ship — the banging of the machine simulating the
shuttle shifting into "hypermode." With these new designs and others, the number of patients needing
sedation decreased dramatically. Patients were happier. Hospitals were happier. His greatest
achievement however was when a little girl once asked her mom after the scan: "can we come back
tomorrow?"
Approach a problem with a creative mindset like Doug did, and so many new opportunities present
themselves.
You'll find this story and many others in my and my brother's new book, Creative Confidence. Thank
you for joining us on this adventure!
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Inspiration submitted by: David Kelley
October 04, 2013, 03:56AM
990 views 11 comments 13 applause Applaud
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Ashish Didwania
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"When you design with a purpose, good things will happen." What an apt and a powerful statement that
is. In fact, if we try to search around for some of the most effective design models, then we can clearly
see that these models were backed by a much larger picture, with a greater purpose for good.
At this thought, my mind tickles with a thought. In order to build creative confidence in younger people
it is important to show them the bigger picture, make them realize the importance of the
accomplishment they will achieve through building this skill. They should be able to picture it and feel
good for the difference they can bring about.
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Vishal Jodhani
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Wow, thank you for sharing this inspiring story. Doug's creative confidence and commitment to a
bigger purpose has definitely had an impact, and "changed the conversation" for a lot of patients and
their families.
To me, the difference between Doug and the "bawling technologist" seems to be one of creative
confidence. I guess we all come across, or are part of, systems that are not working the way they were
intended to, and as Doug says, "there's all this stuff that just gets in the way". And we can either slowly
forget why we wanted to be a part of the system in the first place, and accept the status quo, or build
empathy, a sense of purpose and creative confidence to make a difference.
Building on the comments by Kirk, Anne-Laure and Ashley, this story does leave me with these
questions: How might we help young people discover a sense of purpose to channel their creative
confidence? How might we enable them to take the initiative to challenge the status quo?
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Kirk Soderstrom
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After watching Doug's moving TED Talk, it is apparent that his life-altering experience filled him with
a renewed sense of purpose.
It made me wonder: Does having a purpose larger than oneself enable a person to discover, develop and
sustain creative confidence? Doug seemed willing to try nearly anything to change the patient
experience... to such an extent that he concealed an artifact that he spent years designing!
On a separate note, I look forward to reading Creative Confidence!
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Ashley Jablow's reply to Ashish Didwania's comment
Ashley Jablow
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Interesting thoughts on having a purpose, Kirk. I think you're right that feeling compelled to rise above
and have an impact on something 'larger' than your daily life might be part of it. Something to think
about for sure!
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Anne-Laure Fayard's reply to Ashish Didwania's comment
Anne-Laure Fayard
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Great point Kirk: whether it's a purpose larger than oneself or passion, having something that motivates
you allows you to aim for the goal without worrying about whether you'll succeed or not (and thus take
risk). One question for this challenge is then, how can you create environments, relationships, that
allows young children to have this excitement, sense of purpose?
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Kirk Soderstrom's reply to Ashish Didwania's comment
Kirk Soderstrom
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Connection to others directs and reinforces one's sense of purpose, because successful design does not
live in isolation. Doug's encounter with the little girl and her family led to a deeper inquiry about the
meaning of his work and his life purpose. The encounter happened in the real world; not in the safety
and confines of the studio environment.
Your question somehow reminded me of Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers, which underscored the vital
importance of the support systems---family, birthplace, and birth date---of famously successful
individuals. I love the forest for the trees analogy that he used: Without the soil, sunlight, relative
location, absence of predators, and rainfall, the tree will not take root and thrive in the ecosystem.
In a sense, he expanded the "nature vs. nurture" box into a Nature x Nurture way of perceiving human
potential and nurturing creative confidence during this critical development stage. (Maybe we should
play with this idea during the next challenge phase? I'm in =)
However, the examples in Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers were strongly correlated to geographic
constraints in a pre-Internet era. In many ways, this landscape has completely transformed in the sense
that if you have an Internet connection and device, then you have the key to discovering your passions
and unlocking your creative confidence with other like-minded individuals and communities. This is an
incredible, exciting development, and we are only at the beginning of the curve! Opensourcing and
social innovation platforms have grown dramatically, and although there are valid safety and privacy
concerns that must be addressed, a partial answer to your question might lie in here.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks for sharing this story from your book.
It seems to me that there are 2 "triggers" in Doug's story:
- first, his experience seeing this little girl crying because she was scared of the MRI: his empathy for
her and her family, and other patients led him to challenge the status quo of hospital
-second, he took the workshop at the D.School and this provided with some tools and methods that
made him confident in experimenting with new ideas and led him to redesign the MRI.
I'm curious to see what are the ideas that emerge in the ideation phase in providing contexts /
environments that provide / facilitate these "triggers".
Moreover, the output of Doug's design reminded me another inspiration on the power of art
installations in hospitals: http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/the-healingpower-of-interactive-art-and-giant-furniture/
Another link to this creative confidence challenge might be: how to allow children in stressful
environments like hospital to still play and dream?
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Ashley Jablow
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I like where you're going with 'triggers', Anne-Laure. I think for each of us there are moments that
catalyze us to take smart risks or act on our ideas, and moments that cause us to shut down or shy away
from a challenge. I wonder how universal these triggers might be, and how unique they are to each of
us?
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Anne-Laure Fayard's reply to Ashish Didwania's comment
Anne-Laure Fayard
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Great question Ashley! There are indeed many cases you can think of where people are suddenly
confronted with a challenge, or what Kirk called in his comment a purpose larger than oneself. It
reminds me of another inspiration http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/-inthe-middle-of-difficulty-lies-an-opportunity-albert-einstein.-but-should-we-wait-for-it/
and some of the conversations about how people react to challenging situations.
To your questions, about how universal or how personal are they? I'm wondering if there are not some
situations which can create these "calls for action". Yet, how we react to these are unique. We can
ignore them, or not even see the situations.
In the case of Doug, he was able to see / listen to the situation but then the D.School offered him the
right support. ...
Still more to think about.
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Christopher Rannefors
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Beautiful story. One of the pieces that I am most interested in is at 12:15 when he discussed how the
parents relaxation with the 'piña colada' scent comforted the child in turn; and he explains how "if you
got the child you got the parent, and if you got the parent, you got the child." I believe that child-parent
engagement is going to be essential to drawing solutions for this design challenge. Not only do we have
to think about raising a new generation of creative children, but we have to think about raising a new
generation of creatively involved parents.
The following article provides a short academic discussion on parents' influence on the development of
childrens' creative growth: http://www.education.com/reference/article/influence-parents-familiestalent/
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Ashley Jablow
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Absolutely agree that the parent/child interaction is a key component in our challenge. Glad you
brought this in, Christopher.
Nurturing Creative Confidence and Self-expression Through Cultural Comics
Comics based on real life are a fantastic way to enable self-expression and self-awareness! This video
is about the cultural comic workshops I have developed and run in Australia and overseas, giving
students the opportunity to express themselves.
Children's Stories: from Melbourne to Mexico
Children's Stories: from Melbourne to Mexico One group of students from our Cultural Comic
Workshops in Puebla, Mexico One group of students from our Cultural Comic Workshops in Puebla,
Mexico
Comics are a very approachable medium for communication and story telling, which helps students
gain confidence and perspective on their life and other people's experiences. Often the way creative
subjects (particularly creative writing and art) are taught at school, leads to competition and
exclusiveness, which can be very intimidating and cause young students to give up. Comics open a
'side door' back into creative freedom and reigniting confidence, because they are casual, narrative and
you don't have to be 'good' at drawing.
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Inspiration submitted by: Sarah Catherine Firth
September 20, 2013, 07:23AM
Mission #2 Creative Confidence Enablers Find out more...
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Manwen Guo
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I personally have lots of experience with comics, and I do think it's a great way to cultivate creativity. I
am still watching a Japanese anima , and I am so amazed by the author's imagination. It's fun and it's
engaging. Kids by nature love expression and storytelling, and their world can be very exclusive.
Therefore, we can at least know about their world a bit by looking at their drawing/creativity work.
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Anne Kjaer Riechert
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Wonderful work Sarah. And what a great video. I would love to do something similar for my own
project. I run a project called Kids Have a Dream, which also the medium of art to empower children
and give them a global voice. I just uploaded my project here: http://www.openideo.com/open/creativeconfidence/inspiration/kids-have-a-dream/ - In essence I work with local school teachers or social
workers and teach them how to run local workshops where the students draw their dreams for the
future. Afterwards they send the drawings back to me, and I make them into exhibitions to raise
awareness about global issues and raise global understanding. Right now I am in the process of raising
money to fund a large exhibition on the Berlin Wall for the 25th anniversary next year. The idea is to
illuminate 100m of the remaining Wall with dreams from kids in 100 countries.
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Sarah Catherine Firth's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Sarah Catherine Firth
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Wow Anne that is fantastic!
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Anne-Laure Fayard's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Anne-Laure Fayard
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Glad to see the 2 of your "meeting" as I think there are a lot of complementary things in your two
projects! :-)
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Yes, it's very exciting!
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Sarah for sharing. These workshops look great.
I like how you use something that is familiar and attractive to children - comics - to invite them to start
thinking and articulating ideas and emotions, as well as asking questions. In that sense, it is a great
"starter" per Ben's inspiration: http://www.openideo.com/open/creativeconfidence/inspiration/imagination-starters-and-the-power-of-20-inspiration-/ .
I also think the workshop format where you provide kids with techniques and tricks help them be
confident enough so that they can express themselves in the comics format.
I love how some of the children said that their favorite par was "writing the story together": the
narrative is big aspect of it (comics in that sense are great because they are visuals but they are also
about story telling) and the collaborative aspect.
More than the comics, it is about the experience of creating and sharing: I thought it was really
interesting to see how the kids used their comics as a way to tell their stories and share them. The
comics helped them articulating their ideas and emotions, but then it also becomes a great support to
communicate them.
I agree with what one of the teachers say on how it is a great complement to all the topics he teaches: in
that sense, it might also allow children to make connections across disciplines.
And of course, it's great to see the passion and happiness of the kids.
Thanks again!
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Katie Green's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Katie Green
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Anne-Laure, I totally agree with your point about loving how the students enjoyed "writing the story
together". This workshop really seems to build community between students in a way that may not be
possible in a "graded" situation. Do you think that the experience of sharing and creating would have
been the same if they had a "grade"?
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Hi Anne-Laure and Katie, thanks for you comments. Katie, the "grade" question is an interesting one. I
think grades are important but that in creative subjects they can be a quick way to shut down innovation
and experimentation, and create competition (which mind you, can be positive). I think that
external/extra curricular classes like what I did that are "grade-less" along with grading in school create
a better balance for children to operate in two different spaces. One is more measured, one is more free.
What do you think?
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Interesting point regarding the grades. I think the grade would have been different because it would
have signaled something else about the class. The absence of grade and the location highlighted the
different nature of the workshop giving freedom to the children to experiment. Yet, I think they can be
classes with grades which can still trigger similar behaviors. Grades also provide feedback.
To the competition point brought by Sarah, it reminded me something I heard this Friday about
Stanford. Someone who did his MBA there and took courses in design (in what was not yet the
d.school) was telling me how there was a policy of non-disclosure of the GPA between students.
Therefore, students did not care about their GPAs and felt more freedom experimenting and taking
classes where they might not get straight As.
I like your idea Sarah of having two different spaces.
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Arjan Tupan's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Arjan Tupan
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Interesting discussion, thanks AL for pointing it out! The idea of two different spaces is indeed
interesting. But I would suggest we think about adding a third space, where there's a combination of
freedom and grading - maybe by grading on a group level to inspire collaboration. What I think is
important, is that while growing up, young people get to experience and experiment with things they
will encounter once they've grown up, so that they can build the skills to deal with that appropriately.
So giving them the experience of situations you can encounter later in life (sometime you're graded,
sometimes you succeed in a team, and sometimes there's no outside official grading you). This is of
course largely inspired by the article I mentioned in my inspiration here:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/playing-learning/
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Hi Arjan, may I ask you to clarify the idea of the third space. I first thought you meant that there will be
a continuum between grading and no grading at all, you will place your third space in between. Yet,
you then list 3 situations, which seem a bit different:
sometime, you're graded
sometime, you succeed in a team
sometime there's no official grading
I think this last set of distinctions points to an interesting distinction between individual and team
grading.
As for me, I don't see grades as being necessarily individualistic (in most of my courses, nearly half of
the grades is team based). I also think that you can think of grades in different ways: as providing
feedback, as judging the output or the process (e.g. having a grade for the final output and for the
effort)... in any cases (although I know it is easier to say than to do), grades should not be what students
are working toward to.
I think there are interesting themes coming out here on motivation (intrinsic and extrinsic), rewards and
incentives and feedback and providing different contexts.
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Arjan Tupan's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Arjan Tupan
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To be honest, Anne-Laure, it hasn't settled very clear in my mind. I just feel there's more to this than a
binary graded v non-graded environment. Maybe you have a good point, and we should approach
grading differently. More as feedback. Which would lead to probably more project based feedback
loops, versus test-moment graded feedback. I once had a teacher who despised that he had to give us
tests. He did not believe that taking a test on one day was reflecting the level of understanding or
progress we had made. We could not be feeling well that one day, which would negatively impact our
test results.
Anyway, what I got from that article in my inspiration, is that what we should aim for in educating and
raising young children, is to have them learn the skills they need, and discover their talents, in order to
lead a happy and successful life (whereby successful is a difficult term, maybe for another discussion).
Using the right means to motivate them, is something we need educators like you for. You are in the
front line, and can see what works, and what doesn't. But we also need to facilitate spaces (physical,
virtual, allotted time) in which they can learn and discover.
I like where this conversation is going, mainly because it is giving me a space to learn. And I'm not
even that young anymore :).
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Arjan for your thoughts. I don't have a clear view too. I personally as a teacher hates grading (I
try to be "fair" to judge the effort but also the output and this is a hard balance), but I have to and
unfortunately, there is more and more requirements for grading and testing - at all levels of education.
There's a program at NYU where it is only pass or fail and I like the idea as students seem less stress
about A, A-, B+, B, etc.... and I will find it less stressful as a teacher.
Yet, you might say that later on, these students will constantly be judged and graded... and so it might
be part of the experience.
This is another interesting idea:
Shall we in educational environments reproduce perfectly the "grown ups" environment and make our
kids "suffer" (this is a term I heard a couple of time) as we feel we do / they will do as adults, or is it
about giving a space where they can explore and experiment safely so that they can put these new skills
and ideas in practice later on?
I remember having this discussion when we came back with our son who was 3 1/2 from Singapore
where he was in a local kindergarden run by a wonderful loving Australian lady. He loved going there,
was there from 8 to 6, Monday to Friday (he started going there he was 18 months old) and on Saturday
morning, he will put his backpack asking to go! :-) He is now 13 but his voice and face change when he
thinks about this place and the teachers he had there.
Moving to France was harsh (in particular as for various unplanned reasons) and he took more than a
year to truly adjust. I remember many friends telling me to not worry that he did not like school, that
this was normal and in some ways a learning experience in itself. I disagreed and found a better school
the year after but their reactions stuck in my mind.
Regarding your point about learning: this is why I like "teaching", it's because I keep learning! ... and in
my research too...
Looking forward to more conversations... and hopefully they lead us to interesting ideas in the next
phase.
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Ayala Benjamin's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Ayala Benjamin
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Sarah, thank you for posting this video. This is a very special project and the discussion it created is
very interesting.
First of all, I really like the fact that comics include many things – story telling, visuals and the
combination of doing it by yourself or in a group. I think this can help students process things and they
can use it as a tool to express their feelings, thoughts and inner world.
Second, you got into an interesting discussion regarding grading and talked about 2 spaces (school and
non-school). But do you think some of it can happen in school as well? What effect will it have?
Meaning having some classes with no grades in which students will do things they want and can
experiment, rather than dividing it to two different spaces.
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Thanks for all the great comments!
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Ayala, I have done these workshops in schools before and they were 'additional' classes rather than
graded classes. They did, however, build on their current curriculum. The teachers feedback was that
they enhanced learning and were very effective. I don't know how well they would work if grading was
introduced. I do see that workshops like these could fit well into school as a complementary
'development' subject. I hope that answers your questions?
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Elizabeth Lytle
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Hi Sarah,
One aspect of your work that I think is an incredibly valuable (in addition to the many aspects
disccused in the other comments) in cultivating creative confidence is the opporutnity to collaborate
within a personal project. I'm curious: Can you describe how collaboration makes it way into the
workshop? Is it something you incorporate consciously into the structure?
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Hi Elizabeth, thanks for your comment. I'm not sure what you mean by being able to collaborate within
a personal project? I'd be very interested to hear more! On collaboration in general, the way we have
collaborated in the workshop previously, is firstly through a series of body-theatre characterisation
exercises, followed by collaborative storytelling exercises. We then do group speed drawing games to
loosen the kids up, followed by drawing scenarios that the kids choose and the interpretations are
shared amongst the group. The final comic/s that each child makes is more personal and completely up
to them - usually a personal story from their life that enhances self awareness and confidence in their
creative voice. This last part is more self-directed and usually they sit quietly writing/drawing and then
we share the stories once they are done. In my experience this quiet, solitary drawing time is usually
essential so that they can focus and feel confident. Some kids feel very shy to share their real thoughts
and stories if their peers (other students/teachers/parents) are watching them, usually because they get
caught up in trying to impress/do the 'right' thing. etc.
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Katie Green
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Hi Sarah,
This is amazing! Thanks so much for sharing. The fact that this workshop can be applied across
cultures really grabbed my attention. With a pencil and paper in front of them, children can express
themselves no matter where they happen to be. I have spent a lot of time traveling and working
overseas. When I don't know the language (and even when I do), I always carry paper and markers with
me when I visit homes of families. Even though the children and I can't communicate verbally, we can
express ourselves on paper. It opens up a world of connection, creativity, and friendship.
You mentioned wanting to expand the program. Where is your dream location to take your workshop
next?
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It's interesting how being able to communicate through drawings can help in cross cultural situations.
When I ran these workshops in Mexico my Spanish was a little rusty and so the kids and I were able to
improve our communication through acting with our bodies and drawing examples of what we meant.
It definitely opened up a world of connection, creativity, friendship and fun!
I would like to take this workshop to so many places in the world! To Cuba, to the Netherlands, to
Sweden! I really think it could work anywhere, and each time it would be completely different. All we
need to make it happen is museums, translators, schools and teachers who are willing to partner with
us.
The most tangible next step is taking it back to Mexico. One of the teachers we worked with in Puebla,
Miguel Angel Lopez Sanchez who's in the video, was really impressed by the workshops and he wants
to have the workshops taught in his school. He suggested it to fellow teachers and they are onboard.
The teachers see the value for the students and also value for new ways that they can teach content and
make it more engaging. To make it happen, it's just a matter of gathering funds so I can go back,
improving my Spanish, getting approval from the school and matching it to the curriculum!
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yasmeen kashef
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I truly love the process of nurturing creativity and asking young people to draw, especially the ones
who feel that they are no good at drawing. This reminds me of a festival that I went to that had a
comics project somewhat similar to what you have here. These guys set up a table, had a huge scrolling
paper roll and asked anyone passing by (during a festival with high family traffic) to draw a panel.
Check it out here: http://durhamcomicsproject.org/2013/08/eno-river-fest-comic/
What I love about this project is that it's a great way to first engage and introduce creativity without
requiring too much "work". What better way to introduce creativity than to have their parents join them
in drawing a comic at a festival?
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Thank you Yasmeen! I really enjoyed the comics from that festival. What a fabulous idea!
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Hao Dinh
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Sarah, very inspiring way to teach the arts, share cultural experiences and build confidence! Thanks for
sharing and welcome to OpenIDEO.
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Hi Hao, thank you for your comment and I'm so happy you enjoyed it! I really like your Grow By
Design work too. I'd love to some how get involved even though I am in Australia!
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Meena Kadri
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This is awesome, Sarah! We're so excited that you've joined this challenge as you've clearly got so
many learnings to share on this important topic. Hoping to see you on more conversations across the
challenge in upcoming weeks...
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Thanks Meena, I'm so happy this challenge was created! :D
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Meena Kadri's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Meena Kadri
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And here's a friendly tip: update your OpenIDEO profile so folks can dig who they're collaborating
with. Think skills, experience, passions & wit!
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Thanks for the tip. DONE!
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Mira Stott
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Great Job Sarah! I hope that one day you will do a workshop in Canada!
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I would love to come to Canada to do a bunch of workshops!
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OpenIDEO
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Thank you I'm so excited that it is!
I Had Zero Creative Confidence As I Was Growing Up - But Today I'm a Different Person
I'm sharing my story because the past me would have been a perfect target for this challenge! Growing
up, I had zero creative confidence. But making tangible, positive changes in my community fostered
my creative confidence and changed my life.
Habitat for Humanity construction site in Mississippi
Habitat for Humanity construction site in Mississippi
When I was growing up, I was the poster-child of lack of creative confidence. I was insecure to a
extreme. I have no idea where my insecurities came from because I had parents and teachers who
encouraged me, but it was always there.
I never talked in class, engaged in discussions, or seriously pursued any of my creative interests, even
though I had many. Growing up timid and insecure made me a very reactive child - I couldn't see that I
could mold or change anything about the reality that surrounded me. I accepted my environment as
something permanent.
This is why I think my story could be relevant to this challenge - because I believe that I would have
been the worst-case scenario for someone trying to instill creative confidence.
However, I'm a college graduate now and I'm a completely different person in terms of creative
confidence. I became the president of a college chapter of Habitat for Humanity, and I'm currently
trying to start my own team to tackle design-challenges in the local community. This level of individual
initiative is something that I would never, ever have done during my childhood.
I've frequently thought about the different things that happened in my life that helped me gain creative
confidence.
The biggest one is my involvement in Habitat for Humanity. I joined freshman year of college while I
was looking for new circles of friends. I helped build a house during my first volunteer experience. It
was the first time I built something with my bare hands. It felt amazing to know that I made a positive
impact on my environment - that I wasn't just being reactive, but active in trying to solve problems.
That first experience led me to more experiences that helped foster creative confidence. I became more
involved in Habitat for Humanity and started not just building houses, but also leading committees of
people who were passionate about affordable housing, to build advocacy events, fundraisers and
service trips. Watching a community event that we designed unfold successfully before our eyes, was a
life-changing moment. It helped me see that everything in life is malleable, that I can actually mold
reality to make changes. It helped build not just creative confidence, but confidence in myself in
general.
This led me on a path that eventually led me to design thinking, and trying to use design to make a
positive impact, which also led me to OpenIDEO. It really changed me life.
There's a few common threads among all these experiences that helped build my creative confidence:
A purpose that was bigger than myself - it gave structure and constraints that drove my initial attempts
to tap into my own creativity.
Hands-on experience with making tangible change in my local environment - it helped me see that I
could actually change my surroundings, which was pivotal for gaining creative confidence.
A safe environment that encouraged collaboration and out-of-the-box thinking
I applied these threads to all corners of my life, and helped establish confidence in other creative
endeavors. From drawing on paper to putting myself out there on a blog to starting a design-thinking
project in my community, it personally helped me venture out on my own and tap fully into my creative
potential in a way that I would have never even imagined as I was growing up.
I hope some of this is useful!
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Inspiration submitted by: Jeff Nagata
Mission #1 Share Your Story Find out more...
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Jingshu Chen
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Thanks for sharing this! Would you like to tell us more about why does your creative confidence grow
when you see that you could actually make a change? and how does that hands-on experience helps
you to see that?
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Jeff Nagata's reply to Jingshu Chen's comment
Jeff Nagata
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Yeah! The first experience I had making a change with Habitat was when I helped build a house. That
was the first moment when I could physically see that I can make a difference and that helped spark the
creative confidence because it was so tangible.
My later experiences in Habitat, after I got involved in more leadership roles probably is more directly
tied to the creativity aspect. This was when we were planning events related to low-income housing
collaboratively with other passionate students. This was great for cultivating that initial spark in
creative confidence, because planning for these events was a exercise in bringing ideas that were
floating around in our heads into reality. It felt amazing to see people experiencing and enjoying an
event that we had been planning and ideating for months.
The hands-on, tangible aspect of it all was really important because it made it such a visceral
experience. The moment when we saw our ideas become something people can touch, feel, and
experience was a huge moment of regaining the confidence that we can make real change. It was
something that couldn't be taken away or trivialized by even our own internal voices, because it became
something shared by everyone in a physical environment.
I hope this helped!
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Chen-yu Lee
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Thanks for sharing and I can definitely relate to what you experienced when you were a child because I
was the same when I was a kid. I wanted to do stuff but did not quite know how. Now, I have gained
confidence from all the experiences that I have gone through and I am still learning and continuing to
build upon what I have so far.
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Meena Kadri
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These are really awesome reflections, Jeff – cheers for sharing. And I'm really digging how you've
highlighted key points. Your point about "making tangible change in your local environment"
especially resonated with me. It made me wonder whether a feeling of powerlessness goes hand in
hand with lack of creative confidence.
We're hoping to see more of you across this challenge, with your insightful reflections and generosity
of spirit.
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks Meena! For me, a feeling of powerlessness definitely had a major role in diminishing my
creative confidence as I was growing up. It was hard to have motivation when it felt like everything
around me was so deeply entrenched that it looked permanent.
That first house I helped construct was my first a-ha moment, a starting point for everything else.
There's nothing more tangible than being able to point at something and say "I helped build that." I
think it was these moments that broke down the feeling of powerlessness for me.
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Mel + Frank 's reply to Jingshu Chen's comment
Mel + Frank
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jeff, this is a great personal story and i love the diverse ways you explore creative confidence in your
life—from drawing to habitat for humanity. a comment from an earlier post stood out to me that seems
to connect with this relationship between powerlessness and creative confidence.
"One of the worst things about not having creative confidence is that you don't have confidence to
tackle your own lack of confidence. But when I was in Habitat, I was so wrapped up in the cause that I
didn't even think about creativity. I just started going out and being active. It wasn't until a few years in
that I realized how much I actually changed."
It's so true that the hard part is getting out of this negative feedback loop where a lack of creative
confidence begats a lack of creative confidence. It reminded me that in the 80's schools thought the
answer to self esteem (and in a related sense, creative confidence) was about repeating mantras about "i
am special" or in this case maybe it would have been "i am creative." what they found was it not only
didn't work it seemed to be generating quite a spike in narcissism. what seems key here about your
story is that mastery—getting a handle on something bigger than yourself and seeing something work
as a result, on some level—is key to generating not only self esteem, but as your example illustrates,
creative confidence. It seems crucial that our ideas for this challenge address this real need to create
opportunities for mastery, in the "real world" for "real challenges"—and true personal agency in the
world. not "busy work" typical of much homework...
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Jeff Nagata
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That's a great point. Especially when people are young, I feel they are brimming with creative energy.
If we give opportunities to channel that energy for a "real world" challenge with real results, it would
be a great way to build creative confidence. Another thing is, I feel that when the "real world"
challenge deals with something bigger than yourself, as in, you're helping others, you're naturally
thinking expansively outside yourself, and the feeling is so amazing, that it's hard to turn it into a
narcissistic thing, so that might help too.
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Andrea Pomerance
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Hi Jeff, I just want to thank you for sharing your personal story. So very inspiring. I love how you were
able to piggy back off all of your small wins to gain the confidence to get where you are today. The
first step: just signing up! The second: building houses, which lead to all the other accomplishments
from leading committees to organizing service trips. It reminds me of a quote from Tom and David
Kelley's book: "The best way to gain confidence in your creative ability is through action, taken one
step at a time." I think this is such an important thing to remember when we assess challenges: start
small so as not to get overwhelmed.
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks for the thoughtful response! It's so true that a bunch of tiny steps can culminate in a huge
difference. I would have never thought that just the simple act of signing up for a campus club would
become such a transformative experience. Now the important question is, how can we set young people
on that path, made up of all those small steps?
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Michael Kupfer
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Hi Jeff!
Thanks for sharing your story.
May I ask what triggered your decision to get involved in Habitat for Humanity?
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Jeff Nagata
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Hey Michael!
Part of it was just luck. I was checking out a bunch of clubs on campus during my freshman year, and
Habitat for Humanity was one of them. I really liked the focused yet laid-back atmosphere of Habitat
so I decided to join.
But part of it was also because of the culture of Berkeley, where I went to college. Berkeley is
notorious for being progressive and encouraged social engagement. It was a great environment to push
you toward joining a club like Habitat that is trying to create a positive social impact.
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Michael Kupfer's reply to Jingshu Chen's comment
Michael Kupfer
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So, change came with college. In a way it was similar with me. I found during college you can more
easily find like-minded people and thrive on the relationship with them.
With this, one thought comes to mind though: lower income families have limited opportunities to send
their children to college - especially in the US where college education can cost thousands of dollars.
Some very talented people might therefore not have the opportunity to explore their potential to the
fullest. And furthermore, companies might not receive the pool of qualified applicants that they could
have if the education system (college and high school when thinking about other threads here) would
be setup in a different way.
(I find issues with the educational systems is another reoccurring theme (also do-it-yourself) among all
the inspirations.)
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Ben Grossman-Kahn
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Jeff- one comment you made really stands out to me - "A safe environment that encouraged
collaboration and out-of-the-box thinking"
I think the safety and trust aspect is HUGE when building creatively confident communities. Without
the trust that your peers around you will defer judgement on your ideas and respond with a "Yes, and"
attitude, it is hard to have the confidence to repeatedly put your ideas out there.
This leads me to a sub-challenge"How might we foster safety and trust where all ideas are accepted, acknowledged and valued?"
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Jeff Nagata
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That is such a great question. I definitely agree that answering this sub-challenge is really important for
fostering creative confidence.
When I joined Habitat for Humanity, I went to a committee meeting, where we were trying to organize
a community outreach event for other families. We were in the idea generation phase. The guy leading
the committee at the time was amazing at creating a safe environment where all ideas felt inherently
valued.
One technique I still remember is, he used to explicitly separate out the generation phase from the
evaluation phase. That meant you didn't have to worry about the feasibility or viability of the idea, or if
it was grounded in reality at all. Everything was fair game.
At the beginning, people wouldn't take it completely seriously. They immediately shouted out some
nonsensical ideas just for fun. But they would get surprised when the leader wrote it down on the
board, and took it completely seriously. It transformed the entire dynamic of the committee.
I'm not sure if this can translate into a sustainable program for this challenge - it's just a small anecdote.
But I definitely think there is something about just explicitly taking out all judgments initially that
pushes people to just throw out whatever is in their heads out there.
Also, I see that you already posted another inspiration about this sub-challenge!
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/creating-a-safe-community-for-ideasharing-the-power-of-yes-and-/
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Jeff for sharing. I like how you were able to reflect on your experience and extract some
insights that would be very useful in the ideation phase.
Here some thoughts that I had reading your 3 key insights:
A purpose bigger than myself: I think this is tightly linked to motivation and passion, and I personally
think that this made a big difference in allowing people to be confident. You don't think about being
creative, your are just trying out and doing...
This leads to the second point which is about tangible impact.
The third point is on what are the conditions to support creative confidence. I'm curious to know what
differs between your college years and younger childhood years where you said your teachers and
parents did encourage you. I think it'd be great to get insights on this aspect as it's key in designing
environments that supports creative confidence.
thanks!
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks Anne! Your post is so insightful. Your first point, about not thinking about being creative
definitely resonated with me. One of the worst things about not having creative confidence is that you
don't have confidence to tackle your own lack of confidence. But when I was in Habitat, I was so
wrapped up in the cause that I didn't even think about creativity. I just started going out and being
active. It wasn't until a few years in that I realized how much I actually changed.
For the third point, I've been thinking a lot about what allowed this whole thing to happen. I think it's a
mix of both my personality and the environment. I've always just been insanely timid growing up, to a
extreme. I also grew up in a affluent area of San Diego, and thus grew up in a environment that was
deeply entrenched in the status-quo, because the status-quo was serving most people in the area very
well.
I think this environment made it very hard for me to find motivation to seriously engage in creative
confidence, in going against the status-quo. There were others who grew up in the same environment as
me that were flowing with creative confidence, because they were able to actively look past their
immediate surroundings.
But being so naturally timid made me very reactive to this culture in San Diego. It was so much easier
to just go with the flow, to follow the safest path possible to success (which in SD is defined by
suburban home ownership).
But the catalyst that started my path toward creative confidence was 100% my environment in college.
I went to college in Berkeley, CA, which is notoriously progressive, and very active in trying to change
the status-quo. It was almost the complete opposite of San Diego. I think it was partly this culture that
made me realize that the culture that I personally grew up in, is NOT the absolute truth (I'm so
embarassed to admit that I didn't realize this until I moved for college. There's so many people that
grew up in the same environment that saw this so much earlier).
Second, being in Berkeley also made me aware of so many problems with the status-quo. Wealth
inequality, global poverty, global climate change, you name it. This made me really want to get
involved, and Berkeley itself was brimming with so many opportunities to do so. And this leads right
back to point 1! Getting involved in something so big, makes it so easy to naturally build up creative
confidence without even knowing it.
Sorry this is getting long, I never thought really hard about my own life until I saw this OpenIDEO
challenge. If I can extract some more insights from this experience on how to consciously design a
similar experience/process, I'll try to post it as another inspiration!
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Anne-Laure Fayard's reply to Jingshu Chen's comment
Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Jeff for unpacking the environment aspect. It makes perfect sense. This is why traveling, or
major changes in location often influence people's perceptions of the world. Providing ways for young
people to question the status quo seem something that we need to take into account in the ideation
phase.
Thanks again for sharing.
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Arjan Tupan's reply to Jingshu Chen's comment
Arjan Tupan
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Great discussion here, A-L and Jeff. As an expat, I've come to realize how much you think is the
absolute truth, and how much of that (basically all) actually isn't. I agree with Anne-Laure that it's
important to find ways to provide changes of perspectives for young people. It can help them learn
about others, and maybe find confidence there.
By the way, Jeff, I think you should be happy to have found a different perspective, and not ashamed
you didn't find it sooner. The vast majority of people never figures it out...
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks Arjan. I'm definitely happy and grateful that I had the opportunity to widen my horizons.
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Tham Cao
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I loved reading about your experience with creative confidence. So very glad that it got highlighted to
the community here. I thought the summation of the main levers that allowed you to grow your
confidence were very introspective and applaud your community efforts and continued journey. You've
provided me with inspiration on how to grow my own creative confidence1
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Jeff Nagata
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Thank you! I'm glad it connected with you.
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OpenIDEO
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Jeff Nagata
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Wow, thanks!
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Carole
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I do agree that being involved in a nonprofit or community service helps developing leadership skills as
well as thinking creatively in order to solve many problems you were not confronted to before. It is
also a good way to take responsibilities and learn to work in team to advance a cause. Thanks for
sharing your story.
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks Carole! I really do believe that the community service sector is a great environment to foster
creative confidence. You know that most people in the sector aren't going to be jerks, because of the
inherent nature of the field. Just being surrounded by others that are passionate about helping others
can create a environment that builds confidence. This in turn gives you the incentive to take on
responsibilities which creates even more confidence, in a reinforcing loop.
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Arjan Tupan
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Great sharing of your personal experience, Jeff. Loved it. Also am impressed by how you've taken on
your lack of creative confidence, in a way, and made so much positive impact on your community.
Awesome!
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks, Arjan! One thing that really sucked about not having creative confidence is that I didn't have
the confidence to take on my lack of creative confidence directly (sorry, it sounds really convoluted
haha).
I think Anne-Laure made a good point, that having a purpose bigger than yourself allows you to not
even think about being creative, you are just doing it. Even though I didn't consciously make a decision
to tackle my lack of creative confidence, just being wrapped up in the cause helped me just go out and
start doing stuff.
The build-up of my creative confidence throughout this process was so gradual, it didn't even register
how much things changed for me until a few years into it!
Imagination Starters and the Power of "20% Inspiration"
Another blog post I wrote for the Childrens Creativity Museum detailing the 'endowed progress' theory
and how giving prompts or providing "20% Inspiration" can often scaffold and jumpstart the creative
process.
Mystery Boxes
Mystery Boxes
The Power of "20% Inspiration"
-By Ben Grossman-Kahn
If you’ve ever been handed a blank sheet of paper and told to “draw something creative” you know
how hard it can be to generate ideas out of thin air. As they say in the design world, innovation is a
process, not an event. Without any sort of prompt or direction, the possibilities of that blank page are
limitless- you could draw a new solar powered flying car, or an underwater monkey kingdom, or… you
get the idea. For some people, this problem is compounded by a fear that the moment they touch their
pen to the pristine white page, they are ruining it with their scribbles.
During my years as a teacher and summer camp director, I saw the “blank page” problem rise again and
again, and not just with art. When children enter a new environment or space, they look for cues that
help them figure out where to go/what to do, and the fear of getting this wrong and looking foolish can
be paralyzing. For that reason, whenever we set up a classroom we would always pre-set the games,
puzzles and blocks on the floor, removing them from boxes and laying them out in an inviting manner.
With blocks, we would spread them across the floor and build some half-finished structures that invited
kids to add on to them. With murals and artwork, we would always draw several images and lines that
showed kids that yes, it was ok to scribble on the paper.
The concept that people are more likely to engage with an activity if they feel like it has been started
for them was validated in a UCLA Business school studyconducted by Professors Joseph C. Nunes and
Xavier Drèze. The study looked at two car wash businesses who gave away customer loyalty cards. Car
wash #1 gave away a card that required 10 car washes to earn a free wash, but pre-stamped the first
two. Car wash #2 gave out a card which required 8 stamps to earn a free car wash, and did not prestamp the cards. After tracking the customer redemption rate, the professors found that the cards that
had been pre-stamped showed a 34% return rate over a 19% rate from the 8 stamp cards. Although
these cards required the exact same number of purchases, the pre-stamped cards gave customers a sense
of ‘endowed progress’- the feeling that they were already on the road to achieving their goal, rather
than starting from scratch.
At Children’s Creativity Museum, we have taken this concept of endowed progress and made it one of
our Pillars of Creativity, calling it “Imagination Starters/ 20% Inspiration”. A few examples of how this
is employed include:
Person, Place, Problem prompt cards. Even for the best writers, storytelling is frequently a challenge.
We have observed that families who come to our animation studio often struggle to come up with
stories they want to tell. To help get them started, we offer a deck of “Person, Place, problem” cards
which they can draw at random to generate a story prompt. Examples might include “A penguin, in
outer space, being chased by an evil twin” or “A chicken, under the ocean, looking for his lunch”.
Creative Challenges: During our Creative studio workshops, rather then giving participants materials
with a totally open ended goal, we typically offer a box of randomized challenges to get them started.
Most recently, we ran a Mystery Box challenge that asked kids to draw a random card from a
“Challenge Deck”. Kids could select an easy, medium or hard challenge, and the cards asked them to
create “The world’s fastest race car” or “An amusement park ride from the future” using only the
materials we provided in a small box.
By constraining the materials as well as giving prompts via the challenge, we typically see a much
higher engagement and participation rate. Even more interesting, once kids complete that first
challenge, they begin to see themselves as a “Super Designer” and build their creative confidence. (We
support this by handing out badges after each challenge with different rankings- Design Agent, Design
Ninja, Design Expert).
Wander Monster: We have been totally inspired by Pratt Insitute instructor Robb Kimmel, who sends
his son to school every day with a ‘Wandermonster’prompt- the paper includes a half written story and
half finished drawing. At lunch, his son opens the prompt and completes the text and photo with his
own imagination. This is a marvelous example of sparking the imagination through both prompts and a
creative challenge, and is a concept that can be applied to a wide range of mediums. At CCM, we have
embraced this approach and created similar prompts (Complete a story+ add to the image/code) using
Photoshop, Scratch programming, and iStopmotion. We also empower participants by asking them to
create their own creative prompt for someone else, thus allowing them to participate as both a designer
as well as instructor.
By providing these imagination starters, we are not only modeling potential interactions and uses of
different media tools, we are also giving kids a launch pad for their creativity. Just as with any form of
scaffolding, these prompts are designed to be slowly removed as children start learning to generate
their own prompts and challenges.
The best part? What we often see is children becoming empowered to create their own challenges to
give to peers, developing a “By kids, for kids” community of creative thinkers and doers.
Have a great example of an Imagination starter you’ve used? Please share!
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Inspiration submitted by: Ben Grossman-Kahn
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OpenIDEO
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Bobby Cordell
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How perfect and meta at the same time. I wonder if there is a way to incorporate things like the
Wandermonster challenge into the daily activities of an entire grouping of children. I'm already trying
to think of ways I can use your inspiration going forward with my students (I work at the college level).
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Meena Kadri
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Yet another fab Inspiration, Ben. And reminds me that even here at OpenIDEO we made the realisation
about helping folks move beyond the 'blank page' challenge. So far we've done this by adding Missions
to the Inspiration phase and Themes to the Ideas phase. Reading through your post has already got my
mind buzzing with lots of others thoughts on things we might add. Not to mention it's triggered a great
discussion here and I'm sure will fuel some great thinking for our upcoming Ideas phase!
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Ben Grossman-Kahn
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Love it! I think the simple act of asking your team "What is the 20% we are providing?" sparks some
great conversations around imagination starters or prompts.
And now you've got me brainstorming other ways to scaffold the dialogue and creativity on heremore micro prompts when posting inspirations- one line entries where users can input "Big Idea" "How
it Relates" "Why I'm sharing" etc..
Pop-up google Hangout group brainstorm sessions
micro "Timed challenges" around new themes that add a sense of urgency and constraint.
Once a user earns/levels up to a certain amount of applause/comments, they earn a new badge which
opens up new collaboration options
Digital "Space Saturation" walls with categories of "Inspiring People" "Inspiring Projects" and
""Inspiring Environments" (Person/Place/Idea framework)
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Meena Kadri
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Great stuff, Ben. I was already starting to think about a low barrier to entry post-it style opportunity
based on your brilliant Inspiration from last week – simply asking the question – What Does Creative
Confidence Mean To You?
I'll be sure to pass on other fab suggestions you've raised here to our team. And if you're ever keen to
make even more suggestions, you can post them to our Feature Suggestions forum: http://bit.ly/oi-ff
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Ben Grossman-Kahn
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LOVE the idea of asking the community to share their own definitions of Creative Confidence. That
could make for an awesome blog post/word cloud/prompt for the "Creative Confidence" campaign.. :)
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Meena Kadri
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When I saw your awesome post here: http://www.openideo.com/open/creativeconfidence/inspiration/defining-creative-confidence/ it took me back to a conversation our team had
about the possibility of a post-it feature like the one used on the Give a Minute initiative to improve
urban vibrancy: http://urbanomnibus.net/2010/12/give-a-minute/ (I think the Give a Minute site itself
has been taken down – but it had an awesome feature to digitally capture post-it style entries) Also
takes me back to Candy Chang's stellar I Wish This Was... campaign:
http://www.randomspecific.com/wish-list-fills-urban-gaps It's interesting to think about how many
people get engaged when you lower the barriers to participation...
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Carole
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Hi Ben, your thoughts maks me think of the paradox of structure, as explained here
http://www.asla.org/awards/2006/studentawards/282.html The page describes a research project aimed
at determining the impact of boundaries on children's playing behavior.
" A simple study was conducted to discover the effects of a fence around a playground and the
consequent impact it would have on preschool children. Teachers were to take their children to a local
playground in which there was no fence during their normal recess hour. The kids were to play as
normal. The same group was to be taken to a comparable playground in which there was a defined
border designated by a fence.
In the first scenario, the children remained huddled around their teacher, fearful of leaving out of her
sight. The later scenario exhibited drastically different results, with the children feeling free to explore
within the given boundaries.
The overwhelming conclusion was that with a given limitation, children felt safer to explore a
playground. Without a fence, the children were not able to see a given boundary or limit and thus were
more reluctant to leave the caregiver. With a boundary, in this case the fence, the children felt at ease to
explore the space. They were able to separate from the caregiver and continue to develop in their sense
of self while still recognizing that they were in a safe environment within the limits of the fence."
Just to show how limitations/constraints may sometimes be helpful to enhance creative confidence.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Very interesting study Carole and to keep in mind when thinking of "confidence", i.e. the feeling or
belief that one can rely on someone or something; firm trust. Boundaries, structures are not only
limitations, they can also help get started.
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Jeff Nagata
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The Paradox of Structure is so eye-opening. Going off of Ben's inspiration, it seems like one way to
address the paradox is to install gates into the fences. That way, the fences can do its job of kickstarting creativity by mitigating fear, while allowing children to have the freedom to move beyond it
when it become too constraining.
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Ben Grossman-Kahn
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Oddly enough, the Paradox of structure concept totally supports the very first lesson I ever learned
about child management, which came from someone who grew up on a farm with goats. As they
explained it, goats (and kids) will explore to identify the boundaries of their space, and whether there
are any gaps or escape routes. One of the reasons kids often push boundaries with adults is to discover
where those boundaries/safety lines lay- they are testing to make sure adults will swoop in at some
point to keep them safe.
There is nothing more terrifying for kids than realizing that there are no boundaries, as it means they
are entirely on their own to decide what is safe and what is not. Love that this concept has been
validated via research and even has a name!
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Jeff Nagata
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Ben, your last inspiration and this one is making me really want to visit the Children's Creativity
Museum. I really like the way you compared the imagination starters as scaffolding, used for propping
the kids up to mitigate the fear of the blank page, but making sure to take it off to avoid it turning into a
constraint.
I have a little anecdote from my personal life too. I always believed that I suck at drawing, until I
bought a book called "You Can Draw in 30 Days" by Mark Kistler. His idea, which parallels what the
Kelleys talk about in "Creative Confidence", is that everyone can draw, they just need to feel that first
exhilaration of getting something on paper without the fear of the blank page, like you said. I was
pretty skeptical, but it was true. He started off with the scaffolding of just having me copy exactly what
he draws, very mechanically, step by step. When I finished drawing all the steps, it was like magic: I
couldn't believe how good my drawings looked! After that he made sure to take the scaffolding off
through bonus challenges where he let your imagination fly.
This approach also seems like a good way to address how diverse each individual is, in terms of how
they respond to structure. Structure can enable or disable people at the same time to varying degrees,
depending on their personality. But with the mindset of the "20% Inspiration", each individual can
choose when, and how to let go of the initial structure.
Thanks for sharing Ben! This is awesome.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Ben,
thanks for posting this inspiration. I remember taking my kids to a design workshop for kids (5 to 10) at
the Design Museum in London and there were a number of things to help them get started. First, they
went to visit an exhibition to get some inspiration and then they had different sets of boxes as their
starter structure and they were then off to design "something" (I can't remember if they had a specific
challenge question) from the box.
In a different context and age group (college students), we have been experiencing in providing
students with a collaborative space to trigger creativity, ideation and innovation at NYU-Poly
(interestingly the space itself came up from a challenge run by students who participated to openIDEO:
http://greenhousestories.com/about/).
We opened the space last January and have been exploring how much structure (through programming
to provide). We realized that too little made it difficult for students to engage with the possibilities of
the space. This fall, we've been organizing more events, including inviting students to join challenges
such as the Greenpeace challenge http://greenhousestories.com/projects/current/energy-revolutiongreenpeace-challenge-on-jovoto/ and this challenge:
http://greenhousestories.com/projects/current/creative-confidence-challenge-on-openideo/ (for which
students are planning to organize a workshop during the ideation phase).
Our hope is that these challenges (and other workshops:
http://greenhousestories.com/2013/09/20/risky-ideas-is-back-again-3/) will provide starters for the
students...
It was a robot and 2 engineers
Yes, it was a robot, a programmable robot, that persuaded me I could 'try' creativity and it started a
journey for me that is fun almost every day. The very short video story here tells of realizing the
freedom found in creativity.
Story-telling about the moment I realized the freedom available in not looking for the 'right' or 'wrong'
way to do something.
Story-telling about the moment I realized the freedom available in not looking for the 'right' or 'wrong'
way to do something. Karel, like me, is freed from his walled world and enjoys the color and open
space
A nurse choosing to take a class on computer programming was brave, I thought. It took me 3 months
to talk myself into it. Programming seemed like it might help me show what I was thinking to other
people.
Little did I know that programming would show me I had been thinking so rigidly that I was limiting
myself. Programming a little robot to accomplish missions drove home the point that approaching
problems from the perspective of finding the 'right' way blocked opportunities to learn and perhaps
identify a better way to solve the problem. And, it meant that when I was problem solving, I needed the
'approval' of others to tell me I had solved the problem correctly. This meant that I was not only lacking
confidence in my ability to solve the problem, but I was only confident about the solution if someone
told me it was right!
Changing my perspective was initially quite easy because I felt so free, but then it became less easy --I
still consciously must allow myself to try, learn, and fail at problem solving while not assigning a
judgement on my person based on the outcome of the process. I've decided it's worth it, but it's not
always easy!
Who inspired me and helped me cultivate creative confidence? Many people, but two in particular.
Both are engineers and both have endless stories about how they discovered things by 'just trying' and
how many times they tried something before they found something that worked. They're both
successful in their careers. I don't think these factors are independent of each other -- their creative
confidence has allowed them to figure out things other people wouldn't approach and these industry
changing discoveries have allowed their career success.
One real-life example that especially inspired me: Engineer A says he's been reading Wikipedia to learn
about quaternions because he thinks it might help him approach a hardware development problem. He's
not sure, but thinks that if he can understand it, it might be the right path. He invests time in learning,
tries some exercises to see if he understands it, then applies it to the project to see if it helps.
Throughout this whole experience, no one told him to study quaternions and he didn't know if it was
the right way to approach the problem, but he was willing to invest in learning and try something
unfamiliar because it might work.
So, it was people that cultivated my creative confidence - people that I could observe and connect with.
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Inspiration submitted by: Elizabeth Lytle
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Ashley Jablow
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Elizabeth, this is so cool! You've highlighted some very important themes here: looking beyond what's
'right', feeling encouraged after observing the behavior of people around you, and investing in learning
for your own growth and development. And you even made it into a video (which, by the way, also
shows creative confidence)!
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Elizabeth Lytle
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Thanks for your comment, Ashley. Reading the challenge and hearing the intro video made it quite
clear that it was creative confidence that I had been developing, but didn't have a name for it until then!
It was fun to share the story and now be involved in thinking about how this might happen for a
broader community.
Make something that does something.
Think Lego for electronics. I recently stumbled upon this gem called littleBits that brings the classic
building block to the world of electronics.
What is littleBits? via littleBits TV
Geared at all ages (from children to adults), it's an opensource library of electronic modules that snap
together with magnets to inspire creativity and help users explore the world of electronics. What's
really cool is that you can add the modules to almost anything to make almost anything: an interactive
cat, a pizza box phonograph, a nightlight, you name it.
How might we use tools like this to inspire our own thinking in the upcoming Ideas phase?
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Inspiration submitted by: Andrea Pomerance
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Vivek Vissanji
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Though this seems like an amazing idea, I wonder how many parents will be able to afford to buy these
for their kids- a deluxe kit costs more than $200!
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Jess Wainer
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What a wonderful post! The format of the video is so accessible and fun. The music, textual prompts,
and featured applications really tell a compelling story about the product, that make me want to use it!
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OpenIDEO
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks for sharing Andrea. I remember one of my students mentioning it a few weeks ago. It sounds
indeed like a great tool to experiment and try out things.
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Hao Dinh
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Andrea, check out this week's Creative Confidence Challenge Community Champion Update. Your
inspiration was highlighted in the video! http://www.openideo.com/fieldnotes/openideo-teamnotes/test-challenge-community-champion-update-test/
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Ken Ligrani
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Hey Andrea Glad you posted about litteBits. I've been really excited to see the number of startups on kickstarter that
are focused on bringing education/tech focused products to market for kids. Kinetic learning is such a
great way to bring out unsolicited creativity. Not sure if you seen this company (http://www.atomsexpress.com/), but they are on a similar track. Thanks for the post.
Cheers
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Dina Gold
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Hey Andrea! This reminds me of a game I saw for kids called Makey Makey
(http://www.makeymakey.com). They call it an "invention kit for the 21st century" which seems very
fitting for the "Maker's Century" where we can learn by making.
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Andrea Pomerance
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Hi Dina! Thanks so much for sharing.This is fantastic. It seems the only limitations are your
imagination!
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Hao Dinh
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Andrea, awesome inspiration! Just bought my nephew a set but something tells me I might be tinkering
with them when he is at school! Wished I had this when I was young!
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Andrea Pomerance
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Hi Hao! I was thinking the exact same thing. Maybe I'll buy one for my adult self :)
Creative Sessions
At IDEO in London, we've been running Creative Sessions for the whole studio (not just designers).
Every fortnight one of us runs a lunchtime gathering where we let our creativity loose. Recent sessions
have focussed on Lino Cutting and Water Colours
The First Creative Session
We've collected the fruits of our labours on this site:
http://creativesessions.liveprototypes.com/
Please have a look and share it far and wide.
The sessions have been a great opportunity for individuals to share their creative skills, but more
importantly those who don't normally get a chance are able to splash some paint around and have fun
for the sake of fun.
Everyone have commented on how much they enjoyed the sessions and more are planned on topics like
creative writing.
Everyone involved wants to do more, and those who missed out are asking that we schedule future
events so that they can get involved. An all round success!
The sessions were initiated by OpenIDEO user Bobbie Brightman, and fellow OpenIDEOers Matt
Cooper-Wright and Nadine Stares have both hosted sessions so far.
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Inspiration submitted by: Matt Cooper-Wright
October 09, 2013, 09:20AM
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Neetika Kapoor
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A few years ago, we did a similar group activity when as a team of 10, we chose to learn french
together. A day in the week was declared as french day and we got an in-house translator for that day
every week. We made quite good progress in 2 months.
We all felt the reinforcing our motivations was easier and dropping out difficult as we were doing this
in a group. Also the learnings were faster. Though, I have left most of my french behind, I remember
the fun it brought to work and we became a better and more connected team... open to
criticism/feedback other than 'french'.
I personally feel there is nothing like finding like-minded people at office as we spend such a great part
of our day there.
Great post! Great inspiration! am thinking of floating this idea in my office/team.
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Jeff Nagata
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This is awesome! I really like the simplicity of this project. A safe, collaborative environment and a
group of people to express themselves in various ways. It seems like something that would be easy to
get into for anyone, but also leaves limitless potentials for people with any range of creative styles to
participate and have fun.
I also really like the presentation of the project on the website. It looks really nice, and the pictures are
really great for visualizing what it's like too!
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OpenIDEO
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Kirk Soderstrom
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Great inspiration, Matt! This is a goldmine, actually. It seems that everyone's creative confidence
stands to benefit, including the teacher/instructor (I'm using the term loosely) and even the passerby.
The interactive nature of the Creative Sessions and the knowledge exchange has the potential to take on
a life of its own.
What is particularly interesting to me is how the organization has created an atmosphere that
encourages initiative and risk-taking, and as a result, brings ideas to life.
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Nathan Waterhouse
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WOW - I love this guys - congrats. It's so wonderful to see these images and stories. It's real impact in
the making. I wonder if there could be a way to extend the invite for one of these sessions to include
some young people to help them increase their confidence?
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Meena Kadri
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Great build, Nathan – and I'm feeling a seed in there for the Ideas phase too :^)
Matt: Having visited the London office, I was so excited to see this – in part to get a glimpse of the
creative talents you have across the team which don't come up in your day to day jobs. (eg. I worked
with Nadine on a project and had no idea of her awesome hidden talents!) I can only but imagine how
these sessions also help your team to appreciate each others skills and talents – and the diversity you
bring to your wider work collaborations. There's also something in here which resonates with me about
sharing. Sharing a skill or talent with others is an awesome way to build confidence for all involved.
Looking forward to seeing more of you and others in the London office across this challenge.
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Matt Cooper-Wright
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Check out the website: http://creativesessions.liveprototypes.com/
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Nathan Waterhouse
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Love this Matt - the pics are so wonderful - could you add some of them to the gallery of this
inspiration?
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Matt Cooper-Wright
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Done and done. Thanks for the suggestion.
20 Tips from Psychology for Boosting Creativity
Creativity is all about finding new ways of solving problems and approaching situations. This isn't a
skill restricted to artists, musicians or writers. If you've ever wanted to boost your creativity, these tips
can help.
Boost Your Creativity
Boost Your Creativity
According to cognitive psychologist Robert J. Sternberg, creativity can be broadly defined as "...the
process of producing something that is both original and worthwhile." Creativity is all about finding
new ways of solving problems and approaching situations. This isn't a skill restricted to artists,
musicians or writers; it is a useful skill for people from all walks of life. If you've ever wanted to boost
your creativity, these tips can help.
1. Commit Yourself to Developing Your Creativity
The first step is to fully devote yourself to developing your creative abilities. Do not put off your
efforts. Set goals, enlist the help of others and put time aside each day to develop your skills.
2. Become an Expert
One of the best ways to develop creativity is to become an expert in that area. By having a rich
understanding of the topic, you will be better able to think of novel or innovative solutions to problems.
3. Reward Your Curiosity
One common roadblock to developing creativity is the sense that curiosity is an indulgence. Rather
than reprimanding yourself, reward yourself when you are curious about something. Give yourself the
opportunity to explore new topics.
4. Realize that Creativity is Sometimes Its Own Reward
While rewarding yourself is important, it is also important to develop intrinsic motivation. Sometimes,
the true reward of creativity is the process itself, not the product.
5. Be Willing to Take Risks
When it comes to building your creative skills, you need to be willing to take risks in order to advance
your abilities. While your efforts may not lead to success every time, you will still be boosting your
creative talents and building skills that will serve you well in the future.
6. Build Your Confidence
Insecurity in your abilities can suppress creativity, which is why it is important to build confidence.
Make note of the progress you have made, commend your efforts and always be on the lookout for
ways to reward your creativity.
7. Make Time for Creativity
You won't be able to develop your creative talents if you don't make time for them. Schedule some time
each week to concentrate on some type of creative project.
8. Overcome Negative Attitudes that Block Creativity
According to a 2006 study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, positive
moods can increase your ability to think creatively. According to Dr. Adam Anderson, senior author of
the study, "If you are doing something that requires you be creative or be in a think tank, you want to
be in a place with good mood." Focus on eliminating negative thoughts or self-criticisms that may
impair your ability to develop strong creative skills.
9. Fight Your Fear of Failure
The fear that you might make a mistake or fail in your efforts can paralyze your progress. Whenever
you find yourself harboring such feelings, remind yourself that mistakes are simply part of the process.
While you may occasionally stumble on your path to creativity, you will eventually reach your goals.
10. Brainstorm to Inspire New Ideas
Brainstorming is a common technique in both academic and professional settings, but it can also be a
powerful tool for developing your creativity. Start by suspending your judgment and self-criticism, then
start writing down related ideas and possible solutions. The goal is to generate as many ideas as
possible in a relatively short span of time. Next, focus on clarifying and refining your ideas in order to
arrive at the best possible choice.
11. Realize That Most Problems Have Multiple Solutions
The next time to approach a problem, try looking for a variety of solutions. Instead of simply going
with the first idea you have, take the time to think of other possible ways to approach the situation. This
simple activity is a great way to build both your problem-solving and creative thinking skills.
12. Keep a Creativity Journal
Start keeping a journal to follow your creative process and track the ideas you produce. A journal is a
great way to reflect back on what you have accomplished and look for other possible solutions. This
journal can be used to save ideas that can later serve as future inspiration.
13. Create a Mind Map
A mind map is a great way to connect ideas and look for innovative answers to questions. Create a
mind map by writing down a central topic or word. Next, link related terms or ideas around the central
word. While similar to brainstorming, this technique allows for branching ideas and offers a very visual
way of seeing how these ideas are linked.
14. Challenge Yourself
Once you have developed some basic creative skills, it is important to continually challenge yourself in
order to further advance your abilities. Look for more difficult approaches, try out new things and
avoid always using the same solutions you have used in the past.
15. Try the "Six Hats" Technique
The "six hats" technique involves looking at a problem from six differing perspectives. By doing this,
you can produce more ideas than you might have had you only looked at the situation from one or two
points of view.
Red Hat: Look at the situation emotionally. What do your feelings tell you?
White Hat: Look at the situation objectively. What are the facts?
Yellow Hat: Use a positive perspective. Which elements of the solution will work?
Black Hat: Use a negative perspective. Which elements of the solution won’t work?
Green Hat: Think creatively. What are some alternative ideas?
Blue Hat: Think broadly. What is the best overall solution?
16. Look for Sources of Inspiration
Never expect creativity to just happen. Look for new sources of inspiration that will give you fresh
ideas and motivate you to generate unique answers to questions. Read a book, visit a museum, listen to
your favorite music or engage in a lively debate with a friend. Utilize whatever strategy or technique
works best for you.
17. Create Opportunities for Creativity
In addition to looking for inspiration, you also need to create your own opportunities for creativity. This
might involve tackling a new project or finding new tools to use in your current projects.
18. Consider Alternative Scenarios
When approaching a problem, utilize "what if..." questions to consider each possible scenario. If you
take a specific approach, what will the outcome be? By looking at these alternatives beforehand, you'll
be better able to develop creative solutions to problems.
19. Create a Flow Chart
When you are developing a new project, start by creating a flow chart to track the presentation of the
project from start to finish. Look for various paths or sequences of events that might occur. A flow chart
can help you visualize the final product, eliminate potential problems and create unique solutions.
20. Try the Snowball Technique
Have you ever noticed how one great idea often leads directly to another? You can take advantage of
this by utilizing a "snowball technique" when you are generating ideas for your project. If the idea isn't
appropriate for your current work, set it aside to work on later or implement it in a future project.
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Inspiration submitted by: Yuan Meng
October 09, 2013, 04:58AM
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Meena Kadri
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Lots to love in here, Yuan! And given creative confidence is a focus on this challenge, we're especially
digging number 6 :^) I like the highlight there of keeping track of one's progress. Makes me think back
to the 'failure board' on this Inspiration: http://bit.ly/GKur7Y I wonder what other examples folks here
can think of around different ways of keeping track of one's progress to share during our Inspiration
phase?
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Yuan Meng
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Hi Meena, thank you for the comment! Number 6 is one of my favorites, too. We always learn best
from our past experiments and failure, so it is important to keep track of what we have tried. I also
agree with the "failure board" inspiration that you linked that "failing and iteration is not only okay, but
essential to pushing ideas forward." We should see failure as positive accomplishment instead of
negative fault.
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Terrence Agbi
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I really dig this post, especially #8 (Overcoming negativity). Without positive reinforcement and
support, its damn near impossible to be creative (especiailly if the artist lacks confidence or is in their
early stages of their idea development). Thanks for sharing!
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Yuan Meng
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Hi Terrence, thanks for the comment! I totally agree. In order for new ideas to come out, we need to be
confident and not afraid of failure at first. Building confidence in creativity is a difficult task, but I
believe we will get more comfortable once we overcome negativity.
I invited our neighbour kid over for some creative confidence fun!
We made a little creative workstation on our balcony, made lots of crazy drawings and pinned them to
the washing line. The exhibition was open to the public (on our floor) for approximately 24 minutes
person
person
person personal
I live in a big tower-block, and it can be tricky to get to know your neighbours - but there are lots of
kids playing in the hallway and I often join in and kick the ball around (they're way better than me).
Our immediate neighbour is an energetic six-year-old - Ameen, and he sometimes gets a bit bored over
the weekend when his mum has friends over. We share a balcony so I decided to abandon the football
and get some creative confidence going :)
We used felt tip pens and paper in different colours and made a little work-station. To help Ameen
focus, I set us some tasks - we would collaborate, separate each paper with a line and draw half of a
drawing which the other person would complete. It was a bit tricky for Ameen to get his head around at
first, but then it clicked and we produced an entire collection of awesome drawings. Whenever we'd
finished one, we'd pin it up on the washing line until we had a full exhibition going. Title: "Ameen &
Karoline's fun great show with a bit of wind" We invited everyone around to see it - and it was truly a
"fun great show with a bit of wind"
Viva creative confidence
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Inspiration submitted by: Karoline K
October 01, 2013, 05:42PM
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Jennifer Jermantowicz
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What a wonderful idea for nurturing creative confidence! I think collaboration is often a great starting
point for building confidence.
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Karoline K
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That's true. With kids though, it's always a tricky balance, as you don't want them to feel insecure about
i.e their drawing in case yours is "better" than theirs. When Ameen and I were drawing, i really tried to
mimick is style and be even wonkier, so he didnt feel self-conscious of his drawings not being of a
certain 'standard;. Thinking about it now, i remember our drawing teacher as school never showed us
any of his own drawings (i only found out later how talented he was) and I reckon that might be a good
strategy when encouraging creative confidence in kids.. Do you remember being discouraged by older
folks who were more experienced than you?
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Jennifer Jermantowicz's reply to Jennifer Jermantowicz's comment
Jennifer Jermantowicz
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Most of the time, I think I met older people with more experience and was encouraged to work harder
and practice more. But, I agree that it's a tricky balance and I think it depends on how that experience is
presented. I can certainly remember situations when adults were overbearing about how their greater
experience made them superior in knowledge. As a kid, that made me reluctant to voice a different
opinion or try something completely different.
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Arjan Tupan
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Unbelievable. This. Is. AWESOME! What a great inspiration. Not only for this challenge, but also for
everybody. So simple to do, and so incredibly powerful. Karoline, you rock!
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Ashley Jablow
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!!!!!!! Karoline, this is so awesome!
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Karoline K's reply to Jennifer Jermantowicz's comment
Karoline K
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It was so fun!
Keep Austin Creative
In a city pinned for its quirkiness, one can find inspiration just about everywhere you look. Austin is a
safe haven for those that think so radically different that you just can't ignore them. I would know; I'm
surrounded by them!
Butter Half
Butter Half
Butter Half I love you so much Frog
The first two mural paintings, so simply artistic, have become picture icons and a must-stop destination
for tourist and locals alike in Austin. And then there's the 'Hi, I'm a frog with the eyes of an alien and a
circular beard, and I just want to ask how you are' mural- um, what? But really, these little things are
what make Austin Austin and is just one of the few reasons that everyone that's anyone falls in love
with this city.
Austin harnesses the weirdness of its people and culture and transforms this into creative energy.
Known for its technology and outlandish startup community, this needle in a haystack city is where
inspiration is not only welcomed, but encouraged. I can testify as two of my closest friends are both the
definition of a true visionary.
I admire those that can see the opportunity for creativity in every endeavor. The ones that view life as
one big start up are the ones that end up creating start ups. One of my BFF4Ls (pronounced biffles) is
just that. When I told her I was thinking about completely changing my career path from pursuing a
degree in business to studying music performance, the first thought that came to her mind was how I
can do it non-traditional way. What are my other options besides going to graduate school? How can I
get involved with the music community? And shortly after, my e-mail was flooded with classical music
events happening in Austin.
People like her are a breath of fresh air, a change in pace of routine life. These people are the epitome
of entrepreneurs and innovators. They don't just have creative confidence, they ARE the creative
confidence.
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Inspiration submitted by: Betty Wang
October 03, 2013, 05:56AM
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Ashley Jablow
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Betty, I love this! It's so great to hear you picking up on the traits and characteristics that not only make
people more confident in their creative abilities, but cities too! A fresh lens on our challenge topic. Glad
you've joined our efforts here.
Design for Change
DESIGN FOR CHANGE is the largest global movement designed to give children an opportunity to
express their own ideas for a better world and put them into action.
KIRAN BIR SETHI - DESIGN FOR CHANGE
Design for Change, is a global movement that empowers children to be the change they wish to see in
this world. Kiran started this global movement with a conviction that if children are empowered and
made to feel that they can take matters into their hands, they will change the world for the better.
Based on a simplified design thinking process, this initiative asks students to FEEL any problem that
bother them, IMAGINE a way to make it better, DO an act of change and SHARE their story of change
with the world.
There have been many replications of this program in more than 35 countries, such as the pilot project
Bâtisseurs de Possibles in France. Design for Change is impacting 25 millions children.
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Onno Franken
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Wow. I do have to bring this to my kids primary school and beyond that to other schools in the
Netherlands! Great in it's utter simplicity. It will also be very worth while to see how to apply this in
high school, university, big corporates, government, etc..
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Hao Dinh
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Carole, Kiran is truly inspiring! I found a Ted talk that Kiran did highlighting her work. Wonderful
results when you replace the "We Can't" mindset with the "We Can" mentality!
http://www.ted.com/talks/kiran_bir_sethi_teaches_kids_to_take_charge.html
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pedro alonso
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Don't miss the coming Be the Change Conference (#BTC2013) on the 28-29th of September where
children from almost 20 different countries will share their stories of change.
#BTC 2012: glimpses (http://youtu.be/k_x1tUeUp64)
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Andrea Pomerance
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Hi Carole! I love how this program empowers and promotes such an optimistic spirit amongst children.
Optimism is a key ingredient to creative confidence. When you approach a challenge this way, I think
you find that "We can" turns into "We did." Thanks for sharing!
The Power of a Pep Talk: We all need a little push, don't we?
Just a simple, funny and powerful pep talk from Kid President asking: "What will you create to make
the world awesome"
Kid President by SoulPancake
Don't we all need a little pep talk from time to time? Just that little push, that slight encouragement to
believe in ourselves and our creative confidence... to go out there and create something awesome?
That's what this video does for me (at least), and I've shared it with friends and colleagues when they
needed some uplifting. I love how Kid President in his own unique way shares this pep talk (and so
many others). And I believe the world could do with a lot more pep talks (and such amazing "peptalkers").
When I'm taking on a big project or trying out something new, I do get in touch with people who can
just give me the slight push I need... a reminder to be myself, trust myself and make things happen. And
very often, this little push has made all the difference. Coaches, teachers, parents, friends, mentors,
books, videos... there's a whole ecosystem out there to give us a good dose of encouragement when we
need it most.
When young people doubt the potential they have to think big ideas and bring them to life, even a short
pep talk could go a long way!
Have you ever received one that changed you in some way?
Have you ever given one that changed someone else?
PS - Do watch the other Kid President videos (there's even a special pep talk for students and teachers)
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Inspiration submitted by: Vishal Jodhani
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OpenIDEO
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Ashley Jablow
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Vishal, this video made my day! I love when he says, 'create something to make the world awesome' –
sounds like creative confidence to me!
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Vishal Jodhani
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Ashley, great to hear this made your day! You might even enjoy the back story here:
http://www.kidpresident.com/whoweare.html :)
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Arjan Tupan
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Oh man, spot on, Vishal! First of all: Kid President rocks! Love his videos, and his dancing.
And indeed, it's great to have a bit of inspiration or a pep-talk from someone. Even if it's just 2 lines of
a comment on a blog post. That can go a long way. For inspiration, TED is a wonderful source, but also
the people around you. I'm not sure if I've ever given someone a pep talk that changed them in some
way, but I've certainly tried. I actually never chased them for results, I think. Or have considered it as
part of day-to-day business, perhaps. Anyway, you (and Kid President) have just inspired me. Thanks.
Great inspiration.
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Vishal Jodhani
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Thanks for the encouragement Arjan, totally helps!
I'm working on this more consciously now - creating my own inspiration toolkit - a list of music,
videos, quotes, books and PEOPLE! I'll also make sure I give as much as I get..
Notes from the field: a Prototyping session in a Brooklyn High School
My visit to a High School in Brooklyn to observe a Design and Technology class thought to 9 graders
to observe one of the ”target” audiences for this challenge(high school students) in their “natural
“environment. My insights are in this inspiration
The Prototypes made in class
The Prototypes made in class
Couple of weeks ago, as part of our Design Thinking course at NYU, two of my classmates and I went
to a High School in Brooklyn to observe a Design and Technology class thought to 9 graders. It was
very insightful observing one of the ”target” audiences for this challenge (high school students) in their
“natural “environment: the school. As many inspirations on this platform highlight, there is a growing
concern that school’s are not only not nurturing kids’ confidence, they are also not equipping kids with
the tools necessary to be successful in Today’s world. Thus, it was very exciting for us to learn about
this course and have the opportunity to visit the classroom and observe how it was organized. It was
also interesting to see that Design and Technology is a mandatory course at the school.
The class we observed was a 9th grade class, consisting of kids aged 13-14. There were 6 pre-organized
teams in the class (there are 36 teams in total doing the design challenge in different classes). The
classroom was very much like a regular classroom expect for hints of collaboration, brainstorming
rules and inspirations to believe in oneself here and there. Student works were also up on a wall.
In the class, we observed students working in teams on the prototyping part of the project that they had
been doing research and brainstorming on for the last 2 weeks: Redesigning a carrier for people using
crouches. This was the final phase of a project that they had been working on for weeks. The students
had gone through an extensive brainstorming period, they’d been discussing the design process and
watching videos such as the IDEO Deep Dive and going through exercises like theD.School Wallet
activity.
Here are the main ideas I’ve taken away from observing the class:
1. The class was very structured, in that sense it was very similar to the design process itself. I wasn’t
really expecting it to be so,yet this is also something I am learning in class myself. Coming from a
corporate background and having grown up with a musician brother, I had believed for most my life
that creativity was reserved for those with talent.Never would I have thought that those skills of being
organized and structured would have helped me in my design process.
a. The teacher talked about rules for creation and instructions at the beginning of class. The instructions
were very clear and easy to follow.
b. Once the rules were laid out, all the students got down and started prototyping. Every team had a
very solid idea of what they wanted to do as they had already went through several brainstorming
sessions(including sketching) in previous classes.
2. Role of the teacher: reminders of the rules, timekeeper,facilitator but quite invisible. – Observing the
teacher’s role was also quite insightful. Even though I know it is best to allow kids the freedom to
create,traditionally I am not used to teachers taking the role of the facilitator. It was quite inspiring –
the teacher lay down the rules (just enough constraints on which the students could build on) and then
let the students come up with their own solutions and thus build up, unconsciously perhaps, their
creative confidence.
3. Students liked working in teams and every single one of them was very engaged in the exercise.
There were teams of three or two and for the most part it didn’t seem like one or the other had taken on
a more leadership role; everyone contributed to the process by adding their own inputs and opinions.
This could also be because by then they had decided on what to make. Either way, all the teams worked
well together and at the end of the time given to them had a ready prototype.
What I took out from this class, which will inspire me in the ideation phase:
· Creativity does not mean complete freedom, quite the contrary some restraints help stimulate
creativity. The class gave students enough constrains, freedom, encouragement and support to let their
creativity guide them and make/produce a product - just the perfect ingredients to cultivate creative
confidence. How to find the right balance between structure and freedom?
· The role of prototyping and project-based learning as key in engaging young people. –Prototyping
should be introduced in the classrooms more. There is nothing better than seeing what works and what
does not and revising a product or solution based on that rather than theorizing about everything.
· How can more schools make such classes part of their curriculum?
A challenge that I can foresee:
· While overall students seem engaged and afterwards when we chatted with them, they seemed to like
the class, several also said they were unsure of why they had to take this class. Its role and goals were
less obvious than more traditional classes like math, English, Science or History.
Forward-looking questions:
- While I believe that such classes are important, I’m wondering how you can create curriculums and
environments where such classes become as “obvious” as more traditional courses?
- Not all high school kids are willing to experiment, or at least engage in the same manner; the question
is then how to address these different levels of interest?
· Is there a way to engage more students by offering projects that are more aligned with their personal
interests?
- Is there a way to get students more involved in “real world” problems so that they can see concretely
why they are doing what they are doing – they might feel more encouraged if they feel like they are
contributing to a bigger cause i.e the OpenIDEO platform is a great example for this is something that
involves their local community.
I’d love to know what the community, in particular educators, think about this.
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Inspiration submitted by: Asli Aydin
October 06, 2013, 12:57AM
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Meena Kadri
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Wow.
This is a really great addition to our challenge discussions from you and you're 2 classmates, Asli! I
love your suggestion around offering projects which are aligned to student interests (this 13 year old
certainly seemed to be encouraging of that angle: http://www.openideo.com/open/creativeconfidence/inspiration/13-year-old-on-creativity-hack-schooling-1/) – and your highlight that a
structured framework can actually provide the space for focused creativity. You also made me wonder
about the avenues for cross-disciplinary collaboration. Imagine if teachers running classes like this
were aware of what their students were learning currently in English, Math, Science, etc and could
highlight the cross-overs in knowledge and application of those skills. (I'm remembering back to when
I taught at design school and we had an awesome Design History tutor who would send out an email
with bullet points of what she was covering that week to other faculty. This meant that if say, I was
teaching a practical class on typography, I could link aspects of the applied design learning of my
students to the design theory they were picking up elsewhere. This helped students appreciate the
complimentary relevance of both and we found that overall learning was increased through this
approach.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Asli for sharing your field visit and the insights from your observations. It's great to see you
taking this mission 3 to heart.
I like how you also reflected on your own experience in presenting your observations.
The point you make about structure vs. freedom is something that had come up several times and I
think it is clearly something we'll have to keep in mind in the ideation phase.
You raised important challenges if we want to make these kind of classes or programs / workshops we
saw shared during this inspiration phase part of the "everyday education".
I think your point about the role of prototyping is an interesting one too and how it can support the
creative process. I will also argue that it is important in the collaborative process. If there was not
research about this, one could infer this just by looking at the 2 top photos you posted where you can
see kids working together.
Looking forward to seeing how these insights and questions will inspire you during the ideation phase!
13 Year Old on Creativity & Hack Schooling
An inspiring TED talk by a 13 year old who shares his insights on outdated approaches in education
and offers some alternatives to help nurture creativity amongst other priorities.
TED Talk
What do you want to be when you grow up? 13 year old Logan Laplante claims kids want to do stuff
they'e "stoked on… think is cool … or have experience with" and feels this is typically the opposite of
adults want to hear. He notes that a simple yet profound answer to this question would be to be happy
and healthy – and goes on to ask what it would look like if schools prioritised education around
happiness & wellbeing.
He's checked out some neuroscience to shine a light on 8 things which significantly contribute to
happiness and health: Diet & Nutrition, Exercise, Relationships, Recreation, Relaxation and Stress
Management, Time in Nature, Relationships, Contribution & Service and Spiritual Pursuits.
He also highlights that a lot of education is focused on making a living rather than making a life and
mentions Sir Ken Robinson's famous provocation that creativity should be treated with as much
educational consideration as literacy. His parents chose to pull him out of the mainstream school
system when he was 9 and he goes on to talk about the range of benefits and perspectives that brought
with it.
He delves into thoughts on hackers as innovators. He feels the world needs folks with a hacker mindset
– and that education is also ripe to be hacked. He goes on to talk about his vision of Hack Schooling –
which is experience driven and supports creative short cuts if they produce better, faster results. It's
flexible, opportunistic and doesn't lose sight of supporting happiness, health and creativity. He talks
about projects which have required classmates to handle their fears, communicate clearly and trust each
other.
But don't take my word for it – check out Logan's inspiring TED Talk yourself!
Of course, we're not keen to knock all the great teachers out there who are joining us on this challenge
– and we acknowledge that you're often making inspirational strides within wider systemic constraints.
Rather, we're hoping you'll share with us some of your stories of success across topics like creative
confidence, experiential learning and nurturing innovation during our 3 week Inspiration phase for this
challenge. Let's collect a diverse range of existing approaches to fuel an abundance of fresh thinking on
our upcoming Ideas phase!
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Inspiration submitted by: Meena Kadri
Mission #6 Surprise Us Find out more...
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Rosie Dalton-Lucas
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Cool - i agree that wellbeing/happiness is something we could all be better at learning about - explicitly
and experientially. I guess those 8 principles for a happy life are similar to the New Economic
Foundation's '5 ways to wellbeing'. (www.nationalaccountsofwellbeing.org/learn/related/five-waysconnect.html)
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Meena Kadri
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As a big fan of NEF, I'm loving the connection you've made here!
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Vishal Jodhani
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Love it! Thanks for sharing this inspiration Meena. "Re-thinking education" seems to be a big theme.
PS - This has triggered another one (or few) for me!
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Sean Bolton
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This kid is definitely a bright spot! I wonder how me might encourage a "non-traditional" approach like
Logan has taken. There seems to be a lot of risk involved.
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Johari Nals
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Thanks Meena! I watched the video and read the comments. I love it! It all resonnated. The idea of
doing based on a mind-set (exploring experiencing, reflecting creating and connecting) as opposed to a
specific model I think is very powerful. I also look forward to seeing more of you on this challenge!
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Mel + Frank
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my 12 year old son and i just watched it and we agree that this guy makes some great points! i am not
sure we are ready to pull him out of school yet (although also agree montessori is another great
alternative!). it seems to come down to having nurturing the creative confidence to really get down
with some early personal prototyping and experiential ideas—not to lose sight of the feedback loop
between thinking / making / doing—and a bodily, hands-on, sensory connection to nature...
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Carole
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Thanks for sharing Meena! This really resonates with some alternative education models such as
Montessori (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montessori_education) or Steiner-Waldorf
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waldorf_education), where a great place is given to activities in relation
with nature, arts & culture education, learning by doing through applied student projects. Students also
have the initiative to choose among subjects the ones they want to explore more.
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Meena Kadri
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Great point, Carole – on giving children space to create.
SparkTruck - Bringing rapid prototyping to school kids
Designed by Stanford students, Spark Truck is an educational build-mobile with cool 21st-century shop
tool that travels the United States to introduce students to anything from robotics to stamp making,
spreading the fun of hands-on learning.
SparkTruck
Pictures here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sparktruck/ and info there: http://sparktruck.org
The project began as SparkLab, a group of Stanford students curious about making, education and
technology. As part of a year-long thesis project, they talked with teachers, students, and other experts
about hands-on learning. They were shocked to find that due to tight budgets and strict testing
requirements, many schools don’t have the flexibility or equipment to support hands-on building. So
they decided to do something about it. They ran a Kickstarter campaign to raise some money for a
truck and some high-tech maker equipment, like a laser cutter and some 3D printers.
In the summer of 2012, SparkTruck drove 15,323 miles across 33 different states in the US and visited
over 2,700 students in more than 70 different locations.
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Vivek Vissanji
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I wish Spark Truck had visited my school when I was a kid!
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I remember meeting the team at the d.school at Stanford where they showcased the truck and overall
project about a year and a half ago! Loved the idea and also admired their commitment to making that
drive across the country to realize the project!
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Matthew Esposito
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I love this story! Great inspiration! I love the "mobile" creative model!
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Sonja Heinen's reply to Vivek Vissanji's comment
Sonja Heinen
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Lovely idea. Thanks for sharing.
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Paula Marra
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They came to our school, it was awesome!
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Meena Kadri's reply to Vivek Vissanji's comment
Meena Kadri
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No way – how cool is that?! Any reflections to share?
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Paula Marra's reply to Vivek Vissanji's comment
Paula Marra
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Hi Meena,
The kids loved it, they just had so many ideas that we decided to have some of the materials of the
truck in our school collaboratory.
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Meena Kadri
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Great to hear, Paula. And how awesome that you have a 'collaboratory.' Sounds like that could be an
Inspiration post all of it's own! :^)
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Paula Marra
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Will see if I write something about, or even better interview Francesca the person who had the idea of
making one at our school. In the meantime take a look: http://spreadingjam.blogspot.com/ - project
created with my students.
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Anne-Laure Fayard's reply to Vivek Vissanji's comment
Anne-Laure Fayard
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Looking forward to reading the description or interview. The pictures are great!
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Paula Marra
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Thank you Anne-Laure. The kids and I had a blast building our city. Cheers
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OpenIDEO
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Carole 's reply to Vivek Vissanji's comment
Carole
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Thanks :)
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Meena Kadri
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And here's a tip: update your OpenIDEO profile so folks can dig who they're collaborating with. Think
skills, experience, passions & wit! Looking forward to seeing more of you across conversations on this
challenge...
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David LaVigna
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What a wonderful video. The joy heard in the kids is amazing and inspirational. There is no greater
feeling than to see something in your creative eye and then make it reality. It is awesome to see that
many paths are encouraged. Not everyone can draw or sculpt or write but everyone imagines and
dreams! A great tool - kudos!
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Johnson Chu
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My nieces and nephews will love this! Even i would love to see their drawings becoming 3D tangible!
Anyone come across an app (apple/android) that creates 3D models?
Best if it's easy to use, simple to understand, simple UI and it's engaging for kids and young adults.
Seems like I got inspired by your inspiration, Carole! Cheers!
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Hoang Nguyen
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Its beautiful! love to see kids happy.
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Michael Kupfer
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Fantastic project. Thanks for sharing.
The video shows that the children use a variety of materials with many shapes and colors to create
object of their imagination. This contrasts a trend I noticed with Lego over the past years since I was a
child. The Lego sets of today consist often out of larger pre-made elements. In the past you had to use
more individual blocks to imagine and then approximate the shape/figure you wanted to build. I
personally find that a current day Lego set does not encourage the creativity compared to how it used
to.
But it is great to know about projects like the SparkTruck that have as their mission to specifically
spark children's imagination and creative confidence.
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ahmadi amine
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like it and that's the good way to teach children how to express themselves and to be creative
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浩基大川
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gg
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Aditya Brahmabhatt
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Kids are fascinating to watch when they're doing things. Boredom never reaches them. Lovely project !
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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I like the idea of providing an experience to children and to go out to reach to them with the van.
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Nenad M.
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It's really powerful to show kids at the young age that they can create anything that they want. Thanks
for this inspiration!
From Zero to Hero
Up until I was around 14 years old I was remarkable for not being particularly remarkable at anything
at school: not sports, sciences, arts or humanities. However, that changed for me when Mr Green taught
the first computer science lesson.
Picture of a BBC model B computer
Picture of a BBC model B computer
When I was 14 years old, I was luckily enough to be able to study Computer Science which was taught
by a gentleman called Mr Green. He was one of the school's mathematics teachers who was going to
teach this (at the time) new course and he had a reputation as a hard task master.
As a fairly shy and not particularly academic pupil, he some how managed to create a passion and
interest in the subject computing which I still feel today. As well as teaching the subject, he organised
speakers, brought along artefacts (bits of mainframes) arranged visits to universities and, my favourite,
set us programming problems.
I started to apply my creative imagination and energy to see how these problems might be solved using
computer code. I started carrying around paper and pens to enable me to quickly capture the "zap" on
inspiration. My pool of friends expanded as some of the cool kids would ask my help. It really was a
turning point in my own personal development. I was hungry to learn more and more.
When I think back, I think the difference that really made a difference was Mr Green was happy for us
to experiment. It really was okay to make mistakes - everyone expected to spend some time debugging
(and learning).
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Inspiration submitted by: Simon Bartlett
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks for sharing, Simon! I started learning HTML/CSS in Codecademy and I loved the feeling of
creating something from nothing. Coding felt like an act of pure creation, making something entirely
from just lines you write, into a blank page.
I'm not that experienced with programming beyond Codecademy, so please correct me if I'm wrong,
but it seems that it is a great space to practice creativity because it doesn't take significant resources,
and mistakes are quick to fix. And when it is done right, it can make huge impact!
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Simon Bartlett
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Thanks for the comment Jeff. I think you are spot on. You are creating something new and novel where
there was effectively nothing and when its good its very good!
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Linda Luu
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Thanks for sharing! What i really love about your story is the difference it made when a role model and
person with authority gave you permission to make mistakes and experiment. My memories of school
were very black and white - i was fed information, which i had to memorize, then recite back and the
result was either right or wrong! No one was ever rewarded for an incorrect answer :)
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Linda Luu
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Thanks for sharing! What i really love about your story is the difference it made when a role model and
person with authority gave you permission to make mistakes and experiment. My memories of school
were very black and white - i was fed information, which i had to memorize, then recite back and the
result was either right or wrong! No one was ever rewarded for an incorrect answer :)
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Ashley Jablow
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Such nice insights here Simon. Amazing how crossing paths with the right person at the right time in
your life just unlocked a completely new side of you – and set you up for an entirely new path in life.
Cheers for sharing this with us.
Defining Creative Confidence
We talk a lot about "Creative Confidence" but what does it truly mean? What would it look like? We
spent some time at the Childrens Creativity Museum exploring this topic, and posted a blog entry with
our findings..
Creative Confidence- Post-it Definition
Creative Confidence- Post-it Definition
Creative Confidence is a term that gets tossed around a lot at our museum. David Kelley, of IDEO
fame, mentions the term frequently, and building creative confidence is one of the guiding objectives of
the Stanford d.School. We have adopted this mantra and integrated it into our educational approach and
design process of “Imagine, Create, Share”, and until recently have felt pretty confident that we were
imparting the skills and coaching needed to be creatively confident.
However, during a recent education team meeting, one of our interns asked what exactly we meant by
creative confidence, pointing out that it was hard to measure unless we knew what such confidence
actually looks like.
This prompted some deep soul searching among the Education team and prompted us to utilize the
backwards design approach. We began by trying to define the enduring understandings we want to
impart and asked ourselves, how do we define creative confidence, how do we make sure we are
teaching it, and how might we recognize it when we see it? Falling back on our own design process, we
began with interviews to understand how others interpreted this phrase, and asked our office staff,
interns and high school CITY Guides “What would be your definition of having creative confidence?”
Some of the responses were:
“Knowing that your creative contributions and ideas are valuable”
“Creative confidence can be obtained when you try something you’ve never done and learn something
new about yourself from that attempt”
“The confidence to put yourself out on a limb”
“Knowing that you don’t have to find the one right answer”
“Knowing there there is not a single right answer to a problem, and feeling empowered to create and
test out multiple solutions.”
“Not being afraid of your imagination.”
“Being able to create anything and feel happy about it. Not hesitating to build whatever comes to
mind”.
“The confidence to trust your instincts and share your ideas with a group”
As designers, we took these statements and looked for patterns and themes that we could synthesize
into one clear statement. Two themes that recurred were the confidence to share your ideas with others
and the knowledge that there is always something that can be learned from creating or expressing an
idea, even if it doesn’t turn out the way you imagined it would. With these in mind, we crafted the
following definition
Creative Confidence: Having the freedom and courage to fail/take creative risks and the knowledge that
all of the ideas you create have value.
Once we had defined this statement, we were able to pull back and look at our programs and the way
we facilitate them and ask ourselves whether we were truly imparting this knowledge and confidence to
our visitors. The question we asked ourselves was “When and how are we explicitly letting our visitors
know that it is ok to take creative risks and try new things? What are we doing that would let them
know that their ideas have value?” The results? We realized that we encourage creative confidence in
very subtle ways that don’t always resonate with visitors. We have educational signage with “creative
tips” which encourage visitors to experiment with different tools or build a castle out of foam
blocks,but a recent observation showed that few visitors seem to engage with these prompts. With
regards to validating the value of what our visitors create we are doing slightly better, with our
Creativity Stories project that celebrates the stories behind projects, but once again the percentage of
visitors who interact with this experience is smaller than we’d like.
After much internal discussion, we realized that the single best way for us to communicate these values
to our visitors is through our facilitation and personal interactions with visitors. We conducted another
brainstorm, this time with our high school City Guides, to develop things we could do or say to inspire
this confidence. Here are 3 concrete tips to try at home:
There is no wrong way to approach a project: Everyone has a different process for tackling creative
projects- some start with sketches or a brainstorm, while others observe their environment for cues and
inspiration. Some may find it helpful to develop a process that can be repeated while for others, finding
inspiration might take a different path every time. We often develop mental blocks or construct
artificial rules and constraints for ourselves, such as assuming that we can only use the materials we are
given (a cardboard box for example) or that we can only use the materials as they were originally
intended (i.e selling the box for $2 to buy new materials would be ‘cheating’). The next time you find
yourself or a child asking questions that begin with “Am I allowed to..” or “Can I do…” affirm that the
answer is always YES.
Take pictures and document/celebrate the process: There has long been a sense that only the best works
of art or creations are worthy of being framed, hung on the mantle or displayed for all to see. How
often have you walked into a room to see a display of blurry photos, or a smudged painting left halffinished? However, the story behind those beautiful objects lies within those very same ‘mistakes’, and
should be celebrated as well. The Reggio Emilia school system does an incredible job of documenting
conversations and artwork from their 3-5 year old students, and displaying these documents
prominently on the walls. This display and celebration of the thought process and artwork of children is
an incredibly empowering model and one that we strive to emulate. The responses we get from kids
when we ask if we can take pictures of their prototypes and creations to share with other kids on
Facebook and our blog is priceless- huge smiles, a surge in confidence and a feeling that their work is
special and worth celebrating, no matter what it looks like.
At the end of a project, ask what you’ve learned and how you could do things differently the next time.
There has been a lot of talk in the business world recently about the importance and power of failure.
One of the key ideas that has emerged from this discussion is the idea of “Failing Forward”, or using
lessons learned from an experience to drive forward your next iteration. There is a huge difference
between blindly accepting failure and plowing forward and actively reflecting after each project on
what worked, what didn’t work and what you would do differently the next time. A recent school group
was working on a claymation movie- unfortunately their computer crashed three times during the
filming process. By the third time around, the students knew exactly how to get started without any
support and were much more sophisticated in their approach. Had they not been forced to pause and
reflect on their process in between reboots, their final product would have been much more choppy and
confusing. At the end of each project, leave time to debrief on “I liked..” “I wish..” and “What if…”.
By capturing these lessons learned, you are calling out the fact that all of the ideas created had value in
that they offered valuable lessons and learnings for future projects.
With that in mind, we now end our daily meetings with one very important question for all of our staff:
“What did you do today that would explicitly let a visitor know it is ok to take creative risks and that
the idea/project they created has value?”
How do you or your organization define creative confidence? How do you foster it? Share with us!
(And know that all ideas you share are valuable and will teach us something new)
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Aditya Brahmabhatt
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I think creativity is lack of constraints. And it so happens that the constraints that restrict our creativity
are self imposed. Routine, Norms, are just some of them. Kids dont have them and creative people do
seem to disregard them intrinsically. Theres a natural flow to life which we resist through these
constraints. This is the flow that great musicians and artists embrace.
Neal Cassady tells Jack kerouac in an excerpt from on the road,' He's never hung up,he goes in every
direction, he lets it all out, he knows time"
I think to answer the question posed by this challenge we need to first delve into where we lost it. The
creativity everyone has when we are kids, and loose along the way. Thats the point where we can make
the change, thats the tipping point.
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Jeff Nagata
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I think there is a very complex relationship between constraints and creativity. It might be dangerous to
assume that total freedom from constraints will lead to most creativity and creative confidence, because
it only factors in one kind of creativity, when there are multiple creative styles and levels of confidence
that each individual exhibits.
There's a powerful concept called Paradox of Structure, which says that every structure - physical,
social, intellectual, organizational - can be both enabling and limiting at the same time. The perfect
balance between having too much structure (losing too many options and restricting creativity) and
having not enough structure (too many options can also be inhibiting), depends a lot on the creative
style of each individual.
There's another good concept called Creative Diversity, which says that there are extremes in two
creative styles - one that is more adaptive, and one that is more innovative (which I think is the extreme
that most people think of when they think of creativity). But the concept says that both extremes are
just as creative, and just as valuable, and that there is a spectrum between these two extremes that
everyone falls within.
So, to bring this all back, restrictions from structure can actually enable creativity for individuals that
have more adaptive creative styles, but that same structure can be limiting for those with more
innovative creative styles.
For me, the coolest thing about the Childrens Creativity Museum example is that they provided just
enough structure, while giving the children complete freedom to choose what they want their structure,
or restrictions to be.
Just for another example, here is a snippet from a interview with Jack White, a very talented and
creative musician: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MckHLBWuz7E
In this example, Jack White self-imposed constraints through rigorous work and deadlines to focus his
efforts, but also took away structure (no set list) to allow spontaneity.
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Aditya Brahmabhatt
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That was cool man ! Well the connection between creativity and constraints was sorta my seed crystal
in this thought process and what you said here seems like the next step in the discussion. Absence of
constraints does not necessarily translate to creativity. Structures of some sort,I have experienced, are
highly supportive of our creative instinct. Just like Jack white says here in the video. But I really like
the direction this took, I really think structure is necessary to foster and sustain creativity. So I guess
each individual needs to achieve that balance yea ? Interesting stuff.But where does it all go wrong ?
We as kids are all creative with/without structure. Then it goes away and reappears only intermittently,
maybe when it finds the right sort of environment? So its not enough to just free people of constraints
but also important to find the right structure for each individual. Is it school kids we should be
focussing on or slightly older teens ?
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Really interesting conversation about structure, constraints and creativity. I do agree (and there are
several studies showing this) that constraints of some sort (structure, process, e.g.) helps the creative
process. It might be particularly important when it comes to make people feel confident: complete
freedom can be scary.
However, Aditya, you're raising a great question: when did people start losing their creative
confidence? A lot of studies (and inspirations for this matter) focus on the constraints, structures and
processes imposed by schools... this opens a very nice field of research on what kind of structure, what
kind of balance to achieve!
Looking forward to more inspirations and to seeing where it takes us in ideation.
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Ben Grossman-Kahn
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Great to see this thread evolving! As Anne-Laure mentions, there is a lot of research on the power of
constraints. Caneel Joyce has a great paper called the "Blank Page Effect" which shows that it is harder
to start the creative process when starting from scratch- http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?
abstract_id=1552835
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Ben Grossman-Kahn
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There is a powerful idea of giving children/adults an initial "20% Inspiration" to jump start the creative
process- I have another blog post detailing that which I'll post as a separate inspiration..
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Jeff Nagata's reply to Aditya Brahmabhatt's comment
Jeff Nagata
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Those are such great questions, Aditya! I think it's such a tricky problem to tackle, to try to find a
balance between constraints and flexibility. The thing that makes it so hard are the varied responses to
structure based on each individual's personality.
How do we create an environment that can cultivate the creative confidence of such a huge variety of
individuals?
I'm not sure what the answer is, but I think an important place to start off is to see all the different ways
structure is enabling and disabling for different individuals, to start seeing patterns between different
personalities for how structure affects them.
Thanks for moving the discussion forward!
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Hi,
I just want to refer you to another inspiration by Ben which addresses this issue of how to create an
environment with some structure, yet flexible: http://www.openideo.com/open/creativeconfidence/inspiration/imagination-starters-and-the-power-of-20-inspiration-/
Make sure to read Carole's comment where she discusses a very interesting study:
http://www.asla.org/awards/2006/studentawards/282.html
Jeff, regarding your point about the the diversity of individuals, I posted an inspiration about Gardner's
theory of multiple intelligences: http://www.openideo.com/open/creativeconfidence/inspiration/gardner-s-multiple-intelligences-challenging-unimodal-ways-of-teaching/
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Olivia Vagelos's reply to Aditya Brahmabhatt's comment
Olivia Vagelos
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Ben, looking through this and your other post I think you make some very insightful points about
structure not necessarily impeding creativity, but instead inspiring it. So rarely do ideas develop as
distinct from one’s environments and experiences. Most are discovered and acutely inspired by pushing
the boundaries of existing frames of thinking or doing. Those initial boundaries are the jumping offpoints. How do you have change and innovation without a starting point?
Recently I have been thinking about the sometimes dichotomous way creativity is presented. Prominent
on this forum is the notion that every child is born inherently creative, yet many believe they lose that
ability as they grow older.
However, as mentioned on a number of other threads, there is also a perception that creativity is
synonymous with aesthetic and artistic talent - that it is something black and white - either you have it
or you don’t. I am a firm believer that instead creativity is a skill, a way of thinking, that can be
developed, cultivated and improved. It is a muscle. Stretching yourself to entirely re-frame, push
constraints, and adopt a novel point of view is not easy, but is something that can become easier with
practice.
I think that the lack of “metrics of progress” can be an impediment to the development of the creative
process. Unlike math or science, it is difficult to quantify creativity and creative modes of thinking. By
definition of creativity, there isn’t the inherent positive feedback mechanism of a right answer. We need
teachers, mentors or role models that are versed in developing confidence and skills in creativity in
people of every age.
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Rudolf Kutina
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YES, experience from EU (and any centralist driven approach) is then you want to measure it so you
can prove you do it for this you need to define and describe it and after you can ask for funding.
But many others projects are based on volunteers - creative confidence is for us SEE a SPARKS in
KIDS EYES when they do freely their projects - regardless it's small or big project - regardless result
it's meanfull STEM principles demonstration or it's just an Art Artifact - regardless of age or knowledge
level.
"but once again the percentage of visitors who interact with this experience is smaller than we’d like."
Did they smile when they finish or they just do it because it's there? Inspire them to PLAY - add there
photos of ones which smile after they was playing.
Many times there are not direct visible Lessons Learned "You must trust then dots will connect in
future somehow".
PS: Ben, I spend last year to tying inspire 7 yeas old kids stop playing games on tables and do creative
stiff. Yes, you are true, Yayk it unbelievably HAAAAAAADR!!!
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Maja Todorovic
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"....all of the ideas you create have value." I would say that this is one of the key points in building
creative confidence. Somewhere along the way, while growing up through the influences of school,
environment and society in general we get accustomed to think in certain way; we pay too much
attention on what other people might say/think of our ideas and that is a true confidence killer! Every
idea has a value - it might not be a wright answer at some point but it is a result of creative process. We
are all creators in one way or another and we should never forget that.
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Mel + Frank
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interested in one of the main themes from your feedback—the one about the confidence to share your
ideas with others. i've been thinking a bit about what 'sharing your ideas' really means. for example,
introverts and extroverts might share ideas in different ways and may not be as inclined to share ideas
in the 'others' way. (we posted the inspiration about the QUIET book by Susan Cain). this is likely
something you've already considered, but i'm wondering if it is worth exploring more ways that we
could encourage / validate a range of ways to share ideas... i.e. if someone is quiet but creatively
confident in sharing their ideas in written form, or in a more prepared fashion...?
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Ben Grossman-Kahn
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This is certainly worth considering! Not every child will feel confident standing up in front of a group
to present their idea (though eventually I do think this is a valuable skill to develop). Other ways to
encourage sharing might be a "Gallery" space where kids can leave their art behind to inspire others, or
asking them to fill out a short slip of paper that explains their inspiration and idea.
I've found that when working with kids, if you ask "Would you like to take your project home, or leave
it behind to inspire other kids?" more often than not they choose to leave and inspire!
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Mel + Frank 's reply to Aditya Brahmabhatt's comment
Mel + Frank
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these are great ideas to consider! i also agree that sharing your ideas in front of a group is a valuable
skill to learn for kids—whether they are introverts or extroverts. i think both personality types benefit
from learning to be creatively confident in front of a group sharing their ideas. i'm glad you mentioned
this as it's helping me to distill what may be one of the key considerations here in relation to creative
confidence. it seems that the main difference between the two personality types, generally speaking, is
that introverts are generally quite confident when they have more time to prepare and reflect before
they share, whereas extroverts are often more comfortable speaking off the cuff. providing
opportunities to make art and write notes might be great preparation / reflecting time to set up
introverts for success and also open up the sharing to a range of considered, confident feedback...
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Ashley Jablow
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Wow, I'm loving the thought and time you and your team put into this. Keep up the great work – glad to
have you onboard for this challenge.
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Ben Grossman-Kahn
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Thanks Ashley! It was great to see this as the OpenIDEO Challenge- I'm a d.School Alum/former coach
and was lucky enough to spend time with David K teaching some classes. We spent a lot of time
thinking about this topic, and its great to have a forum where we can share our work and engage with
others! I just posted a 2nd blog post that goes into some of the methods we developed to scaffold
creative confidence..
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OpenIDEO
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Ben Grossman-Kahn
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Thanks, its an honor!!
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Meena Kadri
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This is awesome, Ben! Love that you put the call out there for folks to engage with the definition. And
I'm digging the prompt you came up with for your own staff out of all of this
Maker Kids
Maker Kids is a community for youth who make cool things! PS 107 in the Bronx has been
instrumental in getting Maker Kids off the ground. This group of 4th & 5th graders come together to
design/build everything from water pumps to small robots.
Kids making/testing their water wheel and water pump designs
Kids making/testing their water wheel and water pump designs
Maker Kids is a community for youth who make cool things! This program started at PS 107 in the
Bronx and is made up of a group of 4th and 5th grade do-ers and risk-takers. They come together
during free periods at school and design/build everything from water pumps to small paper robots to
energy harnessing scooters.
I, and my fellow Uncharted Play colleagues, had the pleasure of working with them as mentors and got
to see first hand the work that they were creating. What was most exciting to see was not only their
curiosity to see how things worked, but their interest and passion to design it better! They would start
with a design and prototype various new ways of building it. Then they would create this board of
drawings and prototypes that failed and lists of how they were going to improve on them. Developing
this skill is SO crucial to the creative process and helps build the next generation of thinkers with an
already instilled sense of creative confidence where failing and iteration is not only okay, but essential
to pushing ideas forward.
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Inspiration submitted by: Hailey O'Connor
October 08, 2013, 09:18PM
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Andy La Fond
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I'm curious: Do kids choose to be in the program? Do they identify themselves as "do-ers and risktakers?" Or do all the kids at the school get involved in the program at some point? It seems the
greatest potential and the biggest challenge is inspiring confidence in kids who don't see themselves as
do-ers, makers, inventors, or creative types. How would we get all kids, or at least more kids, involved
in a program like this?
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Hailey O'Connor
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Hi Andy,
That is a great question! When this program began, they actually just choose one classroom of 4th
graders to participate in it (because it was a trial program they could not include all the classrooms - so
one got lucky!) So I image this class was filled with some kids who were natural do-ers and others that
had to develop these skills. I got to see them in action after a year of being in the program and each and
everyone of those kids now had a certain confidence and excitement to make things. You could tell that
there were still natural leaders and some that were more shy, but their instructor, Karen, does a great
job encouraging and making sure everyone get a chance to speak, lead a group, lead a discussion, etc.
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Andy La Fond
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Thanks for your reply, Halley. Sounds like a great program. Are there plans to continue or expand it?
Also, I'm curious about "uncharted play." Is this is a larger movement among teachers and/or parents?
Have you posted any other content on "uncharted play?"
I'm especially interested in what's going on in public schools since school obviously exerts a huge
influence on how kids understand success and failure, how the approach problems, and how they ask
questions and come up with problems to solve in the first place.
I was fortunate to have an excellent public school education, back in the 80s and early 90s. Even so,
there was a strong motivation to learn the right answers or the right interpretation of material. You
didn't get good grades by being "creative" -- except maybe in art class. You got good grades by being
"right" most of the time. Being rewarded for being "right" starts with questions with known answers,
rather than problems with unknown or ambiguous solutions.
It seems a lot of student don't really ask their own questions, ones that don't yet have answers, until
maybe they get to grad school.
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Hailey O'Connor
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Hi Andy,
I do think that there are plans to grow Maker Kids, but I think at this time, it is completely run on grant
money so I believe that when more funding can come in, that is when the program will grow.
As for Uncharted Play, they are actually a social enterprise startup in NYC. They are the designers of
the SOCCKET, and energy harnessing soccer ball designed for areas with little to no access to reliable
electricity. To find out more info, feel free to check out their website: http://unchartedplay.com/ I was
the Lead Designer there before moving out to San Francisco a few months ago. They are a great group
of young innovators and entrepreneurs - I loved working with them!
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Rudolf Kutina
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+1 :-)
Every child a Maker - US programme (STEM plus ART)
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/every-child-a-maker-us-programme/
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OpenIDEO
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Hailey O'Connor
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Thank you!
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Meena Kadri
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This is so awesome – and especially given your deeper insights from actually being involved. I love the
'failure board.' Failing-forward has been emerging as a key theme during this challenge – and I thought
you might especially enjoy this Inspiration, if you haven't seen it already:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/promoting-failure-/
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Hailey O'Connor
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This is great, I hadn't seen that one yet. Thanks for sharing Meena!
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Kasia Dybek
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This is an amazing project! Do you know what kind of materials children use? Do they have an access
to the equipment and supplies or work with more basic and simple materials? And also, are the
prototypes being kept by the students or preserved somehow?
The fact that they are there to actually build and create something rather than being lectured and shown
a final product is so great!
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Hailey O'Connor
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Hi Kasia,
Thanks for reaching out. Yes these kids are pretty amazing, it is quite exciting to see them work! Most
of the materials used are simple household items or ones that you can get at a local hardware store:
paper towel rolls, plates and cups, pvc pipes, dowels, straws, batteries, pieces of wood, etc. Some of the
projects require small kits (like the robotics) but their teacher does a great job outlining what you need
and where you can get it here on her website. You can find each of the projects they've done and what
materials they used in the "How-To" section.
http://www.maker-kid.com/
And all of their prototypes are kept on individual shelves for each of the students (there are approx. 20)
so that they can go back and look at past designs to get inspiration for new ones and even reuse certain
elements in a new design if they are inspired to do so
the power of QUIET!
Susan Cain's TED talk and book helps us to consider that LOUD may not always be synonymous with
creative confidence. What happens when we re-think the 'Extrovert Ideal' and the 'Culture of
Personality' within the context of creative confidence?
QUIET by Susan Cain
QUIET by Susan Cain
Susan Cain's book helps us to consider that LOUD may not always be synonymous with creative
confidence. Her TED talk and book QUIET shed light on the sustaining, reflective power of introverts
and the necessity of balance between the extrovert and the introvert. Cain offers key insights on how
introverts can value their gifts and find their flow in a culture 'that can't stop talking.'
How can these insights be shared to encourage young people to connect with their 'newfound sense of
entitlement to be themselves' in a dominant 'Culture of Personality?'
What would creative thinking look like if both introverts and extroverts understood, appreciated and
balanced their powerful gifts in creative confidence, truly?
How can the spectrum of creative thinking draw upon and encourage both the voices of the 'bold and
easy' as well as the reflective, thoughtful, and conscientious?
Watch the amazing Ted Talk here:
http://www.ted.com/talks/susan_cain_the_power_of_introverts.html
Check out the book here:
http://www.amazon.com/Quiet-Power-Introverts-World-Talking/dp/0307352153/ref=sr_1_1?
ie=UTF8&qid=1379447993&sr=8-1&keywords=quiet
The Extrovert Ideal may seem to go hand-in-hand with creative confidence. Susan Cain's TED Talk and
book "QUIET" challenges us to re-think the import of diverse thinking / balance between "warriorking" and "priestly advisor" types.
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Inspiration submitted by: Mel + Frank
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Lee Friedman
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Thanks for posting this! What a fascinating TED talk; now I need to read the book. As an introvert, the
pressure to keep up and remain "visible" through social media sometimes seems overwhelming. Of
course, it also offers a wealth of opportunities to express one's ideas through channels that simply
weren't available in the past. How does one (introverts especially) navigate this dichotomy without
feeling disoriented by the cacophony of "hey, look at me" every time one opens a browser window?
As a teacher, I've always instructed my students to do their historical research, but not to allow the
work of others—especially the artists they most admire—to deter them from pushing through their own
creative explorations. Back in the day, it was simply a matter of limiting one's trips to the library in
order to impose temporary separations in the cycle of looking/thinking/making. Now, the library is
everywhere. It's increasingly more challenging to create these separations (periods of reflection) amidst
the accelerating inflow of information.
Mel, I'm sure you're familiar with this one, but a book that seems somewhat relevant here is "Art &
Fear". Curious to hear your thoughts.
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Mel + Frank
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thanks lee! and yes, cain would agree with you here. she says that introverts don't function as well
when they don't have a balance between communicating (in the midst of this inflow of information)
and listening/reflecting. i notice that i feel more creatively confident when i have a good balance
between synthesizing and reflecting on my own and communicating or sharing my ideas. if i'm
constantly communicating or sharing, my ideas tend to feel more shallow and i will be less apt or
excited to share.. and this can affect my creative confidence. this negative feedback loop can be
disrupted by restoring balance between communicating and listening.
i posted about this book because she speaks about "the dangers of the 'New Group Think.'" She feels
that group dynamics can lead to impediments in creative thinking and less time for 'listening.' she
recommends arranging for people to interact one-on-one and in small casual groups. she says, "don't
mistake assertiveness or eloquence for good ideas...if it's creativity that you're after, ask your
employees to solve problems alone before sharing their ideas... I personally feel collaboration and
group thinking can be powerful when it incorporates this balance between communicating and
listening.
i'm not familiar with that book art & fear but i'll definitely check into it!
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Mel + Frank
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btw--forgot end quotation marks. the 'i personally feel...' is my opinion, not necessarily cain's!
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Rodolfo Soto
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It is very true, sometimes all we need i some time to ourselves.
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Mel + Frank
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yes, we all do, some more than others. i think there is the potential for young people to think that the
route to creative confidence is to be the kind of person they are not. instead, introverted people, often
spend much of their time trying to conform to extroverted norms (and how much more so pressure for
young people?) so that it starts to feel normal to pretend to be something you're not (maybe constantly
working collaboratively for example, without much break). and yet, the route to creative confidence
could potentially be flattened by a one-size-fits all approach and unexamined assumptions about what
is creatively confident.
it can be hard for extroverted people to understand, cain says, how badly introverts need to re-charge
and reflect in the process of tapping into their confident true selves.
she also talks about something else related and pretty cool. the idea of FREE TRAIT THEORY. a free
trait agreement acknowledges that we each have to act out of character for a time. it's finding the
balance between stepping out, and then finding that more reflective, listening time you need (different
for all) to balance it out. and in so hopefully we can nurture and optimize creative confidence.
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks so much for sharing! This made me think about what other preconceived notions I have about
what creativity looks like that isn't true. For example, when I think of creativity, the first words that pop
into my mind are "innovation" and "revolutionary". I think as a society we celebrate innovative ideas as
being creative, but aren't evolutionary ideas just as creative?
New knowledge and new ideas can be gleaned from deeply investigating a system that already exists.
So why don't I think of evolutionary ideas when I think about creativity? What other myths about
creativity exist that could damage and limit creative confidence?
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Mel + Frank
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That is a very interesting point Jeff! I never thought about it that way before but when I think about my
own practice as an artist—an essentially creatively confident activity (well, most of the time)—this is
so true. I also wonder if further exploring the evolutionary aspects of creative confidence and specific
ways we build upon the generations of creatively confident people before us might help inform our
ideas to better nurture creative confidence in young people?
Check out this quote by Virginia Wolfe from a Room of One's Own:
Great works of art "are not the product of single and solitary births; they are the product of many years
of thinking in common, of thinking by the body of the people, so that the experience of the mass is
behind the single voice"
and this:
"The ideas of today's intelligence will be questioned by the ideas of tomorrow's creativity, only to be
synthesized by the ideas of post-tomorrow's wisdom. These ideas, in turn, will become the ideas of
later intelligence, that still later will be questioned by creativity, and on the spiral will go through time."
The role of creativity in the dialectical evolution of ideas by Robert J. Sternberg, Yale University
and:
"So the development of the cult of individualism elevates the value of originality and, at the same time,
blurs its definition. Individualism has burdened successive generations of artists and designers with the
increasingly elusive quest for originality. As more ideas and their expressions are generated, so
originality becomes more rare and the use of precedent more insistent and inescapable. The increased
premium placed on this by the world of commerce has not helped to ease it.—Petrarch's Apes:
Originality, Plagiarism and Copyright Principles within Visual Culture by Penelope Alfrey (MIT
Communications Forum) Full article here:
http://web.mit.edu/comm-forum/papers/alfrey.html
Sorry for the long post—there is clearly a lot more to think about here!
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Thanks for the amazing response! I can definitely relate to the sources you posted here. I just started
tapping into creative forms of self-expression, such as digital illustrations and drawing. One of the first
things I started to realize is that there is nothing wrong with remixing and letting other people's work
inspire me. Even if I try to copy and draw influences from other people's work, I found that my own
experiences, thoughts, and outlook on life made it completely my own, naturally.
I think there is a huge emphasis on any artistic endeavor to come up with something completely new,
out of nothing. But, I feel like that is a dangerous pressure to push on people, especially at the
beginning stages when creative confidence is so fragile, and even more especially for youth. I
remember even now, when I show what I created to my friends, when I reveal where my inspirations
and influences came from, they would give me this disappointed reaction, like
"Oh, so you just pulled that idea from that?"
And it would be a huge blow to my creative confidence. I feel like the culture of over-emphasis on
completely brand new ideas as the only form of true creativity is really damaging. Like you said, so
many artistic endeavors are built from the vast history of other artists that came before us, laying
foundations that can be used to create evolutionary ideas.
I also saw another inspiration here that relates to what we're talking about:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/steal-like-an-artist-10-things-nobodytold-you-about-being-creative/
That being said, there are so many different styles of creativity, ranging in a spectrum from
revolutionary to evolutionary, that individuals tend to have. I think the big question I have is, how can
we create a culture where all kinds of creativity can be nurtured?
Or, how can we break down the myths that have evolved in our culture about creativity that can be
damaging to creative confidence?
I think just presenting information like the ones you showed here can go a long way to start breaking
down those myths!
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Mel + Frank
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thanks for pointing me to this great related inspiration jeff. it really resonated with me.
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Alex Freeman
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It's great to see you on this challenge Mel + Frank! I love this inspiration...our society moves so fast
and is so rapid with our prototyping and innovation and moving on that we rarely take time to sit, think
and reflect on what we just did. Creativity demands a certain amount of borrowing from others, but
what we miss so often is the ability to borrow from ourselves. What ideas in the past have we come up
with that could supplement our new ideas?
Will miss being in the Meetups in Palo Alto for the next few months since I'm back in DC!
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Mel + Frank
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thanks for this insightful comment alex. i also agree that the practice of pausing and reflecting is a
critical part of enabling—and having the space?—for creative confidence. how many artists credit
walking, wondering (gabriel orozco for one) as enabling and sustaining their creative practice, and of
being present with the world at large? as other inspirations have noted, the pressures and overscheduling many young people face allows for very little 'useless' time, down time, quiet time... how do
we value that in this challenge?
we miss you here! hope you're having a great time in DC.
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Maja Todorovic
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Really great video and insight on how to foster creativity within introvert children.
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Mel + Frank
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thanks maja, glad it resonated with you also.
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Vishal Jodhani
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Thanks so much Mel + Frank for this inspiration. I love how you've added such an important
dimension to this conversation. We need to acknowledge different personality types and preferences
when dealing with creative confidence, and be mindful of existing stereotypes. I also appreciate the
question you've raised about introverts and extroverts acknowledging, appreciating and balancing their
powerful gifts in creative confidence.
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Mel + Frank
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thanks vishal! I'm glad you also think it's an important aspect of this challenge. i'm also interested in
ways we might draw upon the powerful gifts of both personality types and optimize creative
confidence in our local OpenIDEO meet-up's... sylvia and i have been talking about various strategies
and and open to any ideas or suggestions you might have based on your own recent and future meet-up
experiences!
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Vishal Jodhani
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Absolutely, such an important aspect for inclusion of the different personality types. And thank you,
definitely some food for thought on making room for exactly this during the meet-ups. I will be more
mindful of this when designing the next one.
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Christina Nesheva
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It is a great book. Thanks for bringing it up. I guess a lot of confidence is needed to challenge the
stereotypes I the Western society and to allow yourself to flourish. We need to help children avoid
being labeled as labels kill creativity by making kids believe in what those wi perceived power say
versus what their inner voice is telling them.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Great questions and worth asking. I liked when in the TED talk Susan Cain talks about her summer
camp and her attempts to read her books. As a kid, I spent hours in books and that was key in giving me
the space to think, dream and imagine.
I often think of these issues in my courses where I do a lot of team work and project work. In the last
few years, I have used blogs to provide a "quiet space" for reflection and expression and all students
(the introverts but the extroverts too) like it.
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Mel + Frank
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thanks anne-laure! using blogs as quiet, reflective space is a great idea. i've also thought about and tried
mixing in more reflective thinking and contemplative work in the midst of 'live' teamwork as a way to
build on the strengths of diverse thinkers and ultimately enrich the collaborative process.. i'd love to
hear more ideas out there about this...
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I like this idea too. I have tried in some courses to ask students to first work individually on a challenge
question and then come together and combine their ideas. I found that often times, it provided the
"quieter" students some space to develop their ideas.
Re-thinking about your post and looking at Andrea's comment I think that your inspiration also invites
to rethink creative confidence in broader terms. Thanks again for opening a very important ( believe)
thread.
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Mel + Frank
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i have tried something also quite similar to what you mention above! something called "think, pair,
share.." ie think on your own, pair up with a neighbour and then share. i find this deceptively simple
exercise helps to deepen ideas and encourage input from more people. i recently tried this in our Palo
Alto OpenIDEO meet-up and it seemed to work well to the point where we were flooded with ideas
and then i wished i had left more time to repeat the process again so we could dive more deeply into the
ideas themselves... i might try this next time!
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Andrea Pomerance
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Mel + Frank! As an introvert myself, I'm so glad you've brought this up. You raise a really great point
that introverts are just as capable of being creatively confident as their extroverted friends. Thanks for
sharing.
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Mel + Frank
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Thanks Andrea. I'm glad it resonates with you as well! It seems important that introverts don't try to fit
into the extrovert ideal. It seems like this tendency to fit in in this way may be prevalent for young
people. Enabling, drawing out, and entitling creative confidence that builds off their own unique
strengths seems key...
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Meena Kadri
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Great provocations here, guys! And awesome to have you back with us on another challenge.
Interview with Drama Teacher
This is an interview with a colleague of mine who teaches drama and theater to middles schoolers at an
after school in Queens, NY.
SQPA Lead2Feed video on hunger in the US. Written and Produced by Destimona Anokye
Hello Destimona, thank you for taking the time to talk with me about your drama class. Shall we
begin? No problem, I love sharing my passion with people.
What does it take to have kids to act on their creativity? They need a lot of emotional support,
positive and/or constructive feedback, consistent encouragement, and challenges.
Which is the most crucial? Support is the most important. It needs to come from either the home or
school, but essentially from a trustworthy and reliable figure. The support must be visible and
engaging, like a mother going to all her son’s basketball games and sitting in the front row. It is good to
push kids to practice often and offer constructive criticism so they can hone their skills and master their
craft.
I like everything you have said so far, but I am surprised you mentioned the need for challenges, can
you speak more on the importance of having a challenge and its impact on creative confidence? Sure!
Challenges are needed because kids are sometimes very smart and lazy. Creative children especially
need a challenge and structure to prevent themselves from falling into laziness and chaos. By setting
goals that stretch and constantly push their limits, young creative people are more likely to achieve
their true potential instead of relying on their past successes and becoming complacent.
When working with shy kids or kids with who lack confidence, how do you get them to break out of
their shell and have the courage to act on their creativity? I had a girl who I was working with who was
very smart and capable of acting but too shy to perform any of the work in front of people. We’ll call
her Ashley (not her real name). To get her out of her shell, I had Ashely work alongside me as my
assistant. I wanted to keep her engaged with the work and have her watch the other kids perform. I
often ask Ashley to recite lines and participate in ways that kept her out of the spotlight, but involved
with the work and the process. Giving shy kids a leadership role and asking them to execute small but
meaningful tasks builds confidence. I do this until they are ready and willing to participate without my
encouragement.
If this approach doesn’t work, I find that working one on one with child can also build confidence
and trust while breaking down walls of insecurity. I also like to use games and work in a “safe space”
where everyone in the group can feel engaged and participate without judgement. Games are a great
way allow people to have fun showcasing their strengths with everyone involved and nobody in the
spot light.
This was great! Thank you so much for sharing your insight into building creative confidence with
kids. Anytime, the pleasure was all mine! I look forward to hearing more on your findings on creative
confidence.Take care. :)
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Inspiration submitted by: Terrence Agbi
October 07, 2013, 05:22PM
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks for this inspiration, Terrence! I especially loved that Destimona had different methods and
approach to kids with different levels of creative confidence. If a child is already smart and creative, it
makes sense to continuously challenge them. I've had some extremely creative and confidence friends
say that continuous praise was a detriment to them because it made them complacent, which echoes
exactly what Destimona says in the interview.
I also liked Destimona's approach to nurturing kids that don't have that much creative confidence, or
are shy. Coming from this end of the spectrum, I know how hard it is to break out of your shell, and
organic approaches to nurturing creative confidence like Destimona described seems like a great way to
slowly build up that confidence.
Overall, it just made me think about how important it is to consider all levels of creative confidence
and how our approaches should be different for each child.
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Anne-Laure Fayard's reply to Jeff Nagata's comment
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Congratulations Terrence!
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Terrence Agbi's reply to Jeff Nagata's comment
Terrence Agbi
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Thanks!
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Meena Kadri
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Ok – I know I commented that your previous Inspiration was gold. That would make this one platinum!
If you get any more awesome, we'll need to invent some new precious metals to describe you :^) Really
brilliant to have you and so many other reflective NYU students join us on this challenge...
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Terrence, thanks for sharing this interview. A lot of great insights from your interview with Destimona:
- the importance of support and providing a safe environment
while also providing challenges and constructive criticism
thought: it reminded me inspirations and conversations about another tension: structure vs. freedom
see for example:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/imagination-starters-and-the-power-of20-inspiration-/
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/defining-creative-confidence/
- the importance of practice:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/practice-until-perfect/
On the role of games:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/playing-learning/
I also really like her approach to helping children feel more confident... but what I take out for this is
how much she cares and takes the time to help these kids. (this goes back to the role of educators as
facilitators).
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Ashley Jablow
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This is so cool Terrence! Thanks for bringing these real-world insights into our challenge.
The Hub
Hub are creative coworking spaces that not only focus on providing infrastructure for your idea/start up
but also lives from likeminded people that you would meet there and the vivid exchange between peers.
The Hub
I think that what sometimes might be a problem is a missing environment that would spark and foster
children's creativity. Especially in cities parks or greens are sometimes rare, parents busy coming home
late so that for safety reasons you would stay in school for afternoon supervision (where we know
creativity aspects are not that emphasized).
Instead of tinkering on your next start up (though not excluded) you might provide space that inspires
children to explore and learn. I think given the oppoerunity, children naturally go for exploring,
playing, learning and therefore strenghtening their creative self confidenc.
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Inspiration submitted by: Stephan Kardos
Mission #4 Analogous Examples Find out more...
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Johnson Chu
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Over here there're quite a number of parks and greens, for all age groups or even pets, for different
activities and sports. But the drive/motivation for parents to bring their kids there or young adults to
gather there, is slightly lacking. Some creative advertising should be done.
It's very rewarding (even for adults) to interact and engage with nature. Even a better place for couples,
friends or colleagues to gather and have greater understandings among them, as opposed to the concrete
environment that we are always in.
Great inspiration, Stephan. Cheers!
New Ways of Teaching and Learning with Interactive Toys
As our technologies advance and children are playing with more technological tools, it is important to
create new toys that capture their attention while continue encouraging them to use their imaginations
for creation. We need more toys like Tangeez
Tangeez - Tangible Lights
Tangeez - Tangible Lights
Ever since I was a kid I’ve been fascinating with Legos. It is one of my all time favorite toys– Legos
encourage children to develop their creativity and imaginations through free play and learning. They
stand for imagination, creativity, fun and learning.
As I've grown older many things have changed in my world. I went from hand writing my homework
to typing it on a computer, from reading paperback books to digital books, from newspapers toe-papers.
Our lives are becoming more and more digitalized with each day. Yet free play still stands at the center
of imagination and plays an important role in fostering a kid's creative confidence from an early age.
How can we combine technology with toys to capture the attention of a generation that is growing up
with smart phones and tablets? Like Legos, how can we encourage kids to use their imaginations to
play and create?
A week ago, a great project started on Kickstarter: Tangeez. Tangeez are light-up building blocks that
change color as you stack them. Tangeez combine red, green and blue light to create a spectrum of
colors that change depending on how you stack them. You can create seven different colors with a
single Tangee. They are fun for both young and old alike. They encourage creativity, fine motor skills,
hand-eye combination and problem solving from a young age. What’s better than Legos? Legos that
light up :) Tangeez are like an interactive set of Legos.
Toys need to challenge kids, stimulate their mind and imagination during play and be fun at the same
time. As our technologies advance and children are playing with more technological tools, it is
important to create new toys that capture their attention while continue encouraging them to use their
imaginations for creation. We need more toys like Tangeez.
Tangeez is created by Mustafa & Emily, who both went to NYU's Interactive Telecommunications
Program - where they mastered in creative technologies.What an inspiring and creative way to put their
expertise into use. There is something to be said about people who use their skills to make the world a
better, more fun and creative place. Check out their project on kickstarter.
Go to kickstarter: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2103326826/tangeez-tangible-lights
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Inspiration submitted by: Asli Aydin
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Marisa Casey
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This reminds me of littleBits: http://littlebits.com/ - I saw the founder's TED Talk (she is a TED Senior
Fellow) and was very impressed. littleBits are tiny circuit boards that snap together that kids can use to
make their own machines and toys. Users learn about what goes into building electronics and can
control movement, color, form etc. Check out the TED Talk here: http://on.ted.com/Bdeir.
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Thank you very much for your post. Yes, I love little bits, such an inspiring project :) I think it is
important to move away from screens and use interactivity and technology to teach kids how to make
and play.
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Hao Dinh
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Asil, wish I had these toys when I was younger! Great idea. Do you know of any other organizations
that focuses on interactive toys?
In the USA, I am aware of LeapFrog (http://www.leapfrog.com/en/index.html). I find LeapFrog's toys
entertaining and educational for kids and adults : - )
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Asli Aydin's reply to Marisa Casey's comment
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Hi Hao, thank you for your comment. I don't know of any organizations specifically but I usually go on
Kickstarter to find many of these inspiring projects. There is a huge opportunity in the field of
interactive toys and even though creative technologist have started to catch on to it, I don't really know
of any "organizations" that are trying to fill the void. Here is another great kickstarter project
" Don't draw on the wall !! "
Sometimes my kids transgress rules. Sometimes this transgression is just an expression of their deep
creativity. I've learned to spot this very specifics "moments", to teach them the rules, but without
blaming their creativity.
Cocteau's Villa (France)
Cocteau's Villa (France)
Who didn't live this situation : one day you find your kid drawing on your brand new white wall. My
first reaction would be : "Oh no, don't do that, it's a silly thing, don't draw on the wall ! But this would
directly stop my kid's creativity... But i love my wall... But I don't want to stop my kid's creativity... but
i love my wall ...
With experience, I've learned to be more "balanced" in that kind of situation. Explain is better than
reprimand. Try a way to "shift" its creativity expression in a more "acceptable" execution. Instead of
saying no, just say : "Oh it's wonderfull honey, but you can't draw on this wall because i really like it
like it is. Do you want to draw on something else ? Do you want to draw on this piece of cardboard ?
Or ... I would find a wall on which he could draw (putting some paper on it for example). In that case
again I would explain him : "look honey, on this wall you can't draw because i would like to keep it
white, but on this one you can". And before going to bad i would tell him the story of Cocteau's Villa in
the South of France (Cf. the picture).
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Inspiration submitted by: Mathieu Chevalier
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Meena Kadri
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Great call, Mathieu. When I was about 8 I had a friend who was allowed to draw on the walls of the
bedroom she shared with her sister. I loved going round there and adding my own scrawlings to the
wall and it certainly made me feel empowered and creatively confident!
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Also brings to mind the many places in Wellington (where I live) where the local council has made
wall space available for graffiti artists to show their skills and build their creative confidence.
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This submittal brought back a personal memory. We were allowed to draw on one designated wall of
the house. It was awesome.
It was also a given that we helped patch and paint it over once a year. The lesson I took away was yes,
you can dream outside the box whenever you want plus you can build the confidence to tackle the
related responsibilities. Both steps were empowering.
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Giacomo Marchiori
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i had a pretty similar experience as Meena, because when i was at the middle school i met a friend who
was allowed to draw on a corridor of his apartment, instead me, i couldn't draw anywhere since my
parents were very strict about this. Thus i used to enjoy a lot going to his flat and making some graffiti
on the wall (i still remember a huge one with the Mtv logo) and free my creativity. Thanks Mathieu for
the post!
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Almadelia Figueroa
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It is definitely very important to not shut down any creativity in our children. I was one to draw on
walls, my parents always figured they could paint the wall later, or just let it stay. I know have my own
child, and have many pictures on a wall (he's only allowed to draw on one wall).
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Fred Buyse
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Hey Mathieu, you are definitely right - creativity does not work with any boundaries. I discovered that
a creative open environment triggers kids to express themselves. Our living room is full of inspiring
elements and there are no boundaries in using them. I'm trying this also at work and I see that it ignites
my colleagues too ...
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Bea Z
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I not only love the idea of modeling the inspiration. As a contemporary arts supporter and collector,
your kids are to a great start because without creativity there is no innovation! Kudos to your parenting
strategy!
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Mathieu, I thought of your posts when two days ago my 11 years old daughter came with a pair of jeans
and asked me if she could do "something" with them. I asked her why, and her reply: I'm not sure, I just
liked to try to cut them and see if I can make something with them; they are too small. I thought that we
could give them to one of our friends' daughters who is younger but then said, of course, I'd like to see
what you make. She made a small bag ... and was very proud to show it to her dad and I.
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Thanks Anne-Laure. It's another great lesson : we should observe where and when our kids are about to
express their creativity, we should see what could be "behind" something that could be apparently seen
as a silly things. And your daughter example highlights another concept that I love : serendipity. She
didn't exactly know what she wanted to try, but she did. I love a Pierre Soulages sentence (I guess you
are french) : "c'est ce que je fais qui m'apprend ce que je cherche" (what I do teaches me what i'm
looking for"
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Thanks Mathieu for the quote.
It reminds me a conversation we had on another post with Arjan and Meena about the importance of
ambiguity - through multiple media, and open interpretations (offer space for interpretation but also be
open to interpretations).
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Vishal Jodhani
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Mathieu, thanks so much for this inspiration. This is what it triggered for me:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/ideapaint-turning-walls-into-creativespaces/
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Jae Lee
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I liked this inspiration! I think it's really great to be conscientious about the things parents say or do and
how it affects their children. My parents weren't too keen on me drawing on the walls (especially since
it was a rented house and that's probably not the best idea) when I was younger. I remember always
being jealous of kids whose parents had let them design their walls themselves.
It's kind of like why companies are allowing employees to decorate their workspace however they
want; it really promotes creativity by giving them a space that is completely their own imagination.
Color outside the lines.
It all can start with a simple “color inside the lines” phrase. Why should she color inside if she has a
huge blank space waiting for her creative output?
Color outside the lines
Color outside the lines
I am a Product designer and Design thinker, but I am also a Mom. I have a two years old daughter
eager to learn from the world and from my own examples. Since she was born I've been thinking what I
am going to do to cultivate her creativity? I push her to play, draw and explore freely but I have to
admit I sometimes get trapped by the “adults” rules of how things should be done. It is a continues
battle between believing in creative means and sending her to an structured world.
I was reading some of the inspirations and there are a lot of potential things to do to cultivate creativity
in children and youth. It is a big task though, to make adults understand its importance and believe in it.
Once you learn to color inside the lines, it is really hard to get out and explore the rest of the blank
paper.
Its amazing how many parents and teachers stop their child because the sun is down and not up high, or
because they are doing a blue tree instead of green.
I have to admit as a mom, that even I, having a great interest in my child's creativity, sometimes I do
correct her.
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Inspiration submitted by: Camila Garcia Voelkl
October 02, 2013, 04:16PM
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pepyn meyboom
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As a young kid attending primary school at a state school in Holland i would be put down for drawing
outside the lines. Switching to a Rudolf Steiner school where we were encouraged to paint and draw
with our hands, our feet, inside & outside the lines and even on the floor :) still to this day brings happy
memories and in my belief aided greatly in my creative intelligence.
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Camila Garcia Voelkl
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I heard a couple of months ago about the Rudolf Steiner school methodology, and it is very interesting.
I was actually wondering if this type of methodology does exist, why is not implemented in more
academic environments?
Thanks for the post.
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Arjan Tupan
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Indeed. Well put. You have to start small.
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Elaine Cen
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I think you've hit upon a really great point here! Parents and teachers have the most impact on a child's
development in their early years, so knowing what to do and how to cultivate your child's growing
creativity is so important! :)
IdeaPaint: Turning Walls into Creative Spaces
A special type of paint which converts a wall into an erasable canvas giving people the space to
collaborate, interact and fully explore their creativity. Now, we can let kids write & draw on any
surface without rules to restrict their creativity.
IdeaPaint at school (source: http://www.ideapaint.com)
IdeaPaint at school (source: http://www.ideapaint.com)
IdeaPaint at school (source: http://www.ideapaint.com) New Ways to Educate: IdeaPaint at the Kiel
School IdeaPaint in schools (source: http://www.ideapaint.com) IDEAPAINT @SCHOOL Charlestown
School Uses IdeaPaint to Boost Creativity and Collaboration
"Don't draw on the wall!" A very simple example of how we impose rules and restrict young people
from unleashing their creativity. We are groomed to obey rules. Not writing or drawing on walls or
other surfaces is just one of them.
What if we were to encourage people to express their creativity on any surface - be it a wall or even a
desk. This is where IdeaPaint comes in.
IdeaPaint is a dry erase paint that turns any smooth surface into an erasable canvas, giving people the
space to collaborate, interact and fully explore their creativity.
Several corporations and schools are now using IdeaPaint instead of regular paint on their walls (and
desks). I experienced this first hand when I was studying at the University of Adelaide. We'd meet with
our groups and stand in front of large walls which we were actually allowed to write on and use as our
canvas. It felt great to express our ideas there and collaborate without any restrictions. Soon, the rooms
with white walls became our preferred meeting space when we were working on highly innovative and
collaborative projects.
As they describe it themselves on their website about their products being used in schools (source:
http://www.ideapaint.com):
"There are no little ideas, only little places to put them. IdeaPaint transforms virtually any classroom
surface into a boundless dry erase canvas, giving teachers and students the space they need to
collaborate, connect and accelerate learning. Turn walls, desks and even old chalkboards into more
functional and fun spaces. No matter where you use it, minds will open up and fill with big ideas."
Note: This Inspiration came up during the OpenIDEO Mumbai Meetup.
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Inspiration submitted by: Vishal Jodhani
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Margaret Kessler
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Why limit this to the classroom? Would be great to make living spaces equally creative playgrounds
(within reason, of course).
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Vishal Jodhani
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Absolutely agreed! It'll be great to have this in homes and offices and schools... it's possible on any
surface! I'd love to have the world as my canvas :)
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Hao Dinh
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Vishal, check out this week's Creative Confidence Challenge Community Champion Update. Your
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Vishal Jodhani
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Wow, great video Hao! Thanks for the update and for highlighting this inspiration.
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Meena Kadri
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Woohoo – go the OpenIDEO Mumbai Meetup crew! And as you can see, I'm a big fan of empowering
kids via turning walls into creatiev spaces: http://www.openideo.com/open/how-might-we-increase-theavailability-of-affordable-learning-tools-educational-for-children-in-the-developing-
world/concepting/active-murals/ :^)
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Vishal Jodhani
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Thanks Meena! I just checked out your "Active Murals" concept and absolutely loved it. I hope it can
back in some shape and form in this challenge. Maybe we can co-create something awesome :^)
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Meena Kadri
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Now that would be awesome!
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Arjan Tupan
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Oh, wow, awesome stuff. And great that it came up during the OpenIDEO Mumbai Meetup.
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Vishal Jodhani
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Thanks Arjan! Super excited about so many inspirations that are being shared from the Mumbai
Meetup :)
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Johnson Chu
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Wow great idea and product!
Can be introduced to work-related places too, like office or workshops or even canteens.
I will link this to my lecturers and admin staffs!
Thanks Vishal!
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Vishal Jodhani
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Thanks Johnson. It is actually already being used a lot in offices to facilitate innovation and
collaboration. They've even coined a new term "brainswarming". You can read more here:
Ken Robinson's Ted Talk on how schools kill creativity
Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining and profoundly moving case for creating an education system
that nurtures (rather than undermines) creativity.
Ken Robinson's Ted Talk: How schools kill creativity
Ken Robinson looks at how schools creativity and gives us an insight into research about how
children's abilities relating to divergent thinking deteriorate from 'genius' levels the further through
education they progress. Inspiring to think about how we could break down these rules within
education and identify what stifles the creative spirit within children.
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Inspiration submitted by: James Rice
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Hadi Jbara
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The video is inspiring and it gives meaningful thoughts of how our educational system revolutionized
but yet it is not evolving and accompanying the fast pace of technology and the changes in cultures.
I totally agree that we are still adopting an old style of learning at schools and more important, I "as a
fellow student" totally admit that many kids and adults were mistreated or misjudged because of the
rigid educational system, however I wonder what is the reason behind having such an outdated system
that is really strong and unchangeable?
We cannot simply say that the industry players are applying the "game Theory" where they compete
and cooperate, because there are many players and the rule does not apply to this industry.
So, as for the sake of this challenge represented by ideo, how about if we build collaboratively an
alternative moderate teaching system, and tackle the many disadvantages of the old one?
Our system was built on the 18th century, and one of its problems is that it avoids the many distractions
our new generation is facing "iPhones, iPads, internet, tabs, video games... etc" because it did not exist
before.
I think we should create a campaign here and start grasping ideas and matching our points together, in
order to build an updated system that vows to graduate our new generation's student in an effective
manner, and more importantly, a system that is so like them.
I am more than happy if anyone would take the lead in this campaign. The most important thing is to
get started.
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Luisa Fernanda
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James, it's really interesting how Ken Robinson talks about ADHD. While working with kids and teens,
I have seen brilliant, curious kids being ostracized for being too curious and too active. As a result they
have been medicated and their potential goes dormant. That energy and curiosity should be channeled
positively. Your post has inspired me to research if there are schools that deal with this specific
population and how they can channel the extra energy and curiosity while working with kids that aren't
diagnosed with ADHD. Do you know any specific schools like this?
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Aaron Ahlstrom
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Here's a related TED talk from Sir Ken Robinson about how schools kill creativity, pretty
systematically, and pretty ruthlessly. He combines humor, deep research and some moving stories to
make the point that schools can be places that instead nurture creativity by connecting to the passions
and interests that each student brings:
http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html
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Hao Dinh
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James, I built off of your posting. Check out the HFLI schools where creativity and innovation are the
center point of their K - 12 curriculum. http://www.openideo.com/open/creativeconfidence/inspiration/hfli-bring-creativity-and-innovation-back-to-the-schools/
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Hao Dinh
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James, thanks for sharing. What a great way to "present visually" a complex topic. I love the comment
about "copying" is considered cheating in school but in the real world, "copying" is collaboration!
In the Creating Innovators book by Tony Wagner, he has research that indicates that in the US, by the
fourth grade, the school system has "beaten out creativity in a child".
(http://www.tonywagner.com/resources/creating-innovators)
Any inspirations on what has been done to reverse this trend?
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Jae Lee
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Thank you! I was hoping there would be something by RSA. I love how they draw it, it makes it so
easy to understand.
I loved this video! Thanks, again.
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Meena Kadri
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Indeed – there's a wealth of fab videos on RSA which would be relevant to this challenge. We're hoping
folks will post them to enrich our collective conversations!
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks for sharing!
Ken Robinson's views on how our school system currently kills creativity is a great inspiration.
Robinson questions the current structure of the curriculum and the focus on content and specific topics
rather than on process (developing critical thinking, e.g.) and passion (interests of the students).
I think this points to solutions that will be within the school system, (our definition of the role of
schools) as well as outside of schools.
He also makes an interesting point on the evolution of our society (access to an increasing amount of
information) that one needs to take into account in thinking on how to foster kids' creative confidence.
Illustrator and designer Milton Glaser on the fear of failure
Glaser says: "Development comes from failure. ...Within our own confident facade, the thing that we
most fear in regard to failure is our own self-acknowledgement that we really don't exactly know what
we're doing. ...You must embrace failure."
From berghs.exhibition11.se
One of the things holding young people back might be the fear of failure—specifically, the selfawareness that they might not be good (yet) at something, and that their peers will see this. I think this
is a principal barrier to sustaining creative confidence past the very early years of life when we often
don't care so much what others think of us.
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Inspiration submitted by: Patrick Gibson
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Hao Dinh
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Patrick, we are experimenting with prototyping visual ways of connecting similar inspirations using
inspirations.
Pinterest board.
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Patrick Gibson
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Cool—thanks, Hao!
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Aaron Ahlstrom
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Glaser's discussion of how professional success (defined as doing something well, and then becoming
known for that thing and getting requests to do more of it) made me think of Carol Dweck's work on
Mindsets - where she shows how getting praised for "being good" at something (as opposed to being
recognized for working hard at something) can lead people very quickly to avoid risk, for fear of being
exposed as not knowing how to do a particular thing.
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Oscar Diaz
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I like your inspiration, it is important to encourage kids to try one, two, three times until they get it
right, and not make them fear that they will be wrong the first time. This means they would have to try
3 different ways of obtaining the result.
Here are 2 important things, when kids fear to not have "the" correct answer, then they stop looking for
different ways to obtain the result, and just look for one of the ways (the one somebody taught them),
which then concludes on that they feel to not use the correct method to obtain the result and stop
thinking on alternative ones. Which at the end stops creativity and their confidence to try new things.
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Aaron Ahlstrom
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It's also important to give young people opportunities to work on problems that DON'T have right
answers. "Failure" in these cases is not about not getting the right answer (however you get to it), but
about exploration and risk and testing and feedback and flexibility and humility and persistence.
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Meena Kadri
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Great share, Patrick – and here at OpenIDEO, we're big fans of failing forward!
EdTech that inspires creativity
Often times good ideas are fleeting. How might we teach students to capture moments of curiosity and
save (savour?) them for later research and discovery?
via Slashgear.com ( http://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/evernote_smart_notebook580x384.png)
via Slashgear.com ( http://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/evernote_smart_notebook580x384.png)
As an adult I utilize blogging, evernote, google pocket, and other tech tools to capture inspirations. In
the moments that I feel creative these tech tools give me the confidence that I can 1) remember and 2)
build upon the inspiration that had my wheels spinning in the first place.
A great list of apps that promote creativity in the article below. What if students wandered around
school using evernote to capture their burning questions?
Creativity on the Run by Diane Darrow on edutopia
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Inspiration submitted by: T.J. Edwards
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Hao Dinh
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T.J., check out this week's Creative Confidence Challenge Community Champion Update. Your
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Neetika Kapoor
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Hi Edwards,
I had stopped writing down my ideas for some time now when I accidentally opened some old stuff to
be surprised by my old 'creative' self and wondered, did I think like this? what happened to me?
I have felt that creativity is 'episodal' depending on circumstances and motivations at a time. It will be
so good if we can capture all such moments, they will make us proud and enthusiastic again in the 'low'
times.
thanks for putting this here... it brought back pleasant memories.
St. Patrick comic book
This is a story about how I took a school assignment and completed it in a creative way, but that this
was not appreciated by my teachers. This was a turning point in destroying (or at least damaging) my
creative confidence in the school environment.
Not my comic, but it gives you an idea!
Not my comic, but it gives you an idea!
When I was 10 years old we had a school project to write a report about the life of St. Patrick. The
intention I expect was to get us to reflect on what we had been taught and to embed that learning, and it
was to be done as a homework over a few weeks.
I don't think it was intended to be a creative learning experience, but I chose to make it so. For some
reason that I don't remember I decided to do my report in the form of a comic book. It was about 12
pages long, with maybe 12 cells per page, each of which I drew, coloured and lettered. It took a long
time.
One day after the assignment had finished I was sitting eating my lunch in the dinner hall and I saw my
teacher knock on the door of the staff room which adjoined the big hall. He was carrying my comic
book. The school principal came out and they had a discussion while flicking through my
creation.....they didn't know I was watching.
My heart fluttered in anticipation.....I thought I was going to win a prize!
I never heard anything about it ever again.
Years later I realised that rather than them discussing how great my comic book was actually they were
probably discussing whether it would be accepted or not and whether I would be allowed to complete
the assignment.
At the time I was confused because the situation was never explained to me, but by reflecting also on
the years that followed I can see that my creative confidence in school took a big knock. I had always
been an enthusiastic sketcher and artist both at school and at home. Not skilled in the classic sense at all
but highly expressive, enjoying the complex and enjoying telling a story. This approach to art was not
appreciated or encouraged by most of my teachers.
I realise now that the St. Patrick comic book experience was a turning point in making me believe that
creativity was not for school, but that I should keep it for out of school instead.
I could have decided that creativity was a bad thing altogether but happily I didn't. I developed it in
extra-curricular activities and most people I think would describe me today as a creative, in fact I work
as a designer/engineer.....but I never developed my artistic side in the way that perhaps I was capable
of. Colleagues have even joked with me that I am "the designer who can't draw".
If my creative confidence in the school environment had not been destroyed who knows what else I
might have done with it?
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Inspiration submitted by: Mike Hatrick
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carolina menezes
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I found it very easy to relate to your story Mike, as I was in a similar situation recently. It was however
at college, where I study industrial design, talking to product design teacher regarding my next project.
This goes to show that even in places where creativity is supposed to be valued and nurtured, certain
ideologies still consider the safe, well-known solutions to be best
As me and my partner for this next project concerning products in sports, presented some of our ideas
(which included using sensors for training, new training equipment and interactive products linked to
services) to the teacher we were met with surprising negativity. Using phrases like "but you don't know
enough about technology", "that would be too much work" and "this class doesn't cover that", he
managed to shoot down every single one of our ideas.
While a few of these claims are true (we don't know all that much abou these technologies and
interaction and service design are not part of the class brief) we are alao aware that not only we are
capable of overcoming some of these obstacles but we are also capable of finding help and experts
when we are not. Worried about our grades and about all the complaints we'd hear, if we chose to go
against our professor's wishes, we now find ourselves unmotivated to move on. Afterall what is the
point of designing yet another chair or helmet?
Wrapping this up a bit, I think teachers and professors are one of the main enablers of creative
confidence in a child/teenager/youth's life yet most of them seem tied to this perception that everything
must be graded and which cannot be graded because it stands is wrong. Class briefs and grading criteria
are great guidelines but taken too strictly they can also limit cerativity and discourage those who think
outside the box and want challenge these guidelines.
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks for sharing something so personal, Mike. I was wondering, you said that your creative
confidence was destroyed in the school environment, but this experience didn't completely destroy your
creative confidence. You still pursued creative endeavors outside of the school system. What made you
not give up on your creative side in general? What made your creative confidence "stick"?
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Simon Bartlett
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Thanks for sharing this story Mike. From the comments, you seem have really unlocked a rich seam!
Its made me think about how important it is to nurture talents and give children an education and not
just prepare them to pass tests or examinations. It would be great to find a way to square this circle.
Thanks again.
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Milad Hajiamiri
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I wonder your full Comic Book. Do u still have it?
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Mike Hatrick
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Unfortunately not....it was 30 years ago! But from what i remember of it, it was awesome :-)
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Milad Hajiamiri
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I am sure it was :)
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Arjan Tupan
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Thanks for sharing this personal story, Mike. I think sometimes teachers don't realize the impact they
have on children. Your story also illustrates that it is important for educators to understand the value of
creativity, and to encourage it. And even if you were not supposed to retell the life of St Patrick through
comics, it's actually the best proof that they did a good job in teaching you about his life. If you were
able to take the story and retell it in your completely own way.
Again, thanks for sharing your personal experience!
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Milad Hajiamiri
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I wonder your full Comic Book. Do u still have it?
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Milad Hajiamiri
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oops! my bad it is a comment not a reply! :D Sorry Arjan :P
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OpenIDEO
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Mike Hatrick
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Thank you!
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Great inspiration Mike. Thanks for sharing.
Beyond all the great points about the influence of teachers and schools' structure made in the comments
below, I'd like to stress a few other points in your story.
What stroke me was the fact that there was never clear feedback and that this in a way hurt you even
more: you saw the teacher and the principal talking and imagined a prize and nothing happened... and
you worried and just decided to not do it anymore.
I'm not saying that giving you negative feedback would have been better for your creative confidence,
but you might have been to disagree (even silently) or be angry.
What I also find interesting is how you were able to turn it around and keep doing it outside of school:
in itself I would argue showed your confidence. You were strong enough to keep develop yourself in
extra-curricular activities, although unfortunately you stopped drawing.
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Meena Kadri
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This is a stellar share, Mike. It made me reflect on some of my experiences teaching design at
university a while back. Faculty teaching multiple streams across a single class would gather to
moderate assignments to ensure we were grading in a similar way across respective streams. I'd often
found myself going in to bat for my students who had showed a creative flair... even if it diverged from
the brief. I would be told 'no' – if they didn't meet the brief, we couldn't do that. I'd find various ways
around this such as talking up their work in class shares to boost their creative confidence.
Interestingly, it was mostly these more creative, less rule-constrained students that went on to be really
*great* designers – the kind that believe that design is not about giving clients what they ask for – but
helping them ask better questions to start with.
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Mike Hatrick
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This sounds like a key point you're making here that builds nicely on my story. Can you give any
examples Meena of things they did that diverged form the brief that were considered "unacceptable"?
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Meena Kadri
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One guy mocked up a phone app (when they were a really new thing) for an assignment requiring a
design for an annual report. The feedback I got is that I couldn't give it an A because it didn't meet the
brief which talked about print. The guy who submitted this (and I had to give a B but loaded up with
encouragement) went on to become a really cutting edge designer. I'm still convinced that I learnt a lot
more from having him in my class than he ever did from me and the university where I taught. I guess
that highlights another point for me around creative confidence and education – I often think teachers
would be better off seeing themselves as enablers rather than gatekeepers.
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Luisa Fernanda
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Meena, that is a really interesting insight. I have had an opposite but similar experience. I went to a
very open-minded, interaction design school. There, we received lots of encouragement to experiment
and try out new things. This place challenged me to use mediums and languages that I had never used
before. I learned to code apps, interactive video experiences, and ended up creating projects from
crowdsourced story telling platforms to a sustainable interactive garden growing inside an apple
computer. However, some students felt uncomfortable since the feedback we received was mostly
encouraging and we rarely got turned down for our ideas. This made students used to following briefs
and strict competitive educational structures especially uneasy. Since you have had experience
teaching, how do you think we can encourage innovative creative thinking among students who have
been trained under very strict programs and who feel scared when given a loose structure?
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Andrea Pomerance
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Thanks, Mike, for sharing such a personal story. It reminds me of a similar story in Tom and David
Kelley's new book, Creative Confidence. They describe how the high school music teacher of Paul
McCartney and George Harrison's music teacher found no particular talent in either of them. The
teacher had half of The Beatles in the class and didn't recognize the talent!
How might we encourage teachers to celebrate the creative risks taken by young people in their
classrooms?
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Mike Hatrick
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I read a similar story in Ken Robinson's book Element. Apparently Paul McCartney wanted to join the
choir in one of Liverpool's cathedrals but they turned him down because he wasn't a good enough
singer.
That might sound bizarre but having been a chorister myself I can kind of understand it. The talents
that you need to be a pure singer in an ensemble are much different than being a band, and being a
chorister also doesn't need any creativity.....although it does need plenty of confidence.
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Jae Lee
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Thanks, I enjoyed reading this inspiration. I totally agree that schools seem very focused on following
strict guidelines rather than opening the floor for creativity. I guess it makes sense, since it's hard to
grade people when everyone is doing things in their own way, but a huge number of people don't
necessarily 'fit' into the system. I know from experience that the accomplishments in a classroom don't
necessarily reflect the abilities of a person. It would be interesting to be able to cater to all different
types of learning and development.
The Power of Giving it a Try
A traffic jam is caused by a fallen tree. Everyone is complaining. A school boy (on his way to school)
decides to move the tree by himself. Others, inspired by his action, join in.
Be the change you want to see in the world
This video translates a lot of my beliefs. We don't have to wait for others to make things happen and
our actions can be contagious in a wonderful positive way. Teams express our ability to act together,
but ultimately teams need inspiration and leadership - and it can come from anyone. I encourage the
children in my classroom to take both roles: to lead, when they have an idea; but also to recognize
others' good ideas, and join them.
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Inspiration submitted by: Paula Marra
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Arjan Tupan
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Wonderful idea. Lovely idea, and it's important to recognise and support those who take initiative. Also
reminded me of this TED talk by Derek Sivers.
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Arjan Tupan
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This one, I mean: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V74AxCqOTvg
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Paula Marra
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I didn't know this TED talk, huge thanks for sharing.
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Stephan Kardos
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A very inspirational video. Giving it a try combined with failure being ok can be so powerful in
fostering creativity. Thanks for sharing this
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Paula Marra
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I agree.
Sometimes I wonder how the term failure started....attempts seem such a nicer one.
I like the following quotes:
“I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”
“When you have exhausted all possibilities, remember this - you haven't.”
At our school J4 kids are encouraged to have an inspirational quote on their desk.
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Carole
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What I actually love in this video is how it shows the power of collective action to accomplish great
things for society. Thanks for reminding me about it!
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Paula Marra
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Right there with you Carole, teamwork and collaboration are key for life. Thank you for taking the time
to write.
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Stephan Kardos's reply to Arjan Tupan's comment
Stephan Kardos
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A very inspirational video. Giving it a try combined with failure being ok can be so powerful in
fostering creativity. Thanks for sharing this
That's Excel? Shut Up!
“I never used Excel at work but I saw other people making pretty graphs and thought, ‘I could probably
draw with that,’” says 73-year old Tatsuo Horiuchi.
Tatsuo shows his art
Tatsuo shows his art
Tatsuo shows his art This painting was made in Microsoft Excel It really is done in Excel, see
Creativity can find outlets in the least likely places for those who are confident about it. Tatsuo
Horiuchi never used excel but saw the graphs people made and said, I can make art with that! Check
out the rest of his work here.
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Inspiration submitted by: Nathan Maton
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Matthew Esposito
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Great inspiration Nate! I love how he took a program and ignored the "left-brain. right-brain" taking it
to such a creative level in a program made for such a finite science. Very cool! thanks for posting!
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Mel + Frank
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That's awesome Nate! I love seeing the painting in the context of the excel spreadsheet! I love how this
embodies the power of wondering and pushing the limits of tools—even in the midst of number
crunching!
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Nathan Maton's reply to Matthew Esposito's comment
Nathan Maton
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It reminds me how there's always another use for a tool than was ever imagined.
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Raul Romo
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I find very interesting whenever people find alternative an innovative ways to create art. I personally
believe that by choosing a media, people create an artistic identity that fully represent themselves as
individuals.
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Nathan Maton's reply to Matthew Esposito's comment
Nathan Maton
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I just love how surprising it is to see. It gives you this jolt of confidence... well if they can do it in a
way I never imagined so can I! Or at least that's the sort of reaction it gives me.
Gardner's multiple intelligences: challenging unimodal ways of teaching
How to support creative confidence if we assume that people have multiple types of intelligence? How
to find the ways to trigger it and create the environment to foster it?
http://classroomchoreography.wordpress.com/2010/05/10/dance-and-multiple-intelligences/
http://classroomchoreography.wordpress.com/2010/05/10/dance-and-multiple-intelligences/
As I was reading Arjan's comment about ambiguity and the multiplicity of media, I made me think of
Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences.
The psychologist Gardner developed in the late 1970's - early 1980's the theory of multiple
intelligences which had a huge impact on education. This theory posits the existence of eight
intelligences - linguistic intelligence, logical-mathematical intelligence, spatial intelligence, musical
intelligence, bodily-kinesthetic intelligence, naturalistic intelligence, interpersonal intelligence, and
intrapersonal intelligence (Gardner, 1999). Individuals draw on these intelligences to solve problems.
According to this theory, individuals do not have the same aptitudes in all forms of intelligence. Yet,
Gardner claims that "only two intelligences—linguistic and logical mathematical—have been valued
and tested for in the modern educational school system. The assumption at the core of this system (an
idea which is also at the core of Ken Robinson's criticism - mentioned in several inspirations - of our
current educational system) is that everyone can learn the same materials in the same way. Gardner
challenges this approach by suggesting that "a contrasting set of assumptions is more likely to be
educationally effective. Students learn in ways that are identifiably distinctive."
The key point beyond the multiplicity of intelligence is the recognition of different cognitive styles and
preferences in order to be able to support all of them. It also implies being aware that creative
confidence might be enacted and experienced differently.
If we have distinct forms of learning and of thinking, there are also different ways of being creative.
How one can feel confident to be creative if she / he is in a context that does not support her / his mode
of creative thinking?
How can we provide materials, experiences and environments that can support all types of
intelligences?
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Kirk Soderstrom
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Great discussion! Multiple intelligences reflects the diversity of aptitudes, many of which are not
measured in traditional academic settings, as you mentioned above.
In my understanding, there are diverse forms of creative intelligence, which poses a formidable
challenge for measuring creativity. Nonetheless, it is an increasingly important topic. As it relates to
building creative confidence during critical developmental phases, attempting to measure this aptitude
via CQ could go either way, serving to encourage some while discouraging others.
There is a possibility that measuring and defining creativity more formally may reduce the stigma of
the "starving artist," thus recruiting the critical support of parents.
Also, I thought I would share this: check out "Creative Intelligence" by Bruce Nussbaum
http://creativeintelligencebook.com/. I'll admit, I haven't finished reading it yet but it explores this topic
of creative intelligence in-depth and places particular emphasis on defining and measuring CQ. It also
discusses creativity as an economic driver.
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Anne-Laure Fayard's reply to Kirk Soderstrom's comment
Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Kirk for your thoughts. I personally think that it is really hard to measure creative confidence,
or creativity. There has been many attempts in the literature to try to provide ways to measure creativity
and so far, I don't think these have been very successful. Also many studies measuring creativity (or
any other traits for that matter) assume the existence of innate traits that people have or not. If you take
such a perspective, you then by definition imply that you cannot teach this trait but just find those who
have it. This is what you're getting at I believe when you're talking about the potentially negative
implications of measuring CQ.
Like in my reply to Karthik, I personally understand the notion of creative confidence as very different
from creativity in that sense that it presumes that we can all be creative in our own ways and domains
(this is where the idea of multiple intelligences becomes relevant) and sometimes in very mundane
contexts (It seems to me that this is the assumption of Dave and Tom Kelley in their book).
I agree with you that debunking the myth of the genius, the lonely inventor or the starving artist is
important and many studies of innovation and creative work have done that.
To your last point about Nussbaum, I've followed some of his thinking in articles and posts and read
some excerpts from the book, but not the book entirely. It seems to me that talking about a creative
quotient and measuring it is a flaw in itself (because of the points I made above)... but this open for
debate...
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Kirk Soderstrom
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With regards to measurement, I am in agreement but have no fixed ideas about it. :-)
Have you heard of the Pygmalion effect (Rosenthal and Jacobsen, 1968)? It demonstrates how
expectations affect performance. Positive expectations have a positive influence on performance, and
negative expectations negatively impact performance.
It never ceases to amaze me that the source of one's creative confidence can derive significantly from
the influence of another person.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Hi Kirk, I think that this measurement issue is a big issue, not so much because of its complexity, but
because some (many?) people feel more confident (pun unintended) if they can measure and put
numbers on something. I think it is an important question to keep in mind in particular in the context of
education.
I've heard about the Pygmalion effect, although did not read that Rosenthal and Jacobsen's article. I
think this is crucial to confidence and to this challenge. In fact, I was talking with a grad student
yesterday and he was telling me how he wanted to work on all his weaknesses and I asked him what
were his strengths, and suggested he could also work on these. The argument being that it's more
satisfying and you can become excellent! I added that he did not have to not work on his weaknesses
but that he could balance his efforts. He smiled and left full of energy.
It also reminds me a manager who told me that when someone from his team came to tell him about an
idea, he always said that it sounded like a good idea and that they should explore. He argued that they
will either develop it or realize by themselves that it was not such a good idea.
Let me know what you think of Nussbaum's book when you're done. :-)
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Mel + Frank
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yes, exactly! how can we support and build upon the multiple ways creative confidence might be
enacted and experienced differently?
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Completely agree! I think that being aware of the variations in the ways we learn and think (process
information, develop understanding, etc.) is key. The problem of many of the current ways of teaching
(this is Gardner's point and his call for differentiating learning and teaching strategies) is that they are
based on a single model of intelligence that assume that we are all alike (this is also a point made by
Ken Robinson). This model works for some... but many (too many) are left out.
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Rudolf Kutina
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Well, there is an attempt to apply this approach to kindergarten called step by step http://www.issa.nl/
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks for sharing! I find it great to see theories put in practice.
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Karthik Rajagopalan
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Great to see Dr. Gardner's mention in this discussion.
Dr. Howard Gardners words on creativity holds very ingenious thoughts. From his works, "Intelligence
Reframed: Multiple Intelligence for 21st Century", wherein he introduced the theory, also talks of
creativity as.....
"People are creative when they can solve problems, create products or raise issues in a domain in a way
that is initially novel but is eventually accepted in one ore more cultural settings. Similarly, a work is
creative, if it stands out at first in terms of its novelty but ultimately comes to be a accepted with a
domain. The acid test of creativity is simple. In the wake of putatively creative work, has the domain
been changed ? "
Recently i came across the mentions of Gardner's school bringing some change to the academics.
http://www.gardnerschool.org/
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Karthik for adding some quotes from Gardner.
I think that beyond the definition of creativity, at least in my understanding of the challenge, it is about
confidence and the ability to develop critical thinkers who will engage in solving problems in creative
ways... whether the domain has been completely changed or not matters less I feel.
Thanks for this link on the Gardner school: it's interesting to see a school trying to put in practice a
theory. It seems to include most of the positive attempts described in other inspirations.
Girl Learns to Dance in a Year
Love the simplicity of this and how simple, daily practice helped this amazing girl learn to dance in a
year!
Girl Learns to Dance in a Year
From the dancer herself, Karen Cheng: "People who watch me dance today sometimes assume I've
been dancing for many years. I made this video so you could see the awkward body that started just one
year ago."
More at danceinayear.com / https://twitter.com/karenxcheng
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Inspiration submitted by: Katie Clark
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Jingshu Chen
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This is awesome. I think the same principle goes with creativity confidence too. If you try to apply
creative thinking in daily things every day, you'll become a creative master!
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Maurer Manuel
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this video shows me that everything is possible. Never give up your dream.
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Meena Kadri
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Awesome! Love the insight here of building upon passions.
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Carole 's reply to Jingshu Chen's comment
Carole
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As well as how being focused, consistent and persevering enable us to achieve great things. Very
inspiring!
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Maurer Manuel
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this video shows me that everything is possible. Never give up your dream.
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OpenIDEO
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Michella Rivera-Gravage
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Great inspiration! I think it is so important to demonstrate that being creative is not about innate talent
but jumping in and tackling a part of a challenge day by day.
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Elizabeth Lytle
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Thank you - stories like this could absolutely cultivate creative confidence - perhaps through
normalizing the experience of the creative process and also inspiring perseverance.
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Jeff Nagata
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I thought this part from her blog post was cool:
"When you watch someone perform, you’re seeing them at the top of their game. When they score the
winning point or sell their company for millions — you’re seeing them in their moment of glory. What
you don’t see is the thousands of hours of preparation. You don’t see the self doubt, the lost sleep, the
lonely nights spent working. You don’t see the moment they started. The moment they were just like
you, wondering how they could ever be good."
I think media and society in general often glorify only these moments when people are at the top of
their game. If I only saw the last part of that video, I definitely would have thought that she must have
had innate talent from the beginning. But by showing the entire process, she showed that it was hard
work and determination that got her there, not just talent.
I feel that when you only see people at the top of their game, it makes it very hard to start yourself,
because you feel like you don't have any talent when you're just beginning. This could be a major killer
of creative confidence. More attention to the painful process of getting to the "moment of glory" might
be a good way to mitigate this potential crisis in confidence.
Thanks for sharing!
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Tom Bradley
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Pretty cool - practice makes perfect.
Making Chemistry Fun and Nurturing STEM confidence
How to encourage girls to be involved in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math)? Studies
show that girls tend to not study STEM because of their lack of confidence. Some like Jin Montclare
work hard at giving them confidence.
Jin Montclare with students
Jin Montclare with students
Jin Montclare with students Lewis Dots screen
While STEM does not necessarily seems to rhyme with confidence (although there are tons of studies
that show how scientific activities are very similar to artistic activities), people teaching STEM are
faced with a similar problem as the one in this challenge: how to inspire young girls to cultivate
scientific interest?
This is the case of one of my colleagues at NYU-Poly, Jin Montclare, who tirelessly think of ways of
engaging young girls.
In one Op-Ed, she wrote:
"A popular adage holds that it takes a village to raise a child. What, then, can a village do to interest
children -- particularly girls, who are so underrepresented in STEM fields -- in Science, Technology,
Engineering and Math?
I can attest that it was my own "village" -- my teachers, mentors and family members -- that led me
along my path in STEM. While I was fortunate to have that support, many young people do not.
Every single child enters the world driven by curiosity; it is the force that drives an infant to grasp for a
toy or a toddler to taste anything within reach. Curiosity is the same fundamental driving force inherent
in the pursuit of science. That makes part of our mission easy: a natural interest in STEM is already
programmed into the minds of children.
We, as adults, must now nurture that interest. Teachers are already heavily engaged in that goal, but
STEM involvement doesn't end in the classroom, so the other members of the village must do their part
as well."
To do this, apart from mentoring her own students, Jin Montclare has been experimenting with various
solutions. In particular, as part of a program that put dozens of iPads in the hands of 10th grade girls at
Brooklyn's Urban Assembly Institute of Math and Science for Young Women (UAI), where Montclare
is a mentor, she developed with one of her grad student Lewis Dots, an Ipad program which allows
users to combine atoms into molecules depicted as colorful graphics. The app has more than 20,000
downloads on iTunes.
More than visualization, the apps allow students to experiment, play and be creative about molecules.
"Montclare says that for the high school students the app goes beyond what a computer can do. "Yes,
you can do visualization of molecules on computers – and we have done that using 3D molecular
visualization programs – but I wanted to give students an interface that lets them understand it by
actually touching the screen. And it helps students get excited about science, engineering because the
interface itself is technology.”"
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/stem-sci-finance-cuny-article1.1444041#ixzz2fHp6zNt3
http://www.poly.edu/press-release/2011/10/04/new-ipad-app-makes-chemistry-just-plain-fun-teens
Insights as we move towards ideation:
- the importance of mentors and people: the "village" that Jin Montclare had and that she tries to
provide to young girls
- passion: Montclare's passion to go and share her love for science
- technology as an enabler but not as standalone; in the context of a program and as affording a space
for experimenting and learning by doing
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Kenan Guler
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Prof. Fayard
I think the primary reason why girls are not involved in STEM is the fear and uncertainty of STEM
topics. The same problem occurs in phobias. For example, if someone fears from snakes, it is almost
impossible to suddenly encourage him to touch snakes. However, if you do it gradually, he will touch a
snake without any hesitation. As you mentioned in the post, there should be more fun and excitement in
teaching STEM topics. Instead of "stable formulas", we should use some other changing and variable
tools that would make these topics more charming.
By the way, most of boys also have the same fear.
Best,
Kenan
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Mel + Frank
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I think you raise a critical point about the need to encourage young girls in creative confidence—
specifically in under-represented areas like STEM. And that creative confidence is a critical part of
scientific activities as well—and not necessary so distinct from artist ones...
Twice Exceptional: I am dyslectic (and I will be excellent designer)
My name is Piper Otterbein and I am twice exceptional: From one side I have learning difficulties
called DYSlexia, from other side I am excellent visual and out side of box thinker. I am natural tinkerer
loving to play. I now study to be DESIGNER.
Overcoming Dyslexia, Finding Passion: Piper Otterbein at TEDxYouth@CEHS
My name is Piper Otterbein and I am twice exceptional: From one side I have learning difficulties
called DYSlexia, whom other side I am excellent visual and out side of box thinker. I am natural
tinkerer loving to play.
I takes her 10 years to find then she is GOOD at DESIGN, may be this 10 LOST yeas is the difference
between she to be a good designer and LOST oportunitry to she be one of the BEST DESIGNERS in
THE WORLD!
Sometimes it's very hard for twice exceptional kids to show others their Creative Confidence and
convince others then they are VERY good at it.
Yes, many of us know then I am also a DYSlectic, is here is my personal comment:
I WANT TO CRY (when you just label us ARTists)
Beam Center: Young people building character & capability through hands-on creation & collaboration
How to provide children and teens with an environment and opportunity to work on projects and
experiment in a supportive environment.
http://www.beamcenter.org/
http://www.beamcenter.org/
http://www.beamcenter.org/ http://www.beamcenter.org/ http://www.beamcenter.org/
"Beam Center is a community of learning and discovery for young people aged 6-18. Guided by artists
in technology, imagination and craft they develop much more than skills; they build character, courage
to think for themselves, and capacity for collaboration and invention."
The Beam Center has various programs which allows to attract different age groups and require more
or less involvements:
- afterschool workshops for grades 2- 8
- Beamworks for high school kids: "BeamWorks prepares teens for a post-high school world of work
and continual learning. Small teams of high school students collaborate with master practitioners of
design, craft and engineering to create large-scale projects."
- pre-school kids also have options
- parents and kids are also welcome during Inventgenuity Festival
Providing an environment for making things, inventing and collaborating seems a great way to support
creative confidence in young people.
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Arjan Tupan
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Awesome. Places like this really help to build creative confidence. Great inspiration, Anne-Laure.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Arjan.
My daughter did a 2 weeks summer camp in August and she loved it. It was entitled "playmaking":
kids have to put on an original play that tells a dramatic story visually, with both puppet and human
performers. Each scene was told in a visual language that we will invent together and then make out of
wood, glue, cardboard, paint, cloth, etc.
I liked the "ambiguity" involved: it was a mix of art, play, puppet, etc.
I think being able to deal with this ambiguity is an important component of creative confidence...
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Meena Kadri
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Indeed – ambiguity seems to be an important topic around creative confidence. I was interested to see
how often it came up in this recent Fast Company article: 10 Paradoxical Traits of Creative People:
http://bit.ly/1etTNUe
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Meena.
Regarding ambiguity, I think this might be where there is space for creative confidence: being able to
accept the ambiguity of a problem with no clear solution, to accept the ambiguity of the output, i.e. you
might fail, etc.
thinking aloud here... does that make sense?
As for the article, I tend to avoid the concept of "traits" as they are innate and tend to assume that not
everyone has these traits. In that case, they are the creative people and the others.
I prefer "skills" and "processes"... It is the first step to make people feel confident that they can learn to
develop creative ideas and solutions.
I went through the list and it seems that these ten traits are oppositions: creative people are one thing
and it's opposite.
At the end, it seems that the main lesson from this list (and the author of the article seems to go in that
direction to) is that every type of people can be creative...
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Arjan Tupan
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This ambiguity, or multimediality (is that a word?) is quite important. It reminds me of the inspirations
shared by Mike Hatrick, who did a comic book as a report for an assignment in school. It can be an
important factor, and then it's important that educators learn to deal with it. Creativity can have many
forms, but it's not necessarily the form in which creativity is expressed by which we should evaluate it.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Arjan for your thoughts. I like your point about the multiplicity of media (or multimediality :-) ). It also links well to Gardner's ideas of multiple intelligence: providing various
modalities / media allow different types of thinkers to engage in the creative process.
You have a great point about creativity being more about the mindset and the process than the form:
while a comic book can be creative, an essay can be creative too. I remember in 7th or 8th grade having
a composition to write in class at the beginning of the year about telling about your holidays. I thought
this was really boring, in particular as a lot of teachers seem to like asking us that question every
September! So inspired by a novel I read where the novelist addressed directly the reader as a you, I
took a chance and wrote my dissertation addressing the teacher: You're sitting in class and your teacher
asked you to ask a composition essay about your holidays... etc. If I had been good at drawing, I might
of thought of doing a comic, or inventing a song if I had been a good singer... I like to write, so I played
with different writing genres.
I also think that ambiguity has another meaning here: it is about our ability to be OK in situations
where the expectations are not always clear... It forces you to come with your own interpretations and
make sense of things in your own ways.
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Benjamin Cramer
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The Beam Center is awesome! I spoke with Brian, one of the founders who is very supportive of kids
working when they are inspired to work. Also, he stressed the importance of children developing deep,
rich, and imaginative visions for projects to inspire perseverance and follow through.
PS: Anne-Laure I think I might have bumped into your daughter when visiting the Beam Center. Was it
the play around based on creation myths?
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Hi Ben,
Nice to see you on the platform for this challenge.
Glad you know this space and their programs.
I only briefly met with Brian but my daughter loved him... and yes it was about creation myths! small
world! :-)
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Abigail Yuskis
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I want to go!! :)
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Feel free to contact them. :-)
You might want also to go and check this other space only 2 blocks away, also in Cobble Hill,
Brooklyn: http://www.pixelacademy.org/
Imagination at its Finest!
My class and I were inspired by Caine Monroy and his Cardboard Arcade video made by Nirvan
Mullick.
Caine's Arcade
Caine's Arcade Boxes Buildings How tall can we build it?!
After watching Caine's Arcade with my class, it became clear that they had some serious imaginations
of their own. As I sat there and watched their little faces light up in a way I've never seen before, I
knew this couldn't be something that we just talked about doing. I knew we needed to actually DO
something.
We started off slow by inviting children to create things at home with cardboard and other recycled
materials. The pictures I received via email daily from enthusiastic parents and children were out of this
world. The masterpieces that were transported from all over NYC to my classroom were even better!
I started thinking that this kind of learning needed to take place at school, too. That is when the
cardboard craziness really began! The collaborative process that I've observed has been outstanding.
My students are able to plan, create, problem solve, revise, and communicate their thoughts and ideas
in ways I never thought were possible. Plus, they are having a blast while doing it! I hope to continue
with projects like these all year long.
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Hyerin Kim
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This is very interesting! Thanks for great inspiration :)
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Sarah Smith
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Great idea Erin, I love it!
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Meena Kadri
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So great to read about & see your builds on the Caine's inspiring film – awesome.
And here's a tip: update your OpenIDEO profile so folks can dig who they're collaborating with. Think
skills, experience, passions & wit! Looking forward to seeing more of you across conversations on this
challenge...
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kate mcevoy
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very cool, erin! xoxo
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awaz dehkani
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inspiring indeed! nice idea
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This is so fantastic! :D
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Erin Hunter
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Thanks Sarah!
29 WAYS TO STAY CREATIVE
Motion graphics on being creative in life and inspiration with top 29 ways to be creative on start,
success, explore, research, ideas etc
Motion Graphics By TO-FU
Make Lists.
Carry A Notebook Everywhere.
Try Free Writing.
Get Away From The Computer.
Quit Beating Yourself Up
Take Breaks.
Sing In The Shower.
Drink Coffee.
Listen To New Music
Be Open.
Surround Yourself With Creative People.
Get Feedback.
Collaborate.
Don’t Give Up.
Practice, Practice, Practice.
Allow Yourself To Make Mistakes.
Go Somewhere New.
Count Your Blessings
Get Lots Of Rest.
Take Risks.
Break The Rules.
Don’t Force It.
Read A Page Of The Dictionary.
Create A Framework
Stop Trying To Be Someone Else’s Perfect.
Got An Idea? Write It Down.
Clean Your Work space
Have Fun.
Finish Something.
You Can Draw in 30 Days
Mark Kistler's unconventional approach to drawing - having students copy his own drawings step-bystep - might seem unoriginal and uncreative. But it actually helped me rediscover my own artistic
confidence in drawing.
Before
Before
Before Day 1 Day 4 Day 11 Day 12 Day 14
I think for many people, drawing was the first form of creative expression we've discovered when we
were young. I used to love drawing. When I looked back at my old textbooks, the margins were filled
with little doodles. But little by little, my artistic confidence in drawing eroded over time, paralleling
what the Kelleys describe in Creative Confidence.
I wanted to share a book that helped me rediscover my artistic confidence in drawing. The book is
called You Can Draw in 30 Days by Mark Kistler. His idea is that everyone has the ability to draw but
it just has to be awakened, which is very similar to the foundations of this challenge. But his approach
is interesting and I thought it might spark some interesting discussions.
Mark Kistler is a recognized drawing teacher who influenced millions of children through his TV
shows. Mark Kistler has a unique approach to teaching people how to draw - he teaches students to just
copy exactly what he draws, step by step. My first reaction to this was, that it seems uninspiring,
unoriginal, and kills creativity.
But as I started to go through his lessons, I started to see the wisdom in his method.
First, I found one of the hardest thing about drawing after I've lost my artistic confidence is that blank
sheet of paper staring at me when I'm just starting. Having those step-by-step instructions gave me the
motivation to just put pencil to paper and start making lines. At the end of his lessons, I ended up with
drawings that I couldn't believe I actually drew.
Mark Kistler's idea is that drawing is a learned skill, but it might seem like something that only talented
artists can master. By having you just start by copying his drawings, he believes that it will give people
a solid foundation of confidence which can be an inspiring jumping off point to enjoy drawing as
artistic self-expression.
I think there's already been some inspirations on OpenIDEO that echoes this idea, such as Ben
Grossman's inspiration about the "20% Imagination".
I've also seen a lot of great discussions on OpenIDEO around failure, and it's relationship to cultivating
creative confidence. The main consensus I've seen is that failure must be encouraged as a important
process of creativity, and not as a negative thing. I think Mark Kistler's approach to failure and success
adds an interesting foil to the discussion.
To illustrate this, Mark Kistler discusses the way drawing is taught in most classrooms - through trial
and error. The idea is that the sooner the artists make mistakes, the more they can learn from them and
correct them. To this, Mark Kistler asks,
"... but, Why? Why discourage students with such a daunting task of failing 5,000 times when I can
show them in just twenty minutes how to succeed? Why not build up their skill, confidence, and
interest all at the same time?"
"When information-overload anxiety hits beginning students, they naturally get frustrated. They
experience failure and accept a completely false assumption that they are void of talent and therefore
do not have the ability to learn to draw. The truth is that learning how to draw has nothing to do with
talent. You have experienced firsthand with these lessons."
Throughout the book, Mark Kistler makes sure that each lesson is encouraging and fun, by letting his
own passion and enthusiasm for drawing shine through his writing. Even when he's teaching the most
elementary aspects of drawing, he approaches it with so much enthusiasm, that it's hard not to get
sucked into it.
By the time I was in the middle of the book, I was already using my foundation to start sketching
images that always lived inside my mind. This was a jumping off point for just trying out other creative
endeavors too, like Adobe Illustrator, which I just started making stuff for fun, and discovering things
along the way. I didn't worry about how good it looked, I just put stuff down in the program.
To summarize, here are a few insights I gained from this experience that may be useful for this
challenge:
1. Structure can provide a solid foundation of confidence that can be used as a jumping-off point for
self-expression
2. Creativity is a innate skill that everyone possesses, and not just something reserved for the few with
talent - just like drawing
3. Frustration of failure can lead people to believe they have no talent. One approach to this is to avoid
it altogether, to just let people "succeed" and gain confidence from the beginning -- I thought this is the
most controversial part. It might be dangerous to define what "success" is. But I also thought Mark
Kistler had a good point, that no matter how much we may try to encourage failure, it may still be
frustrating to fail. Mark Kistler did a great job of making me feel like I was succeeding, without
making me feel like I was stuck in a "box" of his definition of success. He always reinforced the idea
that his step-by-step lessons should just be used as a foundation to move on to my own creative,
original self-expression afterwards.
4. Creating an atmosphere of fun, passion, and enthusiasm at the beginning stages can go a long way to
create motivation to keep going!
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Inspiration submitted by: Jeff Nagata
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Mansi Parikh
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Love the post Jeff. As Hao pointed out in the previous comment. I'm a self taught graphic designer too.
I use Corel Draw.
A friend taught me the basics when I was working on the college magazine in undergrad and I just
rediscovered that although I didn't have time to draw and paint like I did when I was younger I found a
new medium in which to express myself. In fact I had so much fun that I launched an design based
entrepreneurship where I design and sell laptop skins through my own website
www.laptopskinvault.com
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Jeff Nagata's reply to Mansi Parikh's comment
Jeff Nagata
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Thanks so much for sharing, Mansi. Your story is so inspiration on a personal level for me. I just
graduated from college with a degree in physics, and I regained my creative confidence and discovered
my passion for design and self-expression right at the tail end of it. Now I'm also trying to teach myself
skills in design, and it's really, really inspiring to see your amazing journey from rediscovery to being a
full-fledged graphic designer. That is so awesome.
And your laptop skins look awesome too!
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Mansi Parikh's reply to Mansi Parikh's comment
Mansi Parikh
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I love graphic design but I know that it's more for the enjoyment than making it a full time job but if
you need help finding resources feel free to write to me. Maybe I can help.
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Hao Dinh
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Jeff,
Mansi posted about the power of doodling.
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/doodle-a-lot/#cb218c6ae9a2123deeb00509e37c83500
In the posting, we are discussing how drawing/doodling sparks creativity.
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-04-23/features/sc-fam-0423-doodle-20130423_1_doodlingjackie-andrade-new-book
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks, Hao. I love Mansi's inspiration and I can definitely relate to it. I've also had experiences where
taking a more visual approach to expressing my thoughts or ideas would lead to even more connections
and ideas.
It's really interesting how drawing and visual expressions seem to have actual cognitive effect. I forgot
where I read this, but I remember reading about a research where people who drew curvy, squiggly
lines for doodling were more creative afterwards than when they drew blocky, angular lines. So
interesting, right?
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Hao Dinh
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Jeff, thank you for this posting. I like the 4 point summary, they are spot on. I too use to doodle a lot
when I was younger and as the years went by, my artistic confidence eroded.
I regained some of my doodling powers when I bought a book on how to take visual notes (it had
associated videos that were fun and encouraging). I highly recommend it.
http://www.amazon.com/Sketchnote-Handbook-Illustrated-Visualebook/dp/B00E981K1W/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1380844176&sr=11&keywords=sketchnote+handbook
I just ordered Mark's book to further develop my artistic confidence. Can't wait. Thanks again.
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Jeff Nagata
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Awesome! It seems like the eroding of our confidence in just doodling and drawing is almost a
universal part of life that everyone goes through. I've heard almost all my friends express the same
thing when I talked to them about Mark's book.
Thanks for the suggestion. I'll probably get it as soon as I'm done with Mark's book!
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Asli Aydin
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Thank you for this great post Jeff. I've always been intimidated by drawing and I just ordered this book
after reading your post and am very excited for it to arrive :)
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Jeff Nagata
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Oh, awesome!! You're in for a great time!
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Neetika Kapoor
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Hi Jeff, I want to echo with your comment on 'Structure can provide a solid foundation of confidence
that can be used as a jumping-off point for self-expression'.
How many times do I wish when learning something new 'if somebody could fast-track me with the
basics... '
Another similar resource I used a few years back - http://www.amazon.com/Drawing-Right-Side-BrainDefinitive/dp/1585429201
and it definitely helped me boost my confidence and motivated me.
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Jeff Nagata
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Yeah! One interesting thought from going through Mark Kistler's book was how daunting failure is
when I just start. It feels like a huge wall. But once you go through a few successes and build the
foundation, the failures start to look a lot more like small bumps in the road.
And I think the "fast-track with the basics" method of teaching really helps you feel those initial
successes and build that foundation quickly. For me, personally, after I felt the exhilaration of
"succeeding" (however we define it), it felt much easier to experiment and play around and practice and
fail.
What was your experience like, with the "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain"?
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Neetika Kapoor's reply to Mansi Parikh's comment
Neetika Kapoor
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'Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain' opened me to new perspectives in drawing and also to the
thought that it doesn't matter if you are left-brain or right-brain dominated, you will find a way to do
what you want to do. :)
That said, it also helped me in getting started without having to think about passing or failing. It got me
to a point where I could go deep enough to take a call whether I want to take it further or not.
I personally believe that creativity triggers only after you know the basics. Before that, you can learn,
explore, 'draw inspirations' (i love this expression when people are in-the-face copying someone's
idea/design) and enhance your skills. So if a training/resource moves you past the 'learning' phase, why
not?
In my recent explorations (http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/things-icould-do..-1./), I straight away head to you-tube to see videos or to blogs for tutorials on how
something is getting done which has helped me reduce my 'getting started' time.
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Jeff Nagata
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That's great! I agree so much with everything you said, and especially that knowing the basics allows
you to just experiment and explore!
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Meena Kadri
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Great reflections and summary, Jeff!
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Rudolf Kutina's reply to Mansi Parikh's comment
Rudolf Kutina
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Are we sure then DRAVING skill is what is DESIGNER need primary know ? Or its more wider range
skills ability to visualize stuff and ideas ?
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Jeff for another great reflection on your personal experience. I love the 4 points you highlighted
at the end.
It reminded me Ashley's inspiration: http://www.openideo.com/open/creativeconfidence/inspiration/bay-area-video-coalition-creative-confidence-one-class-at-a-time/
Her inspiration and yours highlight how getting some skills provide confidence than then allows you to
take risk and be creative.
As for the failure point, it's a bit like the structure vs. freedom issue in Ben's inspiratioin
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/imagination-starters-and-the-power-of20-inspiration-/: one need to find the right balance. It reminds taking a yoga workshop on learning to
fall from your arms balance: the idea was to make falling less scary so that you in fact dares doing the
balancing poses.
On creativity as innate, you raise an important point and highlight an assumption at the core at this
challenge: There are not the creative types who have specific traits and others. I usually tell my
students that creativity is not an innate trait, that only a few have and contrast it with a mindset (that
goes along with a set of skills and a process). I never thought of creativity as an innate skill that needed
to be bootstrapped but that is an interesting idea. At the end, the important shared assumption is that
creativity is not reserved to only a few.
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks Anne-Laure for such a thoughtful response. I looked at Ashley's inspiration and it's cool how
similar our experiences were. After getting that initial foundation of confidence, it felt so exciting to
just practice, practice, practice. The thought of failure or making something look bad didn't even cross
my mind. I just wanted to keep experimenting, and I was in a state of play.
In this example, creative confidence didn't come in one instance, but was slowly built up before I even
knew it.
I tend to think of creativity as being something deeply inherent inside all of us, too. Especially since the
days I've been involved in this challenge. I also think that there are certain techniques or methods you
can use to create habits of mind that makes it easier to externalize creativity, though. And in that sense,
maybe creative confidence can be considered partly a "skill"?
Every child a Maker - US programme (STEM plus ART)
Every child a Maker - MakerEducation Initiative = 19 US States. 34 Host Sites. 108 Maker Corps
Members. How we can bring more kids to MAKE ?
AnnMarie Thomas,
The mission of the Maker Education Initiative is to create more opportunities for young people to
make, and, by making, build confidence, foster creativity, and spark interest in science, technology,
engineering, math, the arts—and learning as a whole. We want young people to join—and eventually
lead—the growing Maker Movement. We are building community networks of families, leaders,
educators, mentors, and organizations to nurture young makers.
http://makered.org/
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Inspiration submitted by: Rudolf Kutina
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Rudolf Kutina
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ART is here very important part allowing to engange also GIRLS :-)
Crafting moments, thinking about ways to be creative, and trying to impress my four-year daughter.
Getting along with people can be difficult. Using intuition and creativity to connect with others helps
smooth the way. Thinking about ways to engage with people as individuals and crafting moments
together can build better relationships.
Pre-Surgery Artwork by My Four-Year Old
Pre-Surgery Artwork by My Four-Year Old
Through out my life, I have fancied myself a creative person who just didn't have the right background
to draw or design. Over the years, financial and family pressures, both real and perceived, suffocated
that drive to create. Then my daughter was born and I found myself getting creative with her to build
cooperation and trust. She is extremely strong-willed and maddeningly particular about how things
should be. In dealing with her emotions and opinions, I have discovered that creativity is not just about
being able to draw or design, but involves much more. The world is about working with others and
being able to manage people and relationships, which requires reliance on intuition and creativity.
With my daughter at my side, I have discovered intuition and a different side of creativity that helps me
get along better both with her and with other people.
In working with my daughter, I have also discovered it is how we craft the small moments, and crafting
many small moments, that helps us build trust for the large and angry moments. I am constantly
looking for ways to be creative with her, whether it is saying something totally goofy that makes her
belly laugh or letting her pull everything out of the kitchen cabinets so she can make butter pecan soup.
I think it is because of our small and creative moments together, when I am constantly thinking about
ways to engage her, that has built the trust we need to get through the angry times. She and I have
connected in a way that she remembers and values, so much that she will come to me for comfort even
when she is angry at me.
My picture is of drawings my daughter did on my feet while we waited at the hospital for two hours
prior to having surgery on her hand. This was one of those small moments where I think she really
connected with me. When I suggested to her that she do it, she looked surprised for half-a-second, but
then got right to work. When a women asked me about it later and I told her the story, the woman said
I was brave to have let her do that and still wear sandals. I was actually just really proud.
.
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Inspiration submitted by: Rebecca Kerwin
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Rudolf Kutina
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"I have fancied myself a creative person who just didn't have the right background to draw or design."
Yes, you have!
You PLAY when you was a CHILD :-)
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Neetika Kapoor
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Hi Rebecca,
Your post definitely brought inspiration to me.
It is so easy for us to miss out the small creative outbursts we have during the regular course of our day.
Specially with our kids.
Reading your post, I did a small experiment recording at the end of the day the creative tasks I
undertake with my son to put him to sleep, to get him to finish his meal, to help him learn his alphabet
and so on. And I was pleasantly surprised that I was still a creative person, just not doing creative stuff
that conforms to my 'able to show off to the world creativity'.
Celebrating these small creative moments have brought me some peace over the last 2 weeks and I am
not beating myself over not being able to spend time with my 'creative' interests.
Thanks.
An interesting cross-thought: Once we establish we belong to the 'creative' lot, we put undue pressure
on ourselves sometimes so that we still belong and miss out on the fun of it.
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Ashish Didwania
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This is such a simplistic description put by you, and yet so profound as it relates to building
relationships.
"The world is about working with others and being able to manage people and relationships, which
requires reliance on intuition and creativity". I will take this as a learning for myself and try to imply
wherever I can. Thanks for sharing.
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Rebecca Kerwin's reply to Rudolf Kutina's comment
Rebecca Kerwin
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The hard part for me is trying to apply intuition and creativity to adults, who are all too often not
receptive. Kids are easy because they are so open to anything!
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Ashish Didwania's reply to Rudolf Kutina's comment
Ashish Didwania
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I believe the reason for such adult behavior is the exposure to the kind of education system which
prevails. It is hardly appreciated or promoted when a child makes a mistake. The system always pushes
him/her towards excellence, not interrogating whether it is of his/her interest. Ultimately the mind of
the child get conditioned in the similar manner and he/she begins to fear and start considering making
mistake as an end of world. By the time child grows up, such tendency has taken over his/her mind. He
loses the tendency to try something out of the way.
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Luisa Fernanda
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Rebecca your post reminds me of a times when I decided to draw all over the walls of my
grandmother's house. When my mom found out the red, yellow and green lines all over the living room
wall, I thought I was in worse trouble I have ever been. But instead she laughed, and joined me, saying
"that's what i got washable crayons for." I always remember this simple moment as a bonding moment
with my mother but also as a symbol of how much she has supported my "creative self."
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Rebecca Kerwin
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Your mother rocks!
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Oscar Diaz
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This is very nice and at the same time fun. It is amazing how you found your motivation without
noticing. Your whole purpose is to be with your daughter and connect. It is important to find goals in
life, even to be created, the rest comes alone.
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Rebecca Kerwin
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My daughter has definitely motivated me to do new and fun things...like contributing to this website.
Thanks for the response!
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OpenIDEO
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Rebecca Kerwin
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WeeeeWhooooo! Thanks, IDEO, for the encouragement!
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Meena Kadri
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Wow – this is gold.
Rebecca, these are such beautiful reflections to share with us on this challenge. It's deep insights like
these that make me feel truly privileged to be working with the OpenIDEO Team and our awesome
community to explore these topics. I learn so much from you all along the way.
"The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination"
Video of Harry Potter author JK Rowling's commencement address at Harvard where she spoke about
grappling with failure and overcoming it. I have found it very inspiring on multiple levels and address
some key challenges of "being creative."
J.K. Rowling Speaks at Harvard Commencement from Harvard Magazine
Perhaps use the comments to pull out your favorite quotes that could be useful for the challenge. Full
text of speech here: http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2008/06/text-of-j-k-rowling-speech/
To start:
"So why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the
inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to
direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me."
"Failure gave me an inner security that I had never attained by passing examinations. Failure taught me
things about myself that I could have learned no other way."
"...those who choose not to empathise enable real monsters..."
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Inspiration submitted by: Dan Perkel
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Hao Dinh
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Dan, we are experimenting with prototyping visual ways of connecting similar inspirations using
inspirations.
Pinterest board.
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Marisa Casey
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This part about imagination in relation to human rights spoke to me...
"Imagination is not only the uniquely human capacity to envision that which is not, and therefore the
fount of all invention and innovation. In its arguably most transformative and revelatory capacity, it is
the power that enables us to empathise with humans whose experiences we have never shared."
"And many prefer not to exercise their imaginations at all. They choose to remain comfortably within
the bounds of their own experience, never troubling to wonder how it would feel to have been born
other than they are. They can refuse to hear screams or to peer inside cages; they can close their minds
and hearts to any suffering that does not touch them personally; they can refuse to know.
I might be tempted to envy people who can live that way, except that I do not think they have any fewer
nightmares than I do. Choosing to live in narrow spaces leads to a form of mental agoraphobia, and that
brings its own terrors. I think the wilfully unimaginative see more monsters. They are often more
afraid.
What is more, those who choose not to empathise enable real monsters. For without ever committing an
act of outright evil ourselves, we collude with it, through our own apathy."
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Hao Dinh
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Dan, check out this week's Creative Confidence Challenge Community Champion Update. Your
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Jeff Nagata
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"It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as
well not have lived at all – in which case, you fail by default."
I'm still reading through the transcript, but this part definitely resonated with me because I was a
picture-perfect case of the latter - living so cautiously that I might as well not have lived at all. The
worst part is that it was while I was a child - the age that everyone worships as the pinnacle of
creativity.
I think a major part of my life that inhibited my creativity is the fear of failure, as J.K. Rowling talks
about in the speech. I grew up in a suburban home in San Diego, and I couldn't see beyond the very
entrenched paradigm in SD that owning a suburban home is the greatest achievement that everyone
should strive for.
This made me so cautious, ignoring anything outside of the "path" that I thought I need to stick to, the
safest path that would lead me to graduating college and getting a good job and making enough money
to have a home of my own. It wasn't until I actually moved away for college that I was able to see that I
"failed by default".
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Jeff Nagata's reply to Hao Dinh's comment
Jeff Nagata
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Sorry, I didn't expand on my realizations in college.
During college, I saw that suburban home ownership was just one metric of success, and that there
were so many ways to live life that just didn't cross my mind because I was too entrenched in a very
narrow viewpoint. That realization helped me tap my full creative potential - because I wasn't scared of
"failing" by one standard of success anymore.
I think the external pressure of judgment based on one metric of success is a major killer of creative
endeavors, and it's a major cause of the "crisis of creative confidence".
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Katie Green's reply to Hao Dinh's comment
Katie Green
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Jeff, thanks so much for your thoughts. When you put failure in quotes in your second comment, it got
me thinking. How do we all define "success" and "failure"? It probably differs from person to person,
family to family, culture to culture... Yet at the core, it's almost always a negative thing.
But what if we redefined "failure" and made it something to seek out, to learn from, to celebrate? It
seems that we only discuss and admit failure after we've emerged from it. Like JK Rowling, who many
would argue has "succeeded", may have been ashamed to discuss her failures openly before she
became one of the most successful (and wonderful!) children's authors of our time.
How can we make "failure" something to work through together and celebrate?
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Jeff Nagata's reply to Hao Dinh's comment
Jeff Nagata
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That's such a good point, Katie. Even J.K. Rowling who is celebrating her failure, was only able to do
so after she got out of it. I never thought of that.
Maybe one way to change the way we think about "failure" is to just explicitly celebrate failures? I
heard of a interesting convention held in Ann Arbor that celebrated failure, called "The Golden Egg
Award". Managers from all over the city would come to confess their mistakes, and everyone voted on
the "classic" failure of the day, and that manager would get a Golden Egg trophy to take back to his
company.
The most interesting thing was that when one manager brought the trophy back to his company, his
employees started asking him questions about it. When the manager confessed his mistake, it caused
the employee to confess his own mistake that the manager already knew about. That started a chain
reaction that transformed the company culture into one of openness.
From then on, there was a new rule in the Golden Egg Award - if you win the Golden Egg, you have to
leave it on your desk at your work for at least a month.
I thought it was a great way to make failure acceptable, and also help others learn from your failure as
well. It seemed like a great way to transform how people thought about failure.
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Katie Green's reply to Hao Dinh's comment
Katie Green
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Wow, Jeff. Thanks! I love the story of the Golden Egg and its ability to transform a work place. I bet
after a more open, forgiving culture was established, people were more creative!
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Aditya Brahmabhatt
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I found this on wiki:
"Failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything
other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy to finishing the only work that mattered to me.
Had I really succeeded at anything else, I might never have found the determination to succeed in the
one area where I truly belonged. I was set free, because my greatest fear had been realized, and I was
still alive, and I still had a daughter whom I adored, and I had an old typewriter, and a big idea. And so
rock bottom became a solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.
– J. K. Rowling, "The fringe benefits of failure", 2008"
I think the mental condition she is referring to when talking about failure is very similar to a person
shedding burdens. Unfettered, and open, finally open. Very inspiring, this talk ! Thank you for posting
it !
"anyone can become anything just by trying" – diy.org
DIY is a place for kids to share what they do, meet others who love the same skills, and be
awesome.The big idea is that anyone can become anything just by trying – we all learn by doing. With
skills each of us can build our world.
diy.org - startscreen
diy.org - startscreen
DIY.org
"Social networks today are about what you like, not what you do,” said Isaiah Saxon, a DIY founder
and its Chief Creative Officer. “We want to create an experience for children that’s about what you
make, and in turn makes these skills heroic." New York Times / By Nick Bilton
"Encouraging kids to do more with their hands than play video games is important, and finding
activities for them to do just got much easier. DIY takes the idea one step further by creating an online
community for kids to share their own projects with other kids in a completely safe, anonymous setting
that parents can monitor. There is even integration with a pretty impressive iPhone/iPod touch app."
Etsy / By Caleb Gardner
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Inspiration submitted by: christoph f
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Manwen Guo
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I really like this idea, and I do think that besides the trying part, we should also create a safe space for
kids to communicate, learn, and grow.
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Meena Kadri
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So glad you posted this, Christoph – I had been thinking of posting it myself! The thing I love about
DIY.org is it leverages young people's aspirations for online status but uses creativity as the way of
attaining it. Genius!
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Sonja Heinen's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Sonja Heinen
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Great idea behind this community and its visually very well executed.
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Karolle Rabarison
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"Social networks today are about what you like, not what you do."
Well said, well said.
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Yasemin Sertoglu
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Such an inspring project! Can't wait to explore it with my daughter. Thank you for posting.
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Katie Green
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Exploring the DIY.org website takes me back to my show-and-tell days! In elementary school, I loved
learning about the hidden talents of my classmates. With DIY.org, the classroom is expanded to users
ALL over the world. Can you imagine if this was taken to an even more global scale? What if a 11-year
old pianist from Kansas could connect with a 10-year old percussionist from East Timor? Great
potential to connect us, promote cultural exchange, and (duh) inspire creativity.
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Christine
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I love DIY's one-liner: Get skills. Be Awesome.
Arvind Gupta: Turning trash into toys for learning
My name is Arvind Gupta and I am a toy maker :-)
Turning trash into toys for learning
Turning trash into toys for learning science-through-activities-arvind-gupta
Turning trash into toys for learning, can we do STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)
learning tools just for $1 each:
Do "possible impossible" things with your kids !
This father has sent his kids' toys in space ! Truly ! He did what might be perceived as impossible : a
perfect way to nurrish his kids' creative confidence. Nothing is impossible kids !
Hello Kitty in Space Story
This father has sent his kids' toys in space ! Truly !
He did what might be perceived as impossible : a perfect way to nurrish his kids' creative confidence.
Nothing is impossible kids !
Sending something into space could stay a child dream. But this guy has prototyped this dream into
reality. The system is simple : Helium + GoPro + GPS.
When you know than nothing is impossible, your attitude is turned toward creativity.
What if we would create "possible impossible challenges" for kids and / or young adults ?
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Andi Flannery
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This is a wonderful video, thank you for sharing! Young adults are definitely susceptible to believing in
their creative minds more when they are younger. Opening their eyes up and demonstrating nothing is
impossible is definitely a great way to encourage creative thinking at an early age.
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Ashish Didwania
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Awesome !!! There are many who guides through mere 'words', but few who 'act' and show the way.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Great inspiration Mathieu! It made me think of the Pygmalion effect mentioned in a conversation by
Kirt which "demonstrates how expectations affect performance. Positive expectations have a positive
influence on performance, and negative expectations negatively impact performance."
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/gardner-s-multiple-intelligenceschallenging-unimodal-ways-of-teaching/#c-93b220875904196e3bf65f807c23d2c7
This is what these kinds of challenges will create: positive expectations.
Looking forward to seeing how this will evolve in the ideation phase!
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Arjan Tupan
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Great inspiration. Absolutely super cool what this dad did for his kids. And the idea of the possible
impossible challenges is a very good one. Be sure to add it to the next phase as well!
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OpenIDEO
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Alex Freeman
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Don't you wish all parents just continued to foster this kind of thinking in their children? Instead of
scolding them for drawing on the walls, perhaps put up paper and let them do it again! Very cool.
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Sanny
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Yes, please!
If we help children explore what they wonder about, we will all get some cool projects, learn a lot, have
fun and might come across some innovations that could make the world a better place.
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Meena Kadri
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Love it – and hoping you might build upon this initial seed for the upcoming Ideas phase!
Teentrepreneurs aim to foster creativity by setting up a Thinkspace in every school.
Think mini-Google Campus built into every school. The idea is called "Thinkspace," a creative
physical environment in schools where students gather to learn how to code, develop apps and share
learnings on a social network. Backed by tech legends!
Thinkspace launch video showing power of creating creative environments in schools. Backed by tech
legends!
Thinkspace is one of those simple yet "big idea" visions. It is an initiative that inspires creative
confidence by developing a space in schools where risk-taking is encouraged and innovation can thrive.
The idea is simple. Build physical creative environments in schools where students can learn to code
and build apps. Then create a virtual community -- not just within the room but among other
Thinkspaces around the world -- where they can share their inspirations, successes and failures. If you
have ever visited a Google Campus there is a buzz about it, an indescribable positive energy. That is
what Thinkspace aims to recreate in schools.
I am a dad with two teenage boys (one in middle school, the other in high school) and at the moment
the options are so limited: afterschool clubs, the library, computer lab or snack bar. How empowering
would it be if they could develop their own space, which is not administered by grown-ups, but rather
fuelled by their own creativity?
Thinkspace is perhaps just one piece of the puzzle, but it would go a long way in developing valuable
lifeskills and fostering creative confidence.
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Maja Todorovic
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As a concept, this idea can be further implemented in other areas of creativity expression - thinkspace
for arts and science projects, for example. That could be the way to attract more children with different
interests and talents. Great inspiration.
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Cesar Lastra's reply to Maja Todorovic's comment
Cesar Lastra
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I completely agree. There is nothing unique to a physical thinkspace for coding. Done well it can be a
launch pad for all young entrepreneurs irrespective of the subject matter. Thanks.
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Elaine Cen
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I really like the idea! Would these ThinkSpaces just be for students during school or would they be
open after school ended?
Some schools already have what they call a Gifted and Talented Program where they take students out
of the classroom once a week to do fun, creative things (like create fun new projects - I had to build a
racecar out of straws and balloons one time). But that's the issue: they take students out of the
education system and some administrators might have an issue with that.
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Cesar Lastra
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I imagine the physical ThinkSpace as a haven for afterschool and lunchtime creativity, and as a virtual
community open 24/7 :) It would be great for schools to recognise the work done there and potentially
reward students for it academically. Tricky to do while keeping it fresh and youth-led.
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Carole
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I like the idea of having a dedicated space in each and every school to enable children to be creative.
But then the question to ask ourselves is: how do we involve those kids that are not interested, that do
not consider themselves as creative, for instance girls that are being told technology is not for them?
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Cesar Lastra
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Yes. A space like this would have to reach out to those who might not believe they are or can be
creative. As you rightly point out, it's a perception not a reality, often driven by the chicken and egg
situation of never having explored it, particularly girls. On that note, there's a great article by a UK
teacher who is doing something about it:
Starting from Scratch
I am amazed how curious and unbiased babies are in exploring the world everyday.
Kira is exploring shape, color, size, ...
Kira is exploring shape, color, size, ...
Over and over again I am amazed how creative and smart babies are.
Having little to no experience of anything they build upon zero. Babies are not (or very little) biased by
failure, criticism, customs, etc. It is astounding what they try to do, and in ways that adults probably
would never have chosen.
They try to stack, they push, pull, twist things or themselves, explore their voices, try out new facial
expressions, learn about cause and effect, experience feelings for the first time, and so on.
For example, learning how to brush teeth: our baby-girl Kira is watching us how we brush our teeth.
And besides exploring the use of the toothbrush on herself, now everyone else needs to get their teeth
cleaned: the doll, the rubber ducky, the cat. -Learning the act of brushing teeth in creative ways.
I wonder how could one maintain or adapt a bit of this unconditioned innocence and unbound curiosity
of babyhood to keep our creative confidence?
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Arjan Tupan
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Nice sharing of your personal experience, Michael. As I'm about to become a father for the first time
very soon, I'm already looking forward to our baby exploring the world. It's going to be so much fun,
and probably we'll learn a lot, too!
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Ashley Jablow
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Great personal insights Michael, and Arjan – congratulations! As a new mom myself, Michael's story
really resonates with me. Our son is curious and eager to explore EVERYTHING :) You're right: they
don't know what failure is so they have no reason not to try. Surely a mindset and approach we could
all learn from.
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Jerry Michalski's reply to Arjan Tupan's comment
Jerry Michalski
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What does it say about our education and socialization systems that this incredible curiosity and playful
exploration is often stifled as soon as kids enter the institutions of learning?
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Michael Kupfer's reply to Arjan Tupan's comment
Michael Kupfer
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Congratulations Arjan and Ashley!
It's really true, the babies try out everything and in the most creative ways. There is no reason not to try
something indeed.
Now taking this exploratory extreme and move forward in time, it is sad that, as Jerry points out,
schools and other educational institutions can put a damper on this creativity. "Just" playing is often
considered a waste of time - opposed to studying in for example after school programs. I recall hearing
horrible stories of children under extreme pressure in school while studying into the late evening. I only
can imagine how playful creativity gets lost and is replaced with stress and exhaustion. ... possible a
entry point for change ... how might we change educational institutions to consider play as very
powerful source for learning and creativity?
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Jerry Michalski's reply to Arjan Tupan's comment
Jerry Michalski
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Thanks, Michael. I gave two talks recently about education. They states pretty well what I think and
what I'd do. The second one isn't online yet, but the first one is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=k0fgtvbMT7k&feature=g-all-u
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Rudolf Kutina's reply to Arjan Tupan's comment
Rudolf Kutina
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Well, I think Mitchel Resnick make a nice article about this:
All I Really Need to Know (About Creative Thinking) I Learned (By Studying How Children Learn) in
Kindergarten
http://web.media.mit.edu/~mres/papers/kindergarten-learning-approach.pdf
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Michael Kupfer
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Thanks, Rudolf, for sharing.
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Awesome! Great question to end too: "I wonder how could one maintain or adapt a bit of this
unconditioned innocence and unbound curiosity of babyhood to keep our creative confidence?"
Is it it something we can reteach and relearn and apply successfully? What about our current systems
for learning must change in order to nurture this natural inquisitiveness or reintroduce it?
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Michael Kupfer
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Thanks Rachael for your reply. The point out to inadequate education comes up frequently. Did you
make own experiences where your education was or was not nurturing your creativeness? In my
college education I think the programs could have been more encouraging to have students try new
things in new ways. Lots to be done there.
Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative
This book explains all the principles that we artist use every time in every field. It's one of the greatest
books I have ever read.
Steal Like An Artist: Austin Kleon at TEDxKC
Steal Like An Artist: Austin Kleon at TEDxKC Cover Page of the book.
This book explains all the principles that we artists use every time in every field. I have used these
principles (unknowingly) to learn guitar by myself, continue painting for 15 years, hacking my own
education to find new ways of learning school's subjects, self-made MBA without going business
school (learn about business and entrepreneurship), teaching myself basketball by doing film study,
teaching myself to cook, working as intern under best selling authors and much more. And I have
successfully reciprocated these to others. It's one of the greatest books I have ever read.
Book's Summary
You don’t need to be a genius, you just need to be yourself. That’s the message from Austin Kleon, a
young writer and artist who knows that creativity is everywhere, creativity is for everyone. A manifesto
for the digital age, Steal Like an Artist is a guide whose positive message, graphic look and
illustrations, exercises, and examples will put readers directly in touch with their artistic side.
When Mr. Kleon was asked to address college students in upstate New York, he shaped his speech
around the ten things he wished someone had told him when he was starting out. The talk went viral,
and its author dug deeper into his own ideas to create Steal Like an Artist, the book. The result is
inspiring, hip, original, practical, and entertaining. And filled with new truths about creativity: Nothing
is original, so embrace influence, collect ideas, and remix and re-imagine to discover your own path.
Follow your interests wherever they take you. Stay smart, stay out of debt, and risk being boring—the
creative you will need to make room to be wild and daring in your imagination.
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Hao Dinh
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Anmol, awesome! I remember reading this book and how inspiring it was. Love the part about "nothing
is completely original" everything is built on something else. Also inspired by the advice "Don't wait
until you know who you are to get started". INSPIRING book!
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Anmol Agrawal's reply to Hao Dinh's comment
Anmol Agrawal
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Agreed, I just love this book and I go back to it whenever I get lost or get confused in my work. I
followed his advice of building your own family tree and and I have my own wall in my room filled
with my heroes who have and keep inspiring me. For me, that is one of the source of self-motivation.
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Hao Dinh's reply to Hao Dinh's comment
Hao Dinh
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Anmol, I like your idea of revisiting the book when you need some inspiration. The book does provide
good examples of how to overcome creative barriers. Just dusted off the book and placed it on my desk.
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Anmol Agrawal
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Haha...loved it. :)
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Mel + Frank
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great post anmol! loved how mr. kleon traced the geneology of ideas here. also appreciated the quote
from steve jobs, "...expose yourself to the best things humans have done... " and then borrow from
them: "...good artists copy but great artists steal." but as mr. kleon says, not just imitate. mash it up.
transform it with your own experience and reflections.
how can we expand and enrich young people's understanding of the best of the best things that have
come before them and around them, in this challenge? how can we better nurture this building upon the
mastery of others—and in so doing build and enrich creative confidence?
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Anmol Agrawal
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Glad you liked it.
I feel we need to introduce them to all the possibilities, show them that anything is possible, let them
experiment with different ideas by trying to repeat it by themselves. It is necessary for them to get a
taste of creativity and be rewarded with small wins (like amazement, happiness, curiosity etc). Once
they feel it, they would automatically ask for more. And soon it becomes a chain reaction with no end.
They will start building things unknowingly. It spreads in every aspect of life. Creativity becomes kind
of habit.
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awesome content! a very useful nugget to harness and bake into the next phase.
Having fun is contagious!
We are asking the children to take a risk, so it's only proper that we should do that too!
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
The Very Hungry Caterpillar Carmen Miranda
One of the things that holds children back is their concern, or fear, of failing or, worse, looking foolish
in front of others.
In the classroom, we tell the children that they should try. That's a good start, but it's also important to
minimize the child's sense of risk, to reduce the "down side" they face. We can do this by encouraging
the class to be supportive, to help their friends, and not encourage laughing at their friends' efforts. We
can also do it by treating whatever we are doing as fun, so that the ups and downs are just part of the
game. And, we can do it by taking risks ourselves.
Every year we have a "book character" and an "International day" event, where the children are asked
to come to school dressed as their favorite character from a book and for International day with an
outfit that represents their country. We are asking the children to dress unconventionally, to take a risk,
so it's only proper that their teacher should do that too!
I have dressed as Luna from Harry Potter, but that's a bit "tame", so for the last few years I have been
dressing as The Hungry Caterpillar! It's a complete costume, and I am very noticeable in it! The first
couple of times we had the International day event, I dressed as a soccer player (Brazil, my home
country, is known for soccer!). But, "soccer player" it's also a pretty "safe" outfit, so I have started to
dress as Carmen Miranda.
Of course the children are thrilled - and feel much more comfortable in their own outfits, much more
willing to walk the hallways and proudly tell people "who they are". After all, if the teacher thinks it is
fun to dress up (and she even has a fruit basket in her head), it must be okay for them too!
Litterati make picking up litter fun
Litterati is an international movement that makes fun of picking up litter from the street, by using
existing technology and mashing it up. Simple, fun, good for the world, and inspiring creative
confidence.
Plastic on the beach
Plastic on the beach
Litterati is started by a parent (a dad) who's eyes were opened by his daughter's surprise at litter. And if
you look for it, you find litter everywhere. It's awful. By starting Litterati, the founder made cleaning
up our streets and parks fun. Some of the things I like about this movement:
- it inspires action;
- it's a mash-up of existing technology;
- it's simple to join;
- by participating you help to create art and valuable data;
- you see result.
Inspired by some of the wonderful inspirations here, for example those from Karoline and Louise, I
thought that the Litterati movement could be an example for us on how to create a movement that
celebrates creativeness in children, and calls for action. What do you think?
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Inspiration submitted by: Arjan Tupan
October 03, 2013, 10:02AM
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Jeff Nagata
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What an awesome idea. It engages youth in something that typically doesn't excite them (litter) by
taking advantage of Instagram to tap into something that youth love to do: sharing their experiences.
This got me thinking of how important it is to really step in the shoes of the youth, who this challenge
is centered around, and see what would excite them and engage them.
What other things that excites youth can we use to channel it toward cultivating creative confidence?
Thanks, Arjan!
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Jeff Kirschner
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Arjan,
We sincerely appreciate you spreading the Litterati movement. And thank you for being such a key
contributor.
Individually we can make a difference. Together we can create an impact.
Do it yourself!
The current society is encouraging to throw away things that don't function (well) anymore. But stop! Trust your creative confidence and visit a repair cafe to get your things fixed.
Source: Repair Cafe Palo Alto
Source: Repair Cafe Palo Alto
Source: Repair Cafe Palo Alto Video interview with Peter Skinner, Founder of Repair Café Palo Alto.
March 5, 2013
How often did you have an appliance or a tool that suddenly stopped working without apparent reason?
Often the first thought, and possibly the easiest approach, may be to toss the item and buy a new one.
But there is a better way: be resourceful, be creative, have trust that you can do - at least attempt - a
repair on your own.
Unfortunately the design of things is often such that a repair is not encouraged (e.g., sealed covers) or
the price of a new unit is so low that the effort is not worth it.
However, sometimes with a simple screwdriver you can get accomplished a lot.
Plus, there are institutions such as the Repair Cafe Palo Alto for example, that can help you to get
things fixed (for free).
Personal insight: the other day my bread machine stopped working - just like that. The motor was still
audible, but the beater would not turn. After opening the cover I realized that simply the belt wasn't in
place anymore. Repair time: 20min. Cost: free.
Compare to buying a new bread machine: Online research for a new model: 1hr min, Online order and
shipping: 2 days min (Store: 1hr at least), Price: $60 and more - And the best thing is: less
garbage/electronic waste produced!
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Arjan Tupan
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Great example. And I love how you again translate your personal experience into a wonderful
inspiration. I like the idea of a repair cafe. Maybe there's a concept for a later stage in that as well.
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Johnson Chu
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I second this! I like the idea of having a repair cafe in the community too, or even in schools and
campus.
Thanks Michael! This is really interesting. I read all the way to http://repaircafe.org/
Hope it happens in Asia too! I must start promoting this idea now! =)
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Michael Kupfer
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Hello Johnson! I haven't known about this until recently. An article in the Sierra Club Magazine
pointed out a similar service.
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Meena Kadri
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Hi Johnson. If you're keen to start your own in Singapore, here's some tips:
http://www.resilience.org/stories/2013-04-02/how-to-start-a-repair-cafe
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Ken Ligrani
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I think this is a great idea, especially with the rapid disposal and replacement behavior associated with
technology. DVD players, mobile phones, iPods (if you can get into one), etc, are chalk full of
components that could not only be repaired, but repurposed into new hardware. Great piece of
inspiration and would love to see more of these pop-up across the country.
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Johnson Chu's reply to Arjan Tupan's comment
Johnson Chu
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Wow thanks Meena too!
I know of a small group here that gathers and help each other with road bike repairs and maintenance.
Thinking of expanding such gatherings. Maybe a platform to organise meet-ups for such groups and
others who want general repairs and maintenance tips.
Sierra Club Magazine seems like a good read for environmental issues and sustainability. Let me intro
a great magazine too, MONOCLE. One of my favourites. Cheers, Michael!
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Meena Kadri
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Glad you've introduced folks to Monocle. I've written for them a while back :^) In case anyone wants
to check out more on them, have a look here: http://www.monocle.com
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Michael Kupfer
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Hi Johnson! I could see that more bike-do-it-yourself meetups could really be beneficial in a sense of
education, economic benefits (save the $ for tuneups), creativity (customization - Great inspiration
from Sebastian [http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/how-a-culture-ofcreatively-custimizing-bikes-can-transform-a-community/], and forming communities.
When browsing through the inspirations of this challenge, do-it-yourself seems to be one of the
reoccurring themes.
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Ashley Jablow
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Michael, so glad to see you chime in with the Repair Cafe story. I first heard about it in the NYTimes
and actually wrote about it in OpenIDEO's E-Waste Challenge http://bit.ly/16JdYKG - but I am loving
that you've shared your own personal experience with the Palo Alto group. Often when I have
something that breaks, I don't know what to do to fix it. You're so right that get-togethers like Repair
Cafes don't just keep things out of landfills; they help us all get a bit more confident about our own
abilities to repair our belongings. Love it!
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Michael Kupfer
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Hi Ashley! Often you don't even need a repair cafe, just the confidence to try - either yourself or simply
by asking a friend or neighbor. ... checking out your link to the e-waste challenge.
"In the middle of difficulty lies an opportunity" (Albert Einstein). But should we wait for it?
I have the honor to share the story of the amazing and inspiring Netta Ganor.
Netta Painting
Netta Painting
Netta Painting KyotoAutomn Bicycle
Until the age of 15 Netta had an ordinary life; a high school student that was very active in athletics,
tennis, and also made art crafts. On November 25th, 1994, out of the blue, she became completely
paralyzed from theneck down within less than one hour. The doctors’ diagnosis was: TransverseMyelitis: a very rare syndrome that inflates the Spinal Cord and asa result causes paralysis.
Today Netta is 30 years old and she lives her life to the fullest. She has a Bachelore's Degree in
Computer Science and a Masters Degreein Business Administration & Information Systems, and she is
a Web Designer&Developer in a hi-tech company. She is also happily married to a great guy called
Ilan.
The amazing thing about Netta, that I think is related to Creative Confidence and this challenge, is that
as a hobby she paints with her mouth and she is an AMAZING artist.
Netta’s ability to use her mouth to paint is defiantly not something she was aware of before she became
paralyzed. In her website Netta quotes a nice and relevant saying by Albert Einstein's: "In the middle of
difficulty lies an opportunity".
But do we have to wait for a difficulty to realize our full potential? From Netta’s story we learn that we
might be unaware of our capabilities and full potential. We should try to push ourselves beyond what
we believe is our limit. Many times we realize what we can do and want to do,after a crisis. We should
try to find the way and the motivation to discover what we want and can do, without having a situation
that forces it on us.
To read more about Netta and see her amazing paintings visit: http://www.nettaganor.com/.
I want to thank Netta for letting me tell her story here. She is always happy to share it, especially if it
can help others. She is aninspiring, strong, positive, and optimistic person. She never gave up – and she
never will!
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Aditya Brahmabhatt
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Really inspiring story Ayelet. I like the idea of pushing ourselves on occasions as we limit ourselves
unnecessarily. I also feel this is a great example of creative confidence, considering she had to deal
with such a tragic incident, she didnt lose her intrinsic motivation to create. Thats really interesting, as I
have seen people who have had terrible incidents or near death experiences tend to have more of a zest
for life. Although that isnt a solution, the emotions and mental state involved is worth studying.
Thanks for the inspiration Ayelet. Shalom !
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Indeed an inspiring story. Thanks for sharing!
I agree with Aditya that a key point that I took out of Netta's story was her passion and motivation that
led her to live her life fully despite the challenging conditions.
You have a great point on how we sometimes don't see things until we are forced to. This might be
something to think of as we go in ideation: how can we create conditions and / or environment (yet not
as tragic as Netta's situation) that help us become aware of our skills and potentials, and see the
opportunities?
Thanks!
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Kirk Soderstrom's reply to Aditya Brahmabhatt's comment
Kirk Soderstrom
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This is an inspiring story. Thanks for sharing this! Sometimes, an unforeseen challenge or ailment can
set into motion the realization of one's full potential. This story parallels what Michael J. Fox is doing:
transmuting his battle against Parkinson's into a sitcom. People seem to become great in proportion to
the challenges they overcome.
This belief in oneself is inspiring. Where do you think it comes from, and how can we apply the
lessons?
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Ashish Didwania
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Very Inspiring. A lot of children by the time they grow start losing their confidence, because the
prevailing system arises a behavior of quick results.They tend to become less persistence. I am sure that
Netta will have the quality to be persistent and she is a true inspiration for all to work on this quality.
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Kenan Guler
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Hey Ayelet
Thank you for sharing this inspiring story. I felt sorry for Netta because of her illness. However, I want
to congratulate her on her passion. Regardless of difficulties in life, she inspired us by her motivation
and passion.
Find your voice, and make dreams come true
Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to have a book published. A ‘real’ one, on paper, bound, with a cover
and - something that came later - an ISBN. Because I love stories, and like to read novels, I always
thought it had to be a novel, too.
A pile of dreams: copies of my poetry book
A pile of dreams: copies of my poetry book
Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to have a book published. A ‘real’ one, on paper, bound, with a cover
and - something that came later - an ISBN. Because I love stories, and like to read novels, I always
thought it had to be a novel, too. But, even though I tried several times, I never managed to write one.
Then came insight. And creative confidence.
To be clear: I’m not very talented in drawing, or making music, or acting, or sculpting. My creative
talents lie mainly in writing. So, it was always quite a disappointment that I wasn’t able to finish that
wonderful novel to make my dream of a book come true. Since my youth, I also used my writing skills
for producing poems. I always saw that as a form of training for ‘real’ writing. Until, one day, a friend
left a comment on a poem I published on my blog. It opened my eyes. Poetry was not an exercise, it
was the creative form that fitted me best. And suddenly, my dream of having a book published seemed
feasible. That book did not need to contain a story, it could be a collection of poems!
And thus, in 2012, I set out to write and publish a poem each day. This was a wonderful experience.
Not only did I my body of work grow every day (in the end, large enough to select 52 poems for my
book), but I also built creative confidence. In the process, I also learned that inspiration is everywhere,
that you can actually practice to look at the world differently, and that by doing so, a whole new world
opens.
My poem each day project also taught me that it is important to understand what works for you. I had
become stuck focused on a specific type of creativity, closing my mind to other forms. But by
experimenting with other forms, I learned what was working for me, and what wasn’t. I think it’s
important that young people have the opportunity to experiment and find their voice and medium.
Ultimately, I found a way to make a dream come true, and hopefully they will as well.
Sidenote: interestingly, I read an interview with the president of Estonia today, and he used to write a
sonnet every day to practice concise writing skill. An interesting read.
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Stephan Kardos
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Hey Arjan, this is a really good inspiration on how important creative confidence is actually. Building
up creative confidence (and preserving it) should have much more weight in schooling and education.
And congratulations on your project, I like your poem below. Funny ... at the moment I am also
experimenting with mini sagas (story in exactly 50 words). I'd like to share my very first one with you
that I wrote a few weeks ago (sad story though):
------- Before he even opened his eyes he could smell the typical coffee aroma. “Did my wife make
breakfast?” he asked himself smiling, his eyes still closed. He froze a bit. While opening his eyes his
world slowly took shape: the small coffee shop next to his cardboard shelter just opened. ------1 Applaud
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Arjan Tupan
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Hi Stephan, I agree: creative confidence should play a more important role in education.
And what a wonderful idea, these mini sagas. I really loved the one you shared. There's so much drama
in these 50 words, but also a bit of humanity and hope, in that moment between sleeping and waking.
Where can we find more?
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Stephan Kardos
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Thank you. Glad you like it. Actually I first red about that format in Daniel Pink's "A whole new mind why right-brainers will rule the future" as one tool in a set of approaches to foster creative thinking. At
the moment my other stories are not online but parallaly to writing I tinker with some web appearance
for my sagas.
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Vishal Jodhani
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So awesome! Congratulations on taking this project from idea to execution. I read a few of your poems
and really enjoyed them.
My favourite one is below:
In the middle of hectic Tsim Sha Tsui
a spot of tranquility hides.
Scultptures, trees and tai chi.
Birds and benches. Turtles in a pond.
And a rainbow in the fountain.
PS - You might enjoy this inspiration: http://www.openideo.com/open/creativeconfidence/inspiration/project-voice-2014-spoken-word-poetry-with-sarah-kay-and-phil-kaye/
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Arjan Tupan
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Awesome, thanks Vishal. For your comment. but definitely also for taking the time to read, and
enjoying my poems. Funny that this is your favorite one. I had published this one on my personal blog
one day, and it was a comment on it from a friend that made me realize that my book should be a
poetry book. So, this particular poem means quite a lot to me in terms of creative confidence building!
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Meena Kadri
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So great to read about this, Arjan. I remember when you started this project and I'm so excited to see
copies of your book and look over some poems on your blog. Way to go!
High School Encourages Creativity by Applying Google's 80/20 Principle
New York High School applies Google's 80/20 principle, allowing students the freedom to purse their
interest 20% of the time.
Google's 80/20 principle
Google's 80/20 principle
The 80/20 principle at Google means that employees spend 80 percent of their time on assigned
projects and 20 percent working on something that's interesting to them. At Arlington High School in
Lagrangeville, N. Y., AP English teacher Julie Jee opened up 20 percent of class time for students to
work on their projects.
While they did have some general guidelines, she really wanted them to be creative and focus more on
the learning process than the product exclusively. And they did.
In the 2012-13 school year, her students split into small groups, picked a book to read from an
Advanced Placement reading list and came up with an essential question based on the book. Then they
set out to answer it.
A group of four seniors read Out of Africa, a Kenyan memoir by Isak Dinesen, and decided to answer
the question, "How do you conquer fear?" Elizabeth Saint-Louis, Marissa Zaritsky, Natalie Turner and
Klea Albrahimi figured out what they were afraid of and set out to face their fears.
They rode horses, tried new foods and played a scary video game called Slender. And while some of
them still didn't like trying new food or petting dogs, they discovered that not everything was as scary
as they thought.
Twenty percent time made learning more personal and gave students a chance to think differently
http://www.centerdigitaled.com/news/Googles-8020-Principle-Gives-Students-Freedom.html
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Inspiration submitted by: Kristin Lowry
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Sneha Arya
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This sounds so great! Wish my school had practiced this too
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Siddhartha Srikantham
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Awesome! I have always wanted this to come to schools and hope it spreads to the curriculum in
general.
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Wenjie Fu
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Yes! Rigid curriculums are absolutely stifling, and this is a move in the right direction. Glad to see
more flexibility in pre-collegiate academics so students can pursue their own intellectual curiosities and
passions.
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Sara Lesage
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Love this! You hit on a really good point about focusing on the learning process more than the
outcome. This is something that is often lost in the average classroom when grades become the only
focus. It is equally important to learn "how to learn".
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Meena Kadri
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Fab share, Kristin! And it's great to see how 'empowerment' is emerging as a key theme on our
challenge so far. Hope to see more of you across conversations across this challenge...
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Carole
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Such a great inspiration. Thanks for sharing, it made my day. We all should do this, at work, at school,
with family... This is an amazing way of developing creative confidence!
Experiential Learning: What Schools Don't Teach Us
Does learning really have to be in a classroom? Parents are becoming more interested in sending their
children to experiential learning classes to increase the experiences their children will get and promote
their curiousity.
Children at Museum
Children at Museum
I thought it was really interesting to see that so many children are being encouraged by parents to
attend experiential learning classes.
South Korea's education system has become somewhat synonymous with spartan teaching and seems to
be an environment in which the rule of life is 'survival of the fittest'. However, with an increase in
children who have difficulty learning from the traditional classroom and a decrease in their attention
spans, parents are finding experiential learning to be a new way to boost their children's creativity.
Experiential learning, often described as classes that promote 'learning from experience', are
classrooms that teach around the usual subjects of history, geography, art, and etc through concrete
experiences. In most cases, children will learn by visiting places of relevance. For example, children
may go to the zoo and learn about different types of animals, habitats, and plants.
In these situations, children are encouraged to look at things through their own eyes and gain from it
experiences that will teach them new things. Rather than classroom settings where the teaching
methods are often didactic, children now get the chance to answer questions with no defined answers.
Lecture-styled classes are replaced by trips where teachers ask open-ended questions like "What do you
see?" or "What does this make you feel?"
Similar to parent-child classes that promote bonding through doing activities together, experiential
learning boosts children's abilities to interact with others and be open to different perspectives.
I felt that this type of teaching method really promotes individuality and engraves in children early on
that being different is something that should be celebrated, not belittled.
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Inspiration submitted by: Jae Lee
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Andrea Pomerance
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Hi Jae Lee! I love your point about the importance of asking questions and its relationship to creative
confidence. Thanks for sharing!
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Jae Lee
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Thank you very much! I totally agree with you. I was on the subway when I heard the teacher talk to
her students (they were a group of adorable kindergartners that were trying to get to the zoo). I thought
it was so interesting that she always asked questions rather than gave answers.
A PowerPoint That Didn't Suck
For a recruiter-student round table discussion event during McComb's Career Week, the extra thought
given to the holistic experience with using a PowerPoint as the driver of conversation developed into
introducing transition slides between topics.
Title page of PowerPoint. Credit: McCombs BBA Career Services
Title page of PowerPoint. Credit: McCombs BBA Career Services
Title page of PowerPoint. Credit: McCombs BBA Career Services Example of transitions slide. Credit:
McCombs BBA Career Services Example of a slide with words as the boxes to spark conversation.
Credit: McCombs BBA Career Services
In a formal ritual repeated every September, thousands, literally thousands, of students stuff themselves
into suits, dress pants, double (or triple) layers of cotton long-sleeve shirts and other clothing items that
make absolutely no sense to wear in 95 degree weather - basically, it's summer in Texas from May to
mid-October in Texas. Winter? Who's heard of such a thing in Austin, TX?
Despite the weather,these business students participate faithfully in what is known as UT Austin's
Career Week, hosted by the BBA Career Services. There are events prepping students for interview
dress, resume drops, and company research to name a few.And where I fit in is that I get paid as a peer
career adviser to convince students about the same age as me that I know how to teach them how to
secure a future...which is ironic because sometimes I'm not even sure what a"secure future" is really
supposed to mean. I'm only 20, after all,but all I can do is my best, right?
In 20 years of living, I've been to workshops where I wish someone had taught presenter how to make a
good-looking PowerPoint. We've all been there where something was off in spelling or the design just
grinded against something inside you and you couldn't figure out why you felt on edge the whole time.
Design has so much to do with how we feel during a presentation, and when I got a chance to work on
a PowerPoint for an employee-student round table discussion, I jumped on the opportunity.
My innovation for this project concerned recruiter-student experience. There were two things. The first
was to introduce transition slides between each topic for discussion. There would be buzzers signifying
the end of each topic discussion and then the PowerPoint would move into a transition slide. This was
the time for students to move from one employer’s table to the next. A buzzer would sound again and
the next topic for discussion would commence. In this way, the PowerPoint needed no human guidance
and could just operate on its own,thus freeing up resources during the ever hectic Career Week.
My second innovation was to put words that would spark conversation among the attendees as a box
around the topic itself. These words made for good design as well as achieve the goal my supervisor
had set out for me...just with my own creative mark on how to organize those "spark" words.
I had only been in my current role at the Career Services for about 3 weeks, and I was determined to
make my mark. They had already pinned me as their creative designer individual of the office, so I felt
this pressure to constantly create, to constantly impress. It was an individual venture to introduce those
transitions, as they hadn't been done before; there was a definite need for courage in this case to take
this project to that level of empathy in the student/recruiter experience. My supervisor let me have a lot
of free reign in the design aspect of this project while letting me give her 1st, 2nd, and 3rd drafts. There
was no bar set for me to be perfect on the first try; instead, my supervisor embraced trial and error and
gave me the guidelines to do my best instead of telling me how exactly I should "do my best" for such
an important aspect of Career Week. I learned that a supportive mentor can make or break creative
innovation - if I was constantly stressed about doing the exact right thing, I wouldn't have had the time
or the courage to experiment with something new.
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Inspiration submitted by: Elaine Cen
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Bobby Cordell
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Hey Elaine, I also work in career development and it's impactful to know others in my field are on here.
First I'd like to say, love this idea, consider it stolen ;) (For use in presentations at work)
Second, I think this trial and error process could work wonders in creative confidence, this ties very
well into another one of the inspirations, There is an RSA animate video about what motivates us in
one of these (I should have bookmarked) but if you get the chance, you should check it out.
Look forward to seeing the rest of your contributions.
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Elaine Cen
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I'll definitely check it out when I get home, thanks Bobby :) That's awesome you work in career
development because it's super important that people have ways to obtain guidance when making lifechanging decisions. I'm just a lowly peer career adviser though...my supervisors are the real advisers :)
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Alex Freeman
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Love personal experiences like this. I think just reading stories like this will help people try something
new and creative at work today, I know I will!
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Elaine Cen
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AWESOME! Thanks for the boost in confidence :) I hope your day is innovative!
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Meena Kadri
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Great insights from your own experiences, Elaine! Great to have you onboard for this challenge.
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Elaine Cen
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Thanks Meena! :)
The Fun Theory // Changing Behavior
How Do You Change Human Behavior? Make it More Fun.
www.funtheory.com
In this example, the challenge was how to get people to take the stairs rather than an escalator. The
solution? Make the stairs a giant keyboard thereby making the stairs far more fun than the escalator.
Success! The key to instilling creative confidence in children could also use a little fun theory.
Creativity breeds the fun theory thereby bringing happiness.
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Inspiration submitted by: Caroline Giegerich
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Hadi Jbara
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One of the first steps in building creativity is making it simple!
I believe that you have tackled this point good enough, however the question is that how to build a
learning culture or how to leverage our benefits to maintain children creativity? Where does it have to
start and how to introduce fun to it?
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Kirsten Milliken
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It's my opinion that when we "allow" creativity and value it, people will naturally engage in being
creative and it will be "simple" because it's fun!
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Caroline Giegerich
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Interesting question. I think giving creative solutions to everyday problems allows children the
confidence to think about creativity in new ways. Creativity need now be isolated to finger painting but
it can be applied to a whole host of things. Moreover, it also makes people incredibly happy. Instilling
that in children can give them incredible amounts of confidence.
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Louise Wilson
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Great inspiration. Playful, intriguing and (somewhat) simple!
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Arjan Tupan
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Indeed. Plus: examples like this show how much you can do with a bit of creativity...
Student Ed Con by Los Altos School District
An after school conference created by educators for their students in order to engage students in
improving their school environment - great example of cultivating creative confidence.
Student Ed Con Video, June 2013
I had the opportunity to attend the final day of Student Ed Con Los Altos and was thrilled to see the
students as leaders. Students were in 6-8th grade and were asked to submit ideas for how they would
change their school. They were given the support of educators, tools to create, had speaker sessions to
attend to help them through the process and created a final idea presentation.
Ideas included swapping out desks for rolling chairs with backpack holders, restructuring the elective
system, creating common areas with trees/nature for students to reflect and interact and more.
The administration was present, listened to the presentations and chose 3 on the spot to implement for
the 2013-2014 school year. Others were going to be considered further. That places value in creative
confidence!
Student reflections on the experience start at 1:47 and include the value of working together as
students, variety in the groups, and the realization that their ideas have the potential to create real
change within their world.
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Inspiration submitted by: Elizabeth Lytle
October 01, 2013, 02:40AM
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Ashley Jablow
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Very cool Elizabeth! Great to see young people empowered to make decisions and impact at their
school.
Caine's Arcade
We all likely know this one, but thought it was worth sharing still! Caine is the ultimate example of
creative confidence. Love this kid.
Caine's Arcade
Caine is a 9 year old boy who builds an incredible cardboard arcade and starts a movement around it
thanks to a young filmmaker. More at: http://CainesArcade.com
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Inspiration submitted by: Katie Clark
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Meena Kadri
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We're loving hearing from members of our OpenIDEO community about hosting their own cardboard
challenges too! http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/hosting-a-caine-sarcade-cardboard-challenge/
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Hao Dinh
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Katie, check out this week's Creative Confidence Challenge Community Champion Update. Your
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Tom Bradley
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Loved this when it came out - still do.
Interesting that he didn't set out to create the arcade as such - it evolved as he refined and shaped his
ideas.
He got more confident and ambitious over time. Small steps.
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Victoria Moreaux
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I watched this video for the first time in a leadership seminar that I attended and I could not believe
what a creative and inspiring kid Caine is. The amount of imagination he has is amazing and it is great
to see him use his surroundings and limited resources to build something for his community. I really
love the support he has gotten from the people near his area and across the nation and I hope that other
kids will be able to see this video to understand that it is ok to dream big. I did not have nearly the
creative confidence he has as a kid, so kudos to him. Thanks for sharing Katie.
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Hao Dinh
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Katie, love Caine's arcade! Not only is Caine a creative and innovative 9 year old, he has developed an
environmentally sound business recycling cardboard boxes and toys. Not to mention running his arcade
without the need of electricity! What a great inspiration having the community come out and
supporting his arcade!
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Dina Gold
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Wow Katie! What a cool kid. Really shows the importance of parents who are open, supportive, and
flexible with their time. Also, this shows how parents give their children 'space or place' to play. That's
what I love about garages or backyards, which unfortunately many city kids don't necessarily have
available. But open, non-structured environments really allows kids to use their imagination and feel
empowered to create something.
+ ing
Pixar applies this concept, called "plussing," to ban people from offering criticism without suggesting
improvements or ideas.
Pixar Characters
Pixar Characters
Establishing and enforcing social norms that support the development of creative confidence seems
essential.
"Plussing" is both a rule and group creative strategy that encourages creative freedom by eliminating
the fear of rejection or embarrassment.
Image from Pixar
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Inspiration submitted by: Kirk Soderstrom
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Trung Thanh Le
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Thank you for the inspiration Kirk, I really love it. I think it is a nature of human to evaluate an object
when first encountering it, hence easily lead to criticism. Yet "plussing" requires us to look more
closely, to think out of our boxes and to view from other people's view, and this can lead to creativity. I
think a similar mechanism is also applied in brainstorming sessions.
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Patrick Gibson
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Great contribution. This institutionalizes support for creative risk-taking, which I feel is important
because it lets people know there's an authority who believes in them. If you know, for instance, that
your CEO really wants you to take risks and that it's okay to fail, that culture is going to permeate the
entire organization and help everyone's creative confidence!
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Kirk Soderstrom
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Interestingly, the act of plussing forces even the most critical people to think (and speak) positively
about another's work or ideas. Perhaps the most important aspect of plussing, aside from improving an
idea or project, is the effect it has on everyone's creative confidence and on the culture of the
organization.
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Alex Scully
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I really like this frame of mind for two reasons: first, (as you mentioned) it allows people to build and
take ideas to new, higher levels; second, having a + ing attitude stresses the fact that creativity TAKES
WORK. You can't just be creative, you have to think in an +ing mindset and really apply yourself :).
Thanks for the insight Kirk!!
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Kirk Soderstrom
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Alex, I like your thinking on this. After all, if creativity is connecting things, then the process benefits
from more (positive) minds. Having your idea plussed is a form of a compliment, which would
certainly increase one's creative confidence. Plussers would be standing on the shoulders of giants,
right? :)
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Bobby Cordell
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If this is the key to their success, I can definitely buy into it. I actually had to instate a similar rule when
I was the chair of marketing for a convention. People came to the table ready to shoot down big Ideas
but without offering solutions or alternatives and I had to put my foot down. It made a huge difference.
I may tag this into my concept
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lee wallace
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This is critical! I've experienced the negative knocks often, it takes a lot of energy to keep the creativity
flowing in the face of 'that won't work' or similar. I imagine plussing and what my creativity would
have woven at times of inspiration.
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Kirk Soderstrom
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Being shot down is rarely a fun experience! Maybe when the concepting phase rolls around, someone
can take this a step further with the concept of "multiplying," where a group of classmates or
colleagues contribute positive, constructive feedback. Finding bright spots forces folks to examine
ideas in a positive light, which tends to have a disproportionately positive influence on the creator as
well as on the "multipliers." To survive, designers and other creative types have to develop a thin skin
to express ideas, and thick skin (a defensive mindset) to take whatever comes back.
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Hao Dinh
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Kirk, what a simple and powerful brainstorming/conversation tool! Will start using it today. Thanks for
sharing
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Meena Kadri
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Enjoyed reading more about it on Lifehacker too: http://lifehacker.com/5946158/keep-debatesproductive-with-plussing Wow – this is such a simple yet powerful strategy! We naturally work along
these lines at IDEO – but I like how they've been so intentional about it.
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Kirk Soderstrom
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...and I like your build! You are a plus master! Although it may fall under a different label, I certainly
see this practice on OpenIDEO. I think the idea is to replace "but" (a minus) with "and" (a plus).
Everyone wins. My friends joke that everything after "but" undoes everything said beforehand :)
On a more serious note, this simple rule forces us to find something positive about someone else's idea
or creative work, and take it to new heights. The most important thing, though, is what happens to the
team's (or class') brain chemistry. "Plussing" is a contagious, easy to market practice for developing
creative confidence!
Creativity: The Humanity's journey towards understanding of itself and its nature
"Creativity" is a term that is hard to define. Sometimes, without knowing the term "creativity", people
may inspire themselves or others in their environments. The key point here is to unblock and articulate
people's natural emotions and reflexes.
inspiration from eyes
inspiration from eyes
inspiration from eyes birds inspired human beings to invent planes
It would be one of the most difficult question to ask someone as "what is creativity?" Although he
knows what you mean by asking creativity, it is hard for him to give a definition of creativity. The
hardness of this answer comes from the relationality and intangibility of creativity. From my point of
view, we should create a "super natural" environment for next generations so that they will be able to
conserve and not lose their creativity as they age. In order to understand the link between nature and
creativity, we should take look around us and see how human beings have created some many things
that are identical to nature and to ourselves. The first and magnificent example would be the
relationship between our eyes and the camera. As Nicephore Niepce, french photography inventor,
invented the first primitive camera, he unintentionally used the fundamental principles that are behind
our eyes, which enable us to see and recognize our environment. The second example is the invention
of planes and air-crafts that are almost working on the same principles of flying birds. The body and
wings of birds have inspired human beings to create planes that are completely identical and imitation
of birds. In this point, we can ask the question "how can we create these marvelous invention without
having seen these creatures or without deeply understanding their functioning ways?" Unfortunately, it
is impossible for human beings to create something that is unfamiliar to him. Therefore, the single and
most effective way of creativity is to be natural, understand events that are happening around us, and
give meaning to each events. If we achieve to create a natural environment for next generations, we
will help them to preserve their creative habits and enhance their creativity.
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Inspiration submitted by: Kenan Guler
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Interesting inspiration Kenan. I think you have a good point by saying that creativity is a difficult term
to define. Yet, I believe there is a difference between "creativity" and "creative confidence" which
might lead to create an environment that supports the confidence of young people in exploring new
ideas, trying out things and taking risks. It seems to me that the creative confidence highlights the
process rather than the output.
It might be the natural environment you are referring to. Yet, it would not grounded on your current
claim that a lot of human inventions have been created by mirroring natural processes.
Could you provide an example of what will be a natural environment? You might want to check
Meena's inspiration: http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/13-year-old-oncreativity-hack-schooling-1/
Could the hackschooling mentioning by this 13 year old be the natural environment you are thinking
of?
Thanks!
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Kenan Guler
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Prof Fayard
I was thinking about the "hacker mindset – education is also ripe to be hacked" for a couple of months,
but intrinsically, I just couldn't name the term that I was thinking. I think it is a good point from which
we should start to think how to create a new environment that will lead next generation to be creative
and feel the creative confidence in themselves.
Secondly, I would like to mention my paper that I wrote about self-reflective leadership style. I talked
about two mirrors- intrinsic mirror and extrinsic mirror- that can make people to realize their leadership
capacity. I think the same idea is also valid for creative confidence. The extrinsic mirror covers all of
environmental events and effects such as schools, town, country, family's and friends affect on
individual. On the other hand, intrinsic mirror can be the personal belief of individual in himself. I
think, our question here should be "how to impel and inspire individual to realize this intrinsic mirror?"
I think all people have both mirrors. But some have an innate advantage by which they realize their
intrinsic mirror instinctively. However, others are not able to do the same. Our primary goal should be
to use extrinsic mirror to impel people realize their intrinsic mirror.
Best,
Kenan
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Kenan Guler
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I also like the picture that one guy posted on my inspirations
Here is the link, I think it can be a prototype for future class environemnt.
http://fc00.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2013/264/a/4/rainbow_school_by_orionote-d6n915b.jpg
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I'm not sure youngs find inspiration by the same source of us. Protect natural environment is a priority,
oh yes ! 100% agree and it means a lot for all.
Do you intend to create a new envirionment or help children to go elsewhere to find inspiration ?
It should be interesting to first observe and talk to youngests to understand where they find it around
them directly. A suggestion.
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Kenan Guler
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Hey Thanks for your comment
Actually, I think if we create a natural school environment instead of traditional desk-table classrooms,
it will help next generations to find themselves and preserve their creativity. Nevertheless, almost all of
schools are depending on memorizing something and awards the students who memorize the most.
Instead of a known certainty, we should focus on uncertainty and imagination.
Best,
Kenan
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's reply to Anne-Laure Fayard's comment
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I will try something who may help. Sorry, i begin here, so a lot to learn and i never follow the steps...
http://fc00.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2013/264/a/4/rainbow_school_by_orionote-d6n915b.jpg
Hope you have not to register to see this 3D room name "Rainbow class" This is a concept I apply for a
contest on floorplanner.com, where i create. Hope you can use it !
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Kenan Guler
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Hey, Thank you for sharing that beautiful picture. I think it can be a prototype for future classrooms.
But I didn't understand what you mean by "I will try something who may help. Sorry, i begin here, so a
lot to learn and i never follow the steps."
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To go on process, i have to produce first step : "What stop my creativity ?" - I just finish it but find hard
to add a picture, not only a link...
Creativity Gym
Working out your brain is just as important as your biceps. Creativity is for many a rather abstract size,
but in fact that isn't how it should be. That's why we have started a gym for creativity - The Creativity
Gym
We are a Copenhagen based group of creativity freaks, who
decided to spend some time on sharing the strength of creativity. So
we have opened a monthly non-profit Creativity Gym for everybody to
join.
We believe that creativity is a neurological activity that everybody
can train and master. The setting of the Creativity Gym is very
simple. People show up, we put them into teams, give them a challenge
and a tool to solve it with, and supervision if needed. There are no
right or wrong answers, only the process of being creative.
Last time we introduced the team to an exercise called “Brainwalking”,
facilitated the tool and saw how creativity could grow wildly in one
hour and one minute.
The team behind the Creativity Gym is spread over an academic interest
to a practical and entrepreneurial approach to creativity. We believe
that creativity is for everybody. All we need is the right tools,
knowledge and the encouragement to use creativity. See more here
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Inspiration submitted by: Mads Bonne
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Meena Kadri
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Great stuff, guys! Looking forward to seeing more of you across conversations on this challenge. We're
such you'll have a wealth of rich perspectives to add.
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Rudolf Kutina's reply to Meena Kadri's comment
Rudolf Kutina
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Well , there is such program for kids already - system is called Step by Steps and it's based on idea of
"activity stations", where kids are are rotated:
http://www.issa.nl/
http://www.sbscr.cz/?t=1&c=45
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Joakim Rex's reply to Meena Kadri's comment
Joakim Rex
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Thank you Meena, we are excited to be part of it :)
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Vishal Jodhani
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This is such an awesome inspiration! I'd love to join (or even start) a Creativity Gym. It's amazing to
know such initiatives exist!
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Joakim Rex
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Hi Vishal,
Thank you so much for the comment. We would be honoured if you join our next Creativity Gym
session on october 15th in Copenhagen.
If you would like to talk more about the idea of starting a Creativity Gym for yourself please get in
touch with us :)
orchestra bizarre
musical orchestra built by found / everyday objects
not being able to play a music instrument always disturbed my confidence;-))) music is one of the most
creative way of expressing ideas, feelings; besides lets people come together and collaborate. and of
course musicians are the most nifty personas among youngs. my inspiration is my own feelings.. to
motivate the ones who don't play instruments to learn more about music in a playful way, to find their
own bizarre instruments from every-day objects( or to create their own) and to build a unique district
orchestra ( works like a social club ) together.. this effort will motivate them in a creativity by
enhancing their looking/seeing capabilities, transforming objects into other uses,inventing sounds,
teamwork and if it succeeds, the attention of the others will courage them too much.
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Inspiration submitted by: Özlem Yalım Özkaraoğlu
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Hao Dinh
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Ozlem, great idea! I found some websites that provide examples of how to make instruments out of
everyday instruments. http://resource.takelessons.com/music-activities-for-kids-making-instruments/ I
can only imagine the awesome "instruments" kids would build and the sounds those instruments would
make! I plan on building on your inspiration and will reference your posting.
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Özlem Yalım Özkaraoğlu
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thnx hao. its a good idea to keep in mind and apply when an opportunity happens... thanx for the video
as well ;-)
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Hao Dinh
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Ozlem, check out this week's Creative Confidence Challenge Community Champion Update. Your
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Özlem Yalım Özkaraoğlu's reply to Hao Dinh's comment
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great, wow.. thanx.
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OpenIDEO
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Hi Özlem, interesting post! Any chance you could find an image to go along with it? Images help grab
attention and tell a story with higher impact. You should be able to use the Update Entry button on the
right of your post and follow the instructions to add images from there. We know occasionally people
have issues uploading images so let us know by hitting the Support tab on the left hand side of most
pages of our site if you face any problems. Looking forward to seeing more of your inspiring insights
on OpenIDEO.
And here's more handy tips on the Inspiration phase: http://bit.ly/oi_inspire
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Carole
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This reminds me of how, as children, we are able to invent worlds to play in and materialize them with
pretty much nothing. It's not only specific objects that kids make - such as music instruments - but also
role plays that they imagine - being a teacher, a shopkeeper... which makes me think that to keep their
creative confidence, young people need to be exposed to a wide variety of situations, people, contexts,
opinions and so on, that they will be able to confront or use as models to inspire them. Diversity and a
full range of opportunities and visions are key drivers for creativity.
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http://gizmodo.com/how-one-man-is-turning-the-eiffel-tower-into-a-song-512095318?autoplay=1
http://elsistemausa.org/el-sistema/venezuela/
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Hoang Nguyen
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The Eiffel Tower video is inspiring. I like the your ideas, its remind me of my friend when he said that
after learn how to play piano he never found the unique excitement as the first time touch it. Its great to
"play", not "learn to play" i guess :)
When Kids Grow Food, Confidence is Natural
Rachela, my 5-year old daughter, has already participated in four full tomato growing seasons.
Growing some of their own food provides children with confidence that is unbeatable.
Rachela Tomatoes 1
Rachela Tomatoes 1
Rachela Tomatoes 1 Rachela Tomatoes 2 Rachela Tomatoes 3 Sungold Cherry Tomatoes DIY Tomato
Planter
Rachela, my 5-year old daughter, has already participated in four full tomato growing seasons. She
simply ate them off the vine when she was two but now she is actively involved in all the stages of
planting and growing the tomatoes. She's very punctual about watering , knows not to pick the green
ones, and blesses the plants with a daily prayer "to make tomato feel better". She also likes to watch the
bees and butterflies visit the tomato flowers. Rachela shares her harvest with her classmates when they
come over for weekly "tomato picking picnics". Nobody's said no to eating them yet. Using the Sun
Gold Cherry Tomato allows us to share the bounty without worrying about running out of ripe, sweet
tomatoes.
TL;DR: Growing some of their own food provides children with confidence that is unbeatable.
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Inspiration submitted by: Avi Solomon
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Arjan Tupan
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Super story, Avi. And great to see you in another challenge! I love how your daughter blesses the plants
every day. Wonderful. I think the absolute benefit of having tangible results (in this case the tomatoes
that you can share on the tomato picking picnic) are a great boost for creative confidence. And I'm sure
that everybody loves the blessed tomatoes.
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Meena Kadri
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Agreed – awesome share, Avi! (I've also mentioned elsewhere on the challenge that I've often advised
my design students to have a go at cooking or gardening as a way of overcoming creative blocks)
Loving your highlights of Rachela's experiences here.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks for sharing Avi. Lovely story. As noted by Arjan, it reminds us the importance of concrete /
tangible outputs. This is something that emerged in several inspirations and something to keep in mind
in the ideation phase.
I also like the fact that this is something "invisible": she started without thinking about it and while
more involved, is not thinking much more about it: it's a routine that gives her confidence.
"Thread Softly Because You Thread On My Dreams" - WB Yeats
Ken Robinson is an inspirational author, speaker and international advisor on education. He advocates
to redesign the education system of the Western World, rekindle passion within people, daring them to
find their talents and fulfill their dreams
Sir Ken Robinson
From the moment I listened to Ken Robinson's speech on TED, I suddenly felt like I wasn't alone in the
world. I had gone through the normal education system and went on to get a very good degree in
engineering and what was considered a "good job" afterwards. However, I have memories coming
home from work for a few years after finishing college thinking "is this it", "is this what I have been
working towards all my life"? I wasn't inspired by my work, and I did not have the passion and drive to
be promoted, because I didn't want my bosses job either! I felt like a flat line inside...
I was one of the lucky ones however, because I was actually good academically, and breezed through
the education system relatively easily. I cannot begin to imagine the detrimental effect that our
education system have on the confidence and dreams if they do not fit into the "intellectual box" of the
current academic system.
I have began to turn my own life around. I have gone back to college to study psychology and have
taken a large cut in my salary to work in a more inspiring environment, giving more meaning to my
life. It has taken time to re-programme my education out of my brain and find myself again, but I'm
glad I've come to this realisation now and have had the courage to change my situation.
I believe we live in extremely exciting times, full of opportunity and change. We need our children to
flourish in the 21st century, embrace this rapidly changing society and most importantly for them to
find their own talents, passions, hopes and dreams. Teaching our young to be creatively confident starts
with teaching them to be themselves!
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Inspiration submitted by: Sinead Smyth
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Andrea Pomerance
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Thanks for sharing such a personal story, Sinead. Congrats to you on having the confidence to pursue
your dreams and for being yourself.
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Hao Dinh
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Sinead, great video. Sir Robinson is spot on. I applaud you for proactively finding and following your
passion! I am in total agreement that we are living in extremely exciting times, full of opportunities.
Kids Hackathon
Hackathons are amazing events (or even a way of living) where you learn, share, work, meet people
and specially have fun. An you can explote your creativity. It's a great experience to live in family, or
just with kids and advisors.
Kids hackathon
Kids hackathon
Kids hackathon Kids Hackathon
I saw this video some time ago. And now I'm organizing one in my country, Argentina. During
hackathon, you build (or you should build) conditions to magic things happend. And if they happend
with adults, imagine with kids!
Sorry for my english!
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Inspiration submitted by: Lolo Schauer
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Maja Todorovic
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Love the idea!
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Michella Rivera-Gravage
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I really like this idea! There is so much potential for creative freedom and learning in a hackathon. If
the hackathon is a community event, the possibilities for making connections among neighbors would
be such a great benefit and a way to establish a network for building creative confidence in a
neighborhood.
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Meena Kadri
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Your English is great, Lolo! This is not only a fantastic inspiration – but we're so impressed that you're
taking action to bring this to your own community
Creativity and Recycling: Can anybody build stuff from paper boxes ?
Yes we can (and YES you do it too)
MakeDO
What kind of all paper boxes shapes and colors you can find ?
http://mymakedo.com/
How we can inspired desidners to develop more products and programs like this one ?
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Inspiration submitted by: Rudolf Kutina
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Tim Huang
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Simple, yet a really great way to use local materials in all sorts of contexts! I really like how accessible
this is.
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Caroline Giegerich
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And way cheaper than Legos!
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Rudolf Kutina's reply to Tim Huang's comment
Rudolf Kutina
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Well, Actually MAKEDO is at least tin Europe unbelievable expensive.
But we use same principle using scissors and one time plastics straps.
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Jeff Nagata
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Wow this is so awesome!!
Ring Around The Data
Relational thinking inspires new ideas and refines existing ones. Creativity has allowed people to
redefine the way data is stored and consumed by putting information into new contexts.
A wood-playing turntable produces music.
Most everything we know and understand is derived from relational thinking - thoughts put into
perspective from past experiences. Take a moment to think about storage. An archaeologist understands
that an excavated site unveils the remains of ancient civilizations. This archaeological time capsule
stores information about past societies. In another example, leaves can be considered storage units
capable of storing details about the surrounding environment. By analyzing the a leaf’s molecules, a
wealth of environmental data can be analyzed and interpreted. The examples of archaeological sites and
leaves provide parallels of how many people today traditionally view storage mediums. Think of vinyl
records, 8 tracks, cassettes, CDs, floppy disks, hard drives, and flash drives. Each of these storage
mediums also collect data that can be put into context. Throughout the span of technological
innovation, storage mediums have changed, and each iteration of these mediums provide new
breakthroughs that add value to our lives. However, these technological storage mediums had to be
invented and refined. The technology never just happened on its own. If people use relational
knowledge, innovation would be much easier. Relational knowledge could be considered simply as
inspiration. Inspiration drives people to pursue new ventures based on an existing interactions with the
world.
I was inspired by a video showing a tree trunk cross-section producing music on a modified turntable.
It is innovative to see how a tree could be seen as a storage medium for organic music. The rings in the
cross-section of the tree are read by a laser and translated into musical sounds by adapting the lines to a
musical scale. The result is quite unique and profound and exceptionally creative.
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Inspiration submitted by: Ryan McCleary
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Andrea Grunseich
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Ryan,
I think your thoughts on relational thinking are very intriguing and insightful. It is an interesting take
on how creativity arises in individuals, where inspiration is derived, and how relational thinking is
evolving due to the contexts of our environment. Very interesting video to accompany it as well!
Cheers,
Andrea
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Thanks Andrea! I am glad you enjoyed the video. I think it helped explain the concept.
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Kenan Guler
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Hey Ryan
I really like your thought of relational thinking. I think this relational thinking is a kind of thought that
gives you some clues on the meaning of life, and the awe and complexity that are hidden in the context
of life, as well as that of nature. And in my opinion, the creativity emerges at the point in which you
become able to understand and analyze the clues and codes that life provide you throughout your lifespan.
Best,
Let's talk about failure – it's normal
Failure should be encouraged. It is often through understanding our failures that we become successful.
FailCon celebrates failure.
FailCon logo
FailCon logo
How to encourage failure is a challenging question. FailCon's answer is to get people talking about
their failures. People attending the conference learn to embrace their failures, then all of the talks get
published so everyone can view them.
The value created here is that we begin to feel less alone in our failures during the creative process. We
learn to embrace failures and use them as a tool to become more successful. FailCon is one step toward
normalizing and learning from failure, instead of keeping it a secret of top innovators.
thefailcon.com
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Inspiration submitted by: Sean Bolton
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Hao Dinh
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Sean, we are experimenting with prototyping visual ways of connecting similar inspirations using
inspirations.
Pinterest board.
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Louise Wilson
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always keen to support this way of thinking www.myfailtale.com ;-)
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Meena Kadri
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Great share, Sean. Here at OpenIDEO, we're big fans of embracing failure as part of creativity and
iteration. The Admitting Failure initiative has been another interesting one in this space:
http://www.openideo.com/open/web-start-up/inspiration/admitting-failure/
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Kirk Soderstrom's reply to Hao Dinh's comment
Kirk Soderstrom
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Tina Seelig (professor at Stanford) requires her students to write a failure résumé. With each failure, the
student has to write what (s)he learned from the experience. Seelig writes that "failures are also a sign
that you have taken on challenges that expand your skills." (http://stvp.stanford.edu/blog/?p=35)
If you are really pushing yourself beyond the familiar safety or comfort zone, there is a chance that
your efforts will meet with failure. By the way, I have always appreciated the distinction that "failure is
an event, not a person" (Zig Ziglar).
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Abigail Yuskis
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I like the idea of embracing failure. It is a huge part of innovation and the design process. I feel
"failure" still has some negative connotations (adult brain!), but I think there could be a good way to
incorporate failure with not being afraid to take risks and explore those "crazy" ideas. Like we did
when we were still children.
Childrens Creativity Philosophy of Creativity
At the Childrens Creativity Museum, our mission was to foster creative confidence in youth and
families from around the world. Our creative Process was "Imagine-Create-Share"
http://childrenscreativity.wordpress.com/educational-philosophy/
Education Philosophy
Education Philosophy
Philosophy
Our Goal: To develop creative confidence
“Having the freedom and courage to fail/take creative risks and the knowledge that all of the ideas you
create have value”
All of our programs are built upon a process of “Imagine, Create, Share”. Our goal is to share this
process via our programming, facilitation and exhibit spaces- together with our community, we hope to
develop a generation of creative learners who embrace the 21st Century skills of Creativity,
Collaboration and Communication.
WE BELIEVE:
Innovation is not an event- It’s a process.
Creativity does not happen in a vacuum.
A community of diverse learners, thinkers, and DOers is critical to building a creative environment.
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Rosie Dalton-Lucas
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This seems to me a brilliant foundation block for designing an environment/intervention that would
maximize the probability of inspiring creative confidence. It has me thinking about where i learned to
be creative and where the most common gaps are in the process of fostering creativity. Whilst school is
a big part of a child's life, the home is often the more influential.
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T.J. Edwards
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Love the way you have made your thinking visible with the diagram. I'm wondering,
though......"How?" Could you help build on this by showing some examples of how kids at the museum
demonstrate these different traits?
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Carole
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Really like the diagram. Thanks for sharing!
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Meena Kadri
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Great to have you join us from the Children's Creativity Museum, Ben. Love how your diagram
includes 'freedom to fail' – and we're seeing great inspiration across our challenge already on this. (eg.
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/promoting-failure-/) Looking forward
to seeing you on more conversations across this challenge...
Bay Area Video Coalition: Creative Confidence, One Class at a Time
I've always felt hindered at work by my lack of experience with computer programs like photoshop and
indesign. Thanks to BAVC, I'm now empowered with the basics and can practice my skills.
I was so proud of a postcard I made in class that I snapped a pic and posted on Instagram!
I was so proud of a postcard I made in class that I snapped a pic and posted on Instagram!
Working at a design firm can be intimidating – everyone is so talented and it's easy to feel like you
don't speak the language (and by extension that you don't fit in). After a few years of feeling like my
lack of photoshop and other design program skills was really impeding my ability to do good work, I
decided to sign up for a photoshop class at a place called Bay Area Video Coalition (BAVC).
"BAVC inspires social change by empowering media makers to develop and share diverse stories
through art, education and technology." They are located in San Francisco and offer a whole host of
classes for newbies and professionals alike.
While the thought of sitting in a dark computer lab for a whole weekend certainly wasn't exciting, I
have to admit that the experience was actually thrilling. I can't remember the last time I really sat down
and learned a new skill and it was so energizing! For the longest time, photoshop has been this 'black
box' kind of thing for me – I've never understood it or felt like I knew my way around. But this class
opened the door for me and helped me gather the basics. I may not be an expert now but funny enough
– I'm excited to keep practicing!
I liked it so much I've signed up for another class in November. It's amazing how just a little bit of
exposure to a new topic and a little hands-on practice can leave you feeling inspired, empowered and
ready to keep trying new things.
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Inspiration submitted by: Ashley Jablow
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Asli Aydin
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Thank you for your post. Here is a little inspiration :)
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/02/22/ira-glass-on-the-secret-of-success/
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Ashley Jablow
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Awesome link Asil! Have you added this as an inspiration directly to the challenge yet? I think this
would be a great one so I hope you'll go for it :)
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Asli Aydin
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yes sure, I will do that now :)
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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and here is another related inspiration: http://www.openideo.com/open/creativeconfidence/inspiration/practice-until-perfect/
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Dina Gold
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Thanks Ashley! I think you're on to something with empowering kids to use such amazing programs
like Adobe at a younger age. They can be incredibly complex until you learn how to do little bits
slowly over time. I guess it's been over 10 years since I've been using Photoshop and I taught myself by
playing around with the interface.
Adobe just released a great study on creativity and education. I wonder if they're thinking about the UX
designs or areas for improvement so kids can take advantage. Beats using PPT or Excel!
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Ashley Jablow
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So interesting Dina! I'm going to see if I can track down that study to have a look.
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Jeff Nagata
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Wow, that's so awesome. I had a very similar experience with Adobe Illustrator and drawing on paper. I
like how you described the Adobe programs as a "black box" because that's exactly how it felt.
I took an online course for Illustrator with an amazing instructor, and it was really surprising how fast I
got familiarized with the basic tools. Just having someone guiding you through the initial steps created
a great foundation of confidence.
Once I had that foundation, it felt so exciting and fun to just go and experiment, try out random things
with the program to see what would come up, instead of worrying about something looking bad or
failing, or feeling the pressure to make the next big masterpiece. It helped me go into a state of play.
Thanks for sharing!
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Ashley Jablow
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Jeff, that's it exactly - just a little exposure and instruction can go such a long way!
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Ashley for sharing your experience.
I agree that getting some basic skills can often time allows us to feel more confident in experimenting.
Giving some skills can sometime allows us to feel more confident to try out things that we would not in
general.
"Hurry up, we're going to be late"
A distracted, hurried life can have a big influence on children. Does this lifestyle have an impact on
creative confidence as well?
Image: Rachel Macy Stafford
Image: Rachel Macy Stafford
A while ago I read this quite moving story of how a daughter who started to mimic her mother's rushed
behaviour, opened her mother's eyes to her own rushed, distracted lifestyle.
Original post: http://www.handsfreemama.com/2013/07/16/the-day-i-stopped-saying-hurry-up/
I wonder how closely this rushed, distracted lifestyle is linked to the suppression of creativity in
children, if there is some similar behaviour by parents or teachers which inhibits creativity, and if either
of these two has an impact on creative confidence later in life.
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Inspiration submitted by: Saskia Baard
October 02, 2013, 10:05AM
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Jeffrey Sweet
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Hi Saskia,
Thank you! I think you have a really interesting point about the impact of a rushed life on creative
expression and creative confidence. Reframing the age question to a different age group, how does a
rushed hurried lifestyle affect the creativity of high school students? In this case it may not me so much
emulation of parents as it is a result of parents encouraging their children to do as much as possible for
better college resumes while the children are trying to learn to be independent/fit in with friends. I
would be curious to hear thoughts about this.
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Saskia Baard
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Hi Jeffrey,
I think you raise an extremely interesting point. High school students would make an interesting case
study - there's so much to unpick!
A few initial thoughts:
- A few people have posted inspirations about how many current education systems are not built to
encourage or engage with creativity, or build confidence around it - the TED talks by Ken Robinson
comes to mind (eg http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/how-schools-killcreativity/
I think this whole setup is a big creative confidence killer - creativity just isn't (in my observations and
experience) acknowledged or valued in the same way as other 'harder' skills in a school environment.
- I think with a distracted lifestyles goes pressure. For a high school student this probably is multiplied
by tenfold. If you hear the same message from teachers, parents, friends, you begin to believe it and life
by it. This can be positive or negative. Maybe the pressures of being a teenager is in itself a distraction.
- On the other hand - might the pursuit of the ideal college resume lead to situations where one might
discover places to be creative or be inspired to think/ act creatively / build confidence? Or might this
lead to a situation where you get the encouragement to be creative which you might not get in a
traditional class / schoolground situation?
Would like to hear your thoughts on this!
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Victoria Moreaux
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I agree with your comment about focusing on college resumes and "perfecting" per-se kids' futures
while they are still young. Children should not have to focus on those types of things and a distracted
lifestyle can in ways hinder a child from feeling like they are free to express themselves. I really liked
this article. Very intuitive.
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Saskia Baard
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Hi Victoria, I agree, pushing too early and unnecessary pressures can definitely be a hinderance. You
say children should not have to focus on these (resume/future) kinds of things - what do you think
would be a good time is for children to engage with this? Do you think it will should naturally, or at an
early age but just not in a rushed or pressured? Curious to hear your thoughts!
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Ashley Jablow
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Saskia, I'm so glad you brought in this story. I read it too! And as a new parent, I've often thought about
it when I've rushed through moments with my son. It does seem to make sense that moments of
creativity can be nurtured only when there is space and breathing room to 'go with the flow'. A
reminder for all of us to slow down.
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Saskia Baard
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Hi Ashley, congratulations on becoming a parent :-) I think this is an interesting one - freedom and
space to explore (or the lack of it!) can have a big impact on how we perceive issues and how we
approach life. This space is really necessary to build confidence. I think this also connects with what
other people have been saying about the freedom to make mistakes. This doesn't necessarily mean
being slow or taking ages to do something, but maybe a different perception of time and what matters
when.
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Louise Wilson's reply to Jeffrey Sweet's comment
Louise Wilson
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Hi Ashley and Saskia, interesting points made by both of you. I'm not a parent but spend quite a bit of
time with my friend's 2 year old. She's a the age where she's clearly making up scenarios in her head
and acts them out. You have to go with the stories and let her be imaginative or she gets very frustrated.
I guess many people could easily get bored of this or not have time to let her act it out. She's clearly
really creative and just needs time... When children are at the age where they can't fully communicate,
it could be easy to squash their creativity and like Saskia said, children need space.
People often say that having two children to look after is easier than one because they play together and
therefore amuse themselves. I wonder if creating a safe space and pairing up like minded children
could be a wonderful way to inspire creative confidence?
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Ashley Jablow's reply to Jeffrey Sweet's comment
Ashley Jablow
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Yes! Louise and Saskia, you are so right: kids need the space and time to see where their creativity and
play takes them. Louise, the idea of two children together could be an interesting one to consider. One
quick story: My husband and I recently took my son on vacation to meet his cousins in another state in
the US. My son has a nanny so he isn't around other babies all that much, but my niece goes to a day
care center during the day. One thing that struck me was that watching my niece play looked very
different than watching my son play. She was much more interested in what my son was playing with
and wanted to be part of whatever he was doing, whereas my son wasn't used to have anyone really
'interfere' with his playing. Maybe it was just a coincidence, but I couldn't help but wonder if her way
of playing had been influenced by the time she spent playing with and around others at day care.
Something for us to think about!
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Saskia Baard
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Louise and Ashley - thanks, great observations and examples!
Louise - I love how children can see and imagine things we just cannot - somewhere we lose this skill,
or it gets crushed or overpowered. I wonder what would happen if you put children who are NOT like
minded in a safe space to encourage creative confidence :-)
Ashley - Really love this first-hand example of the contrast in how children interact with each other. I
find this really interesting in showing how much parents/environments can 'intervene' / have an impact
on children without it necessarily aiming to do so.
I'm curious - to link with Louise's idea of getting children together - how did your son and your niece
play together in the end? Were there compromises made, or did she leave him alone, etc?
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Ashley Jablow's reply to Jeffrey Sweet's comment
Ashley Jablow
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Actually, by the end of our visit (3-4 days), my son was much more engaged with his cousin and more
interested in what she was doing and playing with. I definitely saw her influence rub off on him and his
approach to play. Proof that children are malleable and can be influenced by the world around them!
Innovate XYZ/MIT Media Lab/Kevin Doe
A graduate student at MIT Media Lab, David Sengeh, started an organization called Innovate XYZ to
encourage kids in Sierra Leone, Kenya and South Africa to explore innovation and entrepreneurship.
THINKR profile on Kevin Doe (DJ Focus) who is one of the beneficiaries of Innovate XYZ's
programs.
THINKR profile on Kevin Doe (DJ Focus) who is one of the beneficiaries of Innovate XYZ's
programs. Kevin Doe spoke at TEDxTeen to share his story and encourage teens to experiment
With the help of the MIT Media Lab, David Sengeh invited a student of his, Kevin Doe (DJ Focus) to
visit the U.S. and teach other kids about the homegrown radio station Kevin started in Sierra Leone. He
built all of the equipment himself from scraps of other electronics and now has a loyal listener base in
his hometown. Kevin also spoke about his work at TEDxTeen and encouraged other teens to explore
their passions and experiment.
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Inspiration submitted by: Caleb Zimmerman
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Tim Huang
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Thanks for sharing this - Kevin's story is really inspiring. It reminds me of the inherent creative
potential of young people, and especially of those in the developing world like Kevin who could use
more opportunities to innovate for their communities.
When a University that's 'in and of the city' becomes 'in and of the world'...
In October 2012, New York University (NYU) launched a collaboration platform licensing OpenIDEO
technology to test the learning process on a global scale across its network of 55K students, including
faculty and administrators.
nyu-gie-2013
nyu-gie-2013 http://ideaexchange.nyu.edu
NYU presented a challenge question focused on cities. The question, How might we activate the
potential of cities to ignite a Modern Renaissance, inspired students, faculty and administrators to look
at urban life “from diverse angles – sharing inspirations, thoughts, and responses via a custom social
collaboration network” built exclusively for NYU licensing OpenIDEO's technology in order to
“activate the NYU collective, working across time and distance, proving that ideas never sleep.” (New
York University, Idea Exchange, para. 1).
1500 students, including faculty and administrators, participated in NYU GIE 2013 across many
schools and global campuses. At the end of the challenge, NYU selected 18 participants to be GIE
Fellows and travel to Shanghai in March 2013 for a one-week, intensive incubation workshop to refine
the ideas. While in Shanghai, participants tinkered on their ideas alongside famous educators, domain
experts, designers and innovators. See these videos if you're curious how the challenge was launched
and what happened in Shanghai: http://vimeo.com/69241111 and http://vimeo.com/50236024.
I believe this platform supported and triggered creative thinking in students. It led to a new way of
thinking in students that was grounded in idea exploration and cross-disciplinary subjects. Students
were exposed very early on to first identify the problem, a form of problem construction, before
attempting to solve which stressed the importance of taking risk. It also flipped the classroom around
by having faculty engage with student-led inquiry in a meaningful way. Especially in the field of higher
education which is engaged in massive disruption with open innovation like MOOCs, the experience of
one such online platform can be highly influential and encourage students to start dialogues with each
other across cultures and geographies.
In terms of creative confidence, many times collaboration can be intimidating but if you do it with a
sense of like-minded individuals, and understand everyone is bringing something different to the table
in terms of expertise level on cities, you take comfort in knowing your idea will be appreciated. Since
this program consisted of only the NYU community, you can imagine there being students who
familiarized speaking with other students even if they didn't know them. Faculty guided students but
many times, this exchange consisted of students not knowing who was faculty and not differentiating
students from faculty. Everyone was considered equal.
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Inspiration submitted by: Dina Gold
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Bobby Cordell
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First I wanna say HI DINA!!!! How are you!
Then I want to say, this is exactly what I was looking to accomplish, I think your incorporation could
end up being the model that I build many things in education in the future. I hope you don't mind, but
I"ll probably tag this inspiration in the idea phase.
I think that education should be more transparent between levels of education, the division of people
who learn based on age isn't conducive, so how can we interrelate age groups, elementary through
college and beyond?
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Dina Gold's reply to Bobby Cordell's comment
Dina Gold
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Bobby! So cool to see you here! Small world :)
I'm glad you can finally read all about NYU's experiment in higher education. You're absolutely right
there is no age division or even subject matter barriers. Instead, students, faculty & administrators are
on the same level playing field across a variety of concepts. Of course, some come with more
experience about a specific area and others more scholarly approach. Students may find another student
is providing them insight over a faculty member. These types of exchanges are crucial to learning and I
think build not only creative confidence but lifelong confidence in terms of how we engage and interact
with others in everyday situations.
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Carole
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Maybe not only universities but also companies should consider the use of such platforms to sustain
their internal innovations efforts, and capitalize on the resources and insights from each and every of
their collaborators!
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Dina Gold
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That's exactly right! Imagine if companies did something like this to get internal collaboration going.
Many companies do this for short periods of time, i.e. the length of a contest or promotion to come up
with an original idea, but it typically stops and then people ask, "Now what?" Also, the decision
making goes into a black hole. I think part of the incentive for participating in something like this is the
transparency as well.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Dina for sharing. It's great that you mentioned the Global Idea Exchange and experienced it as
a way to trigger / support creative confidence.
Maybe you want to check as it seems that there is a problem with the video.
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Dina Gold
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Just updated to the original video. The second one has domain restrictions and you cannot embed it on
all websites. Thank you for the heads up!
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Anne-Laure Fayard's reply to Bobby Cordell's comment
Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks.
By the way, could you articulate a bit more why you think the GIE supported creative confidence:
- Was it the collaboration it provided across students from various schools and geographies?
- Was it the nature of the challenge?
I'm also curious to know how the experience felt similar / different than the one you're having on
openIDEO.
thanks,
al
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Dina Gold
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Thanks! I updated my inspiration to include more around my reasoning behind how the GIE instilled
creative confidence. In terms of OpenIDEO, I think one of the main differentiators may be more
diversity in all ways: locations, levels of expertise, backgrounds, etc. but perhaps less collaboration on
each individual inspiration (so far on this challenge) since there are so many happening at once. The
number of inspirations has surpassed what GIE received making the platform dynamic.
Sketchbook Project
The Sketchbook Project is a global, crowd-sourced art project and interactive, traveling exhibition of
handmade books.
sketchbook-project-2013 the-sketchbook-project-how-it-works
Any one could buy a sketchbook, fill it with sketches scribbles,pictures and then send it back to them
and your book is added to travelling library or a permanent display at brooklyn.
http://www.sketchbookproject.com/
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Inspiration submitted by: ajmal manzil
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Jinal Sanghavi
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This is a fabulous inspiration! :)
Fixing by Fixperts
Fixperts is a... social platform for fixing things. It encourages problem solving by revival of this often
forgotten or outsourced activity.
Fixperts introductory video
I don´t think there´s a point in rewriting what´s already written. Go to their website: http://fixperts.org/
and find out for yourself what is it all about.
The reason I post it as an inspiration here is that when looked at fro certain angle, it could become an
activity that promotes and nurtures creative confidence.
I would also like to mention that I found about Fixperts from this article by Cait Emma that also
explores the theme.
Playing = Learning
Evolutionary psychologist Peter Gray has devoted his work to study the importance of play. And while
we often see it as a break from important things like school, he argues that play is actually the most
important way to learn.
Dogs learning by playing
Dogs learning by playing
According to a wonderful essay in Aeon magazine, Gray has found that since the 1950s the amount of
time children are allowed to play freely in America has declined sharply, resulting in young adults that
are less empathic, more narcissistic and more likely to be depressed, anxious and suicidal.
In one quote from the essay, Gray states:
To the degree that we take away play, we deprive children of the ability to practise adulthood, and we
create people who will go through life with a sense of dependence and victimisation, a sense that there
is some authority out there who is supposed to tell them what to do and solve their problems. That is
not a healthy way to live.
He also refers to lots of research about play in animals and hunter-gatherer societies. And in all cases, it
appears that play is an important way for youngsters to learn skills that are of value in the societies they
grow up in.
The question is: how can we bring back play as an important way to learn.
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Arjan for this great inspiration. I love the article. It makes a lot of great points. I believe that the
decrease in the lack of playtime for children happens in many cities. As Gray mentions, there are many
historical and social factors about why parents might not let their kids play out so much.
I had several times a discussion with a friend who is in in his 60s. He argued like Gray about the
importance of learning by being free to explore and experiment.
My husband who lived in the country side spent his whole day with his brother exploring. Even I who
was a city kid I remember I would leave for several hours with my bike to play with my friends in the
park nearby home. Yet, I would not let my kids do that ... Not that I don't want them to explore but
because I'm worried of what could happen to them. I don't think that our parents were unconscious, but
there were just less stories about stuff happening to kids.
Yet, even if you argue that there are objective factors for less freedom to wander, it does not take away
the need to wander, experiment and play on their own. The question then becomes how can we create
spaces where that this can happen?
I also think that as parents (and reading the article made me think about it again) we need to be aware
that although we might be worried, we need to let our kids "grow". If we trust them, they will also feel
more confident. I remember seeing my son (13) and daughter (11) jumping from a 9/10 meters cliff in
the sea this summer. When I saw them up there with their cousins, I hoped in my mind that they would
not jump (I have terrible vertigo and would never do this), but I kept quiet (It was tough) and they both
jumped. It is only after a couple of jumps for my son (my daughter had enough with one) that I told
him to stop because I knew he was becoming overconfident and I did not want him to try something
more audacious and hurt himself.
The article reminded me a discussion on Sarah's inspiration on comics workshop where Sarah
suggested having two learning spaces, that might be a way to manage this:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/nurturing-creative-confidence-and-selfexpression-through-cultural-comics-1/#c-318a4cd0c3fab4c5d7074ef4fd077e1c
Last, I think that the last key point made by the article is how not only play is not recognized as a
learning opportunity, but also how educational systems and policy makers keep pushing in the other
direction. It seems to me that paradoxically that while organizations craved for innovation and ask for
more creative people, schools are becoming less and less innovative spending a lot of the learning
opportunities and time to test children.
That was a long comment! Hopefully a few things useful. :-)
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Arjan Tupan's reply to Anne-Laure Fayard's comment
Arjan Tupan
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Wow, great comment, Anne-Laure. Loved your story of the summer holidays. In a similar situation, I
probably would have similar feelings. Heights are not my friends, either (please don't make me stand
on the Saturday edition of a newspaper).
The discussion you point to is indeed interesting. I think in combination, we're on to an Idea for the
next phase. It's not completely clear how, but there is something in there...
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Anne-Laure Fayard's reply to Anne-Laure Fayard's comment
Anne-Laure Fayard
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Looking forward to more conversations and an idea... :-)
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FUNG k's reply to Anne-Laure Fayard's comment
FUNG k
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Anne-Laure totally agreed with your comment about children playtime in many cities. Especially in
Asian countries, parents are more concern about academic performance, so most kids have private
tutorial class after school time and four to six interests class. They just too busy and I also loved the
idea of summer holidays
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Monica Otulakowski
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Hi Arjan, there may be merit in using video games as a way to learn. There is an upcoming course on
Coursera that discusses this topic: https://www.coursera.org/course/videogameslearning?
utm_classid=970616&utm_nottype=class.generic&utm_notid=2289&utm_linknum=1
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Kirk Soderstrom
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Arjan, great inspiration (as always)!
I'm sure you have seen the big slide at Google HQ. The artifacts in our educational and work
environments encourage (and discourage) certain behaviors. I encourage you to find a LEGO set in a
fifth grade classroom.
In case you haven't, check out this other inspiration, "Creativity is Playfulness"
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/creativity-is-playfulness-/
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Arjan Tupan
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Thanks, Kirk. Especially with the diverse options you have with LEGO (like in your inspiration), it
would be great to see a bit more of the stuff in class rooms.
I had seen indeed the other inspiration, but it was your comment on it that made me understand its
value better. It's a great sharing of personal experience.
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Kirk Soderstrom's reply to Anne-Laure Fayard's comment
Kirk Soderstrom
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There is something fascinating about this Google slide that relates to creative confidence barriers. I
didn't realize it until now, after reading your's and Anne-Laure's comments above. ^^
After wondering why we don't see more of these artifacts in our work environments, I realized
something quite obvious: Liability.
Our increasingly litigious regulatory environment has made it far more difficult for parents and
teachers to give children the freedom to be responsible, which tends to discourage self-directed
learning. People and companies (understandably) do not want to get into trouble!
Thus the appeal (and danger?) of this slide symbolizes more than meets the eye. It is a small act of
rebellion. And it was a bold act of creative confidence on Google's part. Bravo!
I suppose it serves us well to understand some of the systemic, pervasive creative confidence barriers
as we attempt to make sense of the inspirations!
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Arjan Tupan
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You touch upon an interesting point, Kirk: restrictions. In this case, about safety. Interestingly, Europe
is much less litigious, but to compensate, we have probably more rules. Nevertheless, a large bookstore
here in Düsseldorf (Germany) has a slide that goes down from the ground floor to the basement level.
The entrance to the store is at the ground floor, but the children's book section is in the basement. On
busy days (Saturdays, mainly), the kids are queuing up for a ride on the slide. Of course, parents are
keeping a close eye on them, but still.
What I like about the are I live in, is that there are countless playgrounds. Both in the smaller town
where I live, as in the 'big city' Düsseldorf. These areas are relatively safe havens for children to play
in, while parents can take a bit of distance. By the way, in summer in my neighbourhood, a lot of kids
were playing in the streets, here.
It's O.K to be messy!
Fundamentally, the act of creation is messy, or it appears so to an observer. So, the basic tenet in
fostering creativity amongst young people is to let them know that is is absolutely O.K to be messy, in
fact, it is actually a good trait!
My two year old showing me what's creative confidence
My two year old showing me what's creative confidence
While this is my own story,just that the protagonist is my 2 year old toddler. It was about a month back
and the playschool he goes to had organized a Father's day, where father and son were to spend a
couple of hours and have fun. There were a myriad of activities including painting the walls with
various materials on offer. My son picked out a frosted glass panel as his canvas, some water based
colors and a few sponges. While I was tiptoeing my way around the colors, he had dived straight in
with his hands and the sponge and got an art work going on the wall and by the time I managed my first
stroke he was almost done with half the glass. Now, this got me thinking. As adults, while we try to
begin with an end in mind, the toddlers just get going and they figure it out along the way. Now that to
me is creative confidence, which, we tend to lose out as we go along in life!
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Inspiration submitted by: Ramkumar Jeyachandran
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Holli Wertheimer
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By encouraging our children to be messy, we prevent them from being inhibited by unnecessary
boundaries. In the grand scheme of things, a mess can normally be cleaned up while a closed mind is
more more difficult to open.
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Joselyn Gonzalez
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I think as adults we are always limited by processes people have created before us. I love how kids
don't "know" how things are supposed to be done so they just go with the flow
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Hao Dinh
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Ramkumar, very inspiring. What I love about being messy is that it truly enables creativity since it
removes constraints relating to what is the right or correct. As you pointed out, being messy allows you
the mindset to try, refine and figure what is the end result during the process. Thanks for sharing.
Any further inspirations/experiences of people/organizations promoting being messy?
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Mohamed Rizwan Kader Batcha
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I was a part of a fun group called 'Breakfree'... We used to organize random flash activities, such as
'silly walks', 'high five mornings' & 'red nose parades' in Singapore. Ofcourse it isn't something
amazingly creative, but rather it was about breaking free from the monotony of the morning routine. To
put it into context, being messy is about just having a unstructured approach and shedding your
inhibitions.
Let me know your thoughts on the same.
There is another group who did this and also documented the event...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeuZvOXufrM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rP3Mxhi4Uio
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Mohamed Rizwan Kader Batcha
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Very well put Rajkumar. We as adults are institutionalized as to what is right and is not. Rather we need
to 'breakfree' and let go, express yourself.
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Great story Ramkumar! There is certainly an innate nature to "just be" and hence be messy as on
exhibits their creativity. I'll also offer that in environments where I have interacted with kids (I
volunteered to take care of kids of Sundays last year), I observed very few but remarkable natural
ability to want to be orderly and precise. I can appreciate creativity from that angle too! :-) Not all
artists are messy.
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Mishal K. P.
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Don't Be Afraid of The Mess!, Similar story on Messy or Tidy http://goo.gl/XYdIRB
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Kirk Soderstrom
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I think your story illustrates what Pablo Picasso meant when he said “it took me four years to paint like
Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child.” Societal conformity, fear and other factors may stomp out
the inborn creative impulse. How can we preserve and develop this state of mind during the formative
years and beyond?
Picasso is also quoted as saying that "every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist
once we grow up." Even Picasso recognized the creative confidence dilemma! He seemed able to
accept himself.
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Arjan Tupan
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Great sharing. And just as Vishal, I love the personal stories. This also connects to the inspiration from
Jae Lee: http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/the-marshmallow-challenge/
By the way: also great that the play school has special Father Days.
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Vishal Jodhani
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Personal stories are always so powerful. Thanks for sharing Ramkumar. We really do need to tiptoeing
so much and (re)learn to dive straight in. Very inspiring!
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Meena Kadri
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Great story, Ramkumar! Also made me recall this inspiring story fom the mother of a 4 year old:
http://bit.ly/1f95WhE I often think children teach us so much more than we teach them! :^)
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Arushi Aggarwal's reply to Holli Wertheimer's comment
Arushi Aggarwal
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It's so interesting how this lady was able to embrace her creativity better once her daughter's care free
creations were all over the place!
Schoolplein 14 - School Yard 14
Play is important. And using sports to promote play for learning valuable societal skills is something
the Johan Cruyff foundation has combined in their new initiative: the SchoolYard 14.
Introduction to the Schoolplein14 initiative, in Dutch.
Legendary Dutch football player Johan Cruyff has been using his fame and status to promote sports and
skills building for youth for a long time now, through his Johan Cruyff foundation. The latest initiative
of the foundation is Schoolplein14, or School Yard 14. The number 14 refers to the shirt number Mr
Cruyff always played with. In The Netherlands, the term 'Number 14' is synonymous to Johan Cruyff.
The Schoolplein 14 is an initiative in which school children start with designing their own new school
yard. Then, the Cruyff Foundation helps with making it real, supplies equipment, and a rulle board,
with 14 rules aimed at framing the play. Those are not rules that most children in schools are familiar
with. Those are rules that actually promote the learning of valuable skills. They are about being
responsible towards eachother and the equipment, taking initiative, helping eachother, involving others,
being respectful, etcetera.
Initiatives like this can help transform schools into places where play has a place as a learning
mechanism.
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Vishal Jodhani
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Arjan, yet another great inspiration! Love the elements of co-creation, play and experiential learning in
Schoolplein 14. It's also inspiring how the kids are building skills and acquiring important values while
playing a more active role within their own immediate environment.
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Jeff Nagata
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Wow, this is an amazing program! I like how it puts the children at the center of the entire initiative,
right from the beginning to the end when they get to see their ideas and thoughts become something
tangible, in the physical world. I think that would be a powerful moment for kids, when they see that
their contributions made a positive impact on their environment.
Thanks for sharing!
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Thanks Arjan for sharing. I agree with you that play is key. I also like the idea here to give a project
where kids clearly have an interest and are motivated by and to give them the freedom to be involved
and engaged.
cheers,
al
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Arjan Tupan's reply to Vishal Jodhani's comment
Arjan Tupan
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Indeed, I really like it that the kids are involved in the design. They get to say what they need. And play
is important. I shared another inspiration based on an awesome essay I read about that. The essay is
here: http://www.aeonmagazine.com/being-human/children-today-are-suffering-a-severe-deficit-ofplay/
(The inspiration is hiding behind the pic with dogs in the 'Insprations this built upon' list to the right)
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Anne-Laure Fayard's reply to Vishal Jodhani's comment
Anne-Laure Fayard
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Just read the article right now and it is super interesting. Thanks! I've read about play with animals and
have discussed with friends this notion of freedom for children (beyond the idea of play). I'll go and
comment on the other inspiration. :-)
Quieting the Lizard Brain
"What you do for a living is not be creative, what you do is ship," says bestselling author Seth Godin,
arguing that we must quiet our fearful "lizard brains" to avoid sabotaging projects just before we finally
finish them.
Video from 99u
I'm posting this because I believe there is truth to the principle of shipping, but I don't like the
statement that our job isn't to be creative. At the same time, he also says everyone is creative...curious
what others think and what we can pull from this idea. Does the lizard brain get the best of us and kill
our creativity?
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Inspiration submitted by: Emily Brozovic
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Paul van Zoggel
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I wonder who knows at which age my kids developed enough to introduce them to being creative and
shipping and the lizard brain?
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David Lippi
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That's a great question Paul. I would think the creativity would emerge as soon as they can manipulate
things. Then comes the hard part, protecting them from the judgements and fears that feed the lizard
brain. Hopefully, some solutions will come-out of this challenge.
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David Lippi
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It does sound contradictory in this presentation, but having followed him for a long time, I think Seth is
challenging the idea of the preciousness of being a "Creative", with the activity of doing creative work,
which we can all do as we focus on "shipping".
I absolutely find that there are times when I have to struggle with the lizard brain to be creative. What I
often struggle with is an image in my head of what my work should look like if it was perfect. But that
is never productive, and that perfect image doesn't really inform the final product.
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Emily Brozovic's reply to Paul van Zoggel's comment
Emily Brozovic
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I struggle with it too. I always have an image in my head and it's funny how my end product usually
doesn't end up being that. It's sometimes related, but never exact. Maybe accepting the idea that
something will always evolve, and as long as you are letting it evolve (and ship) is a good take-away.
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Kirk Soderstrom's reply to Paul van Zoggel's comment
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Seth Godin has written at length about the lizard brain, which he links to this idea of “resistance.”
Resistance prevents many of us from doing our best work, and from shipping.
Godin frequently cites author Steven Pressfield, who wrote “The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks
& Win Your Inner Creative Battles.” Highly recommended; it is a short (and humorous) read. There is
particular emphasis on discipline, and on developing a professional mentality towards your art
(whatever it may be).
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David Lippi's reply to Paul van Zoggel's comment
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Thanks for the tip Kirk. I hadn't heard of that book, but I'll definitely check it out.
The first open space school
Vittra is the first open space school. Kids learn where and how they want.
Vittra School
Vittra School
Designed by Rosan Bosch Architecture agency, the Vittra school was recently created in Stockholm,
Sweden.
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Matthew Esposito
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As an Interior Designer myself, I cant explain how important and needed these types of creative
learning atmospheres are! I dream of many more educational institutes moving towards this type of
design, as a goal for our future children! Great inspiration, thank you Mathieu!
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Hao Dinh
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Mathieu, check out this week's Creative Confidence Challenge Community Champion Update. Your
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Mathieu Chevalier's reply to Matthew Esposito's comment
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cooool :) thanks for the com'
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Hao Dinh
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Mathieu, awesome post. I personally understand the power of having an "open" space (physically and
mentally) to enable/encourage creativity! I built off of your posting by posting my favorite "open
space", e.g. James Hunt Library @ NCSU (http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/huntlibrary)
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Mathieu Chevalier's reply to Matthew Esposito's comment
Mathieu Chevalier
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this place look awesome, thanks Hao.
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Stephan Kardos
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Great Post Mathieu,
I think the Sudbury Valley School goes a smilliar path. http://www.sudval.org/
You are right. There should be more schools like that.
regards,
Stephan
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Johari Nals
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I've been so enamored with this project since 2011. How great would it be to have more schools like
this?!
Ted Prize winner Sugata Mitra’s wish - To build a School in the cloud
A simple study ‘ Hole in the Wall’ in India led to profound findings. Sugata Mitra's views on the
current school system seems to resonates with Sir Ken Robinson.
Sugata Mitra: Build a School in the Cloud
He made a hypotheses and carried out the study to explain why our current school system need change.
He arrived at SOLE- Self Organizing Learning Environments. A path breaking system to replace our
current education system. Using only broadband, collaboration and encouragement to lead young adults
to intellectual explorations.
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Inspiration submitted by: Mrinalini Ruban
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Jeff Nagata
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Thanks for sharing this Mrinalini. It was really inspiring to see children have so much self-motivation
in learning new information. Sugata Mitra also posted a toolkit for bringing SOLE to your community,
and I thought it was awesome! You can find it here: http://www.ted.com/pages/sole_toolkit
The thing that struck me is his approach where the children are treated as the shapers of their own
knowledge, instead of empty buckets for adults to fill with information. Maybe that freedom is a
catalyst for inspiring creative confidence?
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Mrinalini Ruban's reply to Jeff Nagata's comment
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I completely second your thoughts...the freedom to explore could be the game changer! I did came
across SOLE toolkit and i think its a great idea!!
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Hao Dinh
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Mrinalini, check out this week's Creative Confidence Challenge Community Champion Update. Your
Natural Movement- strength agility - never leave the kid in each of us behind
One way to inspire confidence and creativity is to have confidence and creativity in your body and how
it can move. Kids are flexible, strong and natural movers, I believe one is linked to the other.
citynews.com.au
citynews.com.au
http://citynews.com.au/2013/foot-men-to-a-new-wave-of-natural-fitness/
It’s not so much about fitness, although fitness is a by-product. It’s more about exploring the body in its
relationship to the environment, making everything three-dimensional and fluid… [and] using all of the
movement skills available to us.”
Natural or “ancestral” fitness aims to limber up every body part through real-world actions such as
running, jumping, climbing, crawling, moving quietly, lifting and carrying objects or negotiating
obstacles.
“This is really something you don’t see a lot of the population doing these days, but more so in the
rural population,” says Craig. “Most people say they wouldn’t use these skills in modern life and to an
extent they’re right, but put yourself in an emergency situation and all these skills become useful – look
at the tsunami in Thailand, there were people saving themselves by climbing trees, by crawling,
jumping over things and running flat out.”
“There’s this notion of the person fully embedded in their local region and their landscape, knowing all
the animals and plants, knowing how the animals move, knowing the sounds that they make, able to
hunt and forage and use the senses, and a lot of us simply want more of that because it feels really
good,” he says.
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lee wallace
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Yep, that may be the case, so how might we motivate kids and young adults to get into a fun physical
way of being that inspires creativity? Is using what we have, the natural environment the first step?
what about using the built urban environment, running up stairs, sliding down bannisters, leap frogging
over bins, I think there is a lot of scope?
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Andrea Rabe
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Mmmmh, isn't that a whole new challenge? I also believe in the Mind-Body-Unity approach, but isn't
hat just as hard to motivate kids and young adults to keep up their physical exercises as it is to nurture
creativity?
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Meena Kadri
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Fantastic provocation, Lee. It makes me wonder more about how many people think of creativity as a
largely cerebral pursuit. I like how you're nudging us to widen our thinking here.
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lee wallace
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What does this mean for kids and creativity?
For instance, schools are primarily designed to train docile citizens and workers. This end is achieved
by definite forms of bodily behavior. Small, highly mobile children are made to sit in rigid desks for
hours without significant movement. They are to speak or move from their place only by going through
a prescribed ritual of raising their arms and being recognized by the teacher"
Join the STEAM Movement (STEM + Art)
The US education system is focused on ensuring students become knowledgeable in Science,
Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). Adding Arts to the mix (STEM + Arts) will truly provide
a strong foundation for our 21st century leaders.
Join the STEAM Movement
Join the STEAM Movement
Join the STEAM (STEM + Arts) Movement!
Per the STEM to STEAM website:
STEAM is a movement championed by Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and widely adopted by
institutions, corporations and individuals.
The objectives of the STEAM movement are to:
transform research policy to place Art + Design at the center of STEM
encourage integration of Art + Design in K–20 education
influence employers to hire artists and designers to drive innovation
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Inspiration submitted by: Hao Dinh
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Jessica Aguirre
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Great inspiration. There is great need to find non-traditional ways to connect with a subject or
curriculum. Any art form that can be incorporated into the learning process increases the odds to spark
curiosity and more participation.
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Tom Bradley
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Lovely simple idea. That acronym's a belter! :-)
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Rudolf Kutina
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I actually believe then transition must be "A stem", we need to build kids self - confidence in creativity
and self express so kids can transfer their experience with creative play in kindergarten to art + design
aspects in first class of school where original STEM curriculum must be part of world exploration.
Later they can build mainly of STEM if they prefer more engendering paths
How Schools Design Classroom Games for Learning
'Quest To Learn' schools based in New York City utilize simple game-centric curriculum to engage
children in solving complex problems.
Quest To Learn, The Learning Institute
Children innately understand the dynamics of social games learnt at a very young age. Utilizing the
immediate feedback and immersive quality games inherently possess, instructors are able to create
learning modules that children are able to make their own.
See more here
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Inspiration submitted by: Édouard Urcadez
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Édouard Urcadez
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Meena – Thank you! Excited to participate in this challenge! Everyone's been contributing fantastic
inspiration.
Jessica – The way the children address the game is amazing, it's incredible how a simple change in
context can make learning/education so much more exciting.
Luisa – It's definitely an ideal to move towards! Hoping more educational practices begin to see the
value in teaching how children can grow from failure.
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Luisa Fernanda
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I find very interesting how the teacher talks about failure. In education, we rarely encounter teachers
admitting failure and caring so deeply to challenge students and understand their needs. This is
definitively a way more teachers and educational systems should move towards! Thanks Edo.
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Jessica Aguirre
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I liked the idea of the “mental toolbox”. Using games as a way of learning a skill set that will adapt as
challenges present. I loved the response of one of the kids that "without the challenge it will not be as
much fun".
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Meena Kadri
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Love this, Édouard. I've read about the Quest Schools here and there but it's really great to watch
teachers and students chiming in on how it rolls. A really important insight for me is about the
flexibility of the program. Adaptability seems like a significant element of nurturing creativity. Hope to
see you across conversations on this challenge.
Discus: Is Creative Confidence predominantly soft knowledge or hard skill?
SURE: Having own answer for question “Is Creative Confidence predominantly soft knowledge or
hard skill?” in inspiration phase is very important to create inspiration in right context and to link them
with others.
Black and White - Galaxy B-4 under CC
Black and White - Galaxy B-4 under CC
But answer will even more important in concept phase, because it can lead us into complete different
directions.
Well, many of us intuitively think then Creative Confidence As Knowledge and As Skill are two sides
of one coin. Really ?
If you carefully read many of current inspirations, you will find them if:
- Creative Confidence is predominantly soft knowledge so it’s something we can today
immediately and easily distribute to masses as books, tablet apps or massive online courses.
- Creative Confidence is predominantly hard skill so it’s need to be nutrued during your whole life
= from your first plays in infant age to last fight of mind trying to slow down dementia as senior.
HMMM, MAY BY WE NEED TO HAVE in this CHALLENGE 2 WINNING CONCEPTS for
realization?
One a more short term CALL FOR ACTION style with focus on Creative Confidence ACTIVATION in
MASSES with say 1 year perspective?
Second a more long term RESEARCH & SUPPORT focused on whole upcoming generation of Digital
Kids with at least 2 decades perspective?
But may be they are really two indivisible parts, like a Linkey Way Galaxy, one is not tangile force,
second is hard world ricness repsented by stars and planets ?
May be force keeps stuff in move and stuff interaction create a force ?
LEGO Mindstorms
'Tens of thousands of school and after-school teams take part in international engineering and robotics
competitions each year. Contests promote science, technology and innovation skills from an early age'
(LEGOS website).
LEGO Mindstorms
LEGO Mindstorms
Art class is not the only setting to instill creative confidence in young folks, particularly for those who
are more science or math oriented (in this example). Creative confidence seems to develop when an
individual's unique strengths align with his/her passions, and while creative confidence may signal
itself in artistic pursuits, it is by no means limited to the arts as long as the elements of play, risk-taking
and experimentation are present, and encouraged.
Beyond the product itself, the community aspect (both online/offline) of LEGO Mindstorms is a
noteworthy "creative confidence enabler."
I was somewhat reluctant to share this inspiration because of the competitive aspect. Also, these are
expensive toys--not accessible by all. (Pinewood Derby would be a less expensive version of a similar
concept)
However, at its core, this inspiration recognizes that young folks can develop creative confidence in a
variety of disciplines, depending on their unique strengths and passions.
Image from Amazon
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Inspiration submitted by: Kirk Soderstrom
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Meena Kadri
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Loving your highlight that creative confidence is not limited to the arts, Kirk. In fact, I'd say it's the
foundation of entrepreneurship for starters. Not to mention a key driver in so many domains. Looking
forward to seeing more discussion on this across our challenge. Great to have you join us again with
fab insights as ever!
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Kirk Soderstrom's reply to Meena Kadri's comment
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Thanks Meena, it is always fun to be here! I think it is critical to point out that creativity has no
categorical boundaries. I am a firm believer that everyone is creative, though many people I speak to
associate creativity with artistic excellence. This unenlightened view can shape behavior.
I think there are moments in our development when we realize or come to believe that we are good (or
bad) at something, and when others reinforce this belief. Social development seems to have a strong
correlation with the development of creative confidence.
Finding and developing a person's strengths, regardless of the discipline, can be a foundation on which
to build creative confidence. The key is to find it.
Also, I used the word "belief." A person can suck at something but believe that (s)he is good at it. The
early trials of American Idol exemplify this idea. :) The opposite scenario is where the tragedy occurs,
because each of us has a gift.
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Mishal K. P.'s reply to Meena Kadri's comment
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Thank you for sharing. Another great resource - toys you can make with everyday objects
https://www.youtube.com/arvindguptatoys #MustHaves
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Arjan Tupan's reply to Meena Kadri's comment
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Totally agree: everybody has a certain talent, and I think we are all responsible to finding that talent in
young people by offering them a multitude of ways to discover what they are good at, and how their
creativity can best flourish.
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Kirk Soderstrom's reply to Meena Kadri's comment
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Although it may prove infeasible, it would be interesting if local libraries could check out toys
(educationally focused not entertainment focused) to encourage young people to experiment, learn
interactively, and discover hidden strengths.
I'm not sure to what extent economics is a barrier to building creative confidence, though I can
remember blowing a hole in my parents' budget; toy price points typically increase with age.
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Rudolf Kutina's reply to Meena Kadri's comment
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LEGO MIndstorms is based in work of Mitchel Resnick, here is inspiration about what he do:
Cultivating Creative Communities - How can we help students become the Makers of things in the DW
Creative confidence is a muscle & EVERYDAY you are strengthening that muscle!
Definition of creativity is "the ability to make new things or think of new ideas". Reflect on your day, I
guarantee you were creative today!
EVERYONE is creative EVERYDAY
EVERYONE is creative EVERYDAY
You are creative EVERYDAY! Previously I thought you had to be born with or have professional
training before you could be "creative". Once I realized I was inventing EVERYDAY, my outlook on
life changed. Creativity can be defined as "the ability to make new things or think of new ideas". Think
about your day. Did you create anything new, I bet you did! Creativity does not have to be
groundbreaking like coming up with the iPad or developing the laws of physics. It can be as simple as
being able to get your kids to eat their veggies, finding a way to sneak in a bowl of ice cream without
cheating on your diet or developing an easier way to complete a work task. As you keep track of these
EVERYDAY creative moments, you will build your creative confidence.
As I kept track of my EVERYDAY inventions, my creative confidence grew to a point where when I
heard "it can't be done"; it motivated me to find a way! This mindset has helped me professionally and
personally. I am now an Innovation Leader for a Fortune 100 company leading an initiative to
transform the organization into a innovation powerhouse. Additionally I've started a non-profit
(www.growbydesign.info) focused on nurturing the creative confidence of K - 12 students.
I firmly believe EVERYONE can achieve this powerful creative confidence mindset. Start by tracking
your EVERYDAY creative moments!
Math + Fun = Confidence
A five-day Math Festival was recently promoted by the city of Buenos Aires. With more than 10,000
attendees, parents and children learned about the ample world of Mathematics through workshops, art,
movies, and games.
image: www.news.cn
image: www.news.cn
image: www.news.cn image" www.news.cn
Mathematics is not always regarded as a favorite subject but how about learning it with different
activities. Exposure to interactions and spaces opens curiosity. Curiosity helps us to seek and invites us
to a journey of discovery. Events like this are a great opportunity to find unusual ways, be interested
and perhaps motivate us to follow a path. It creates confidence to explore.
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Inspiration submitted by: Jessica Aguirre
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Anne-Laure Fayard
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Nice inspiration Jessica.
It reminded me a couple of inspirations on Math and Science and how they can be related to creative
confidence:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/join-the-steam-movement-stem-art/
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/every-child-a-maker-us-programme/
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/making-chemistry-fun/
You might want to build upon them as this will invite others to come and comment on your inspiration.
I think that there 2 important points in your post:
- curiosity: how to engage kids and make them curious
- creating events that allow parents and children alike to engage on various fun challenges.
On the curiosity and fun part, you might also find this post interesting:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/how-schools-design-classroom-gamesfor-learning/
Last about math per se, I think it is also important to recognize that creative confidence might be
enacted in different fields:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/gardner-s-multiple-intelligences-
challenging-unimodal-ways-of-teaching/
Thanks!
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Thanks Anne-Laure. You highlighted good points. Curiosity is an important element to become an
active participant no matter the interest or subject. Perhaps a different approach to cultivate creative
confidence will be finding the right stimulus for that specific creative mind.
I find really interesting your inspiration about “Gardner’s multiple intelligences”. How can we provide
the environment and tools that would nurture the intrinsic talent of an individual? Indeed, there is
uniqueness about learning and our motivations and responses are different. How can we support a
collective learning experience while enriching the individual journey? Thanks again for your
comments.
Ira Glass on Persistence in Creativity
In this video, Ira focuses on having the grit to get through creative failures, and how that grit comes
from having faith in your creative vision.
Ira Glass on Storytelling, visuals by David Shiyang Liu
It seems to me that many of the Inspiration posts are also alluding to a need to nurture persistence,
because it takes persistence to get through the Valley of Death: where you're ability to bring your
creative dream into being doesn't yet match your skills to do so (see #1 below).
In this video, Ira focuses on having the grit to get through creative failures (#2), and how that grit
comes from having faith in your creative vision (#3).
We spend years copying before we contribute novel ideas and combine synergistic concepts
(Everything is a Remix posted by Tim Lee Chen javascript:nicTemp();)
Fear of failure (video of Milton Glaser posted by Patrick Gibson javascript:nicTemp(); )
“Not being afraid of your imagination.” ( Defining Creative Confidence by Ben Grossman-Kahn
javascript:nicTemp(); )
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Tim Lee Chen
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Thanks for the great piece of inspiration Jordan! I definitely agree with Ira's words! To expand on this
slightly, there is an interesting article that studies the concept of grit that may come in useful
somewhere later on in this challenge. Definitely a good and quick read to check out!
http://99u.com/articles/7094/the-future-of-self-improvement-part-i-grit-is-more-important-than-talent
Two interesting questions that the author leaves us with are, "Is grit an inborn ability, just like
intelligence or talent? Or, can grit be cultivated?"
I believe that the answers to these questions may tie into the challenge from a different angle.
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Katie Green
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Thanks, Jordan! Ira's voice just transports me to my podcast listening during my morning commute.
This Vimeo reminds me of a quote from Pablo Picasso:
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.”
School of Little Designers
A Teach For India fellow, set up the School of Little Designers for her class of 2nd graders at a
government run school in Pune, India.
The little designers
The little designers
The little designers Fail. Fail faster. Fail Better. Try. Try. Try!
The 'School of Little Designers' is an afterschool, once a week session that is only available to a select
number of students from a class of 60.
Here's the deal: The 20 students that perform the best in class through the week (and by best, it does not
necessarily mean getting good grades/marks - though that does count) are given the chance to attend
the weekly 'School of Little Designers'. Their teacher and the founder of this brilliant idea, gives them
projects and tasks through which they learn how to function as a team, how to think out of the box and
make use of everything around them, how to take the initiative and take responsibility.
Picking the students is up to the teacher's discretion, and so even children who may not be performing
so well in class, and need that extra push - get selected to attend.
During some of the sessions, they were asked to bring 'trash' from their homes, which they then
repurposed into all sorts of beautiful home use items. They then sold these products at a local
market/fair and were able to raise enough money to build a library in their school!
The children are taught to fail faster and fail better, and keep trying!
http://schooloflittledesigners.wordpress.com/
Note: This Inspiration came up during the OpenIDEO Mumbai Meetup.
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Inspiration submitted by: Arushi Aggarwal
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Jeff Nagata
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This is amazing Arushi. I thought the best part about this inspiration was how the children were put in
the center of the classroom. Your blog does a really nice job of really showing how excited and
motivated the kids are about their own education!
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Arushi Aggarwal
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Thanks Jeff!
I feel that all kids are naturally curious and eager to learn - it's when they have a mentor/teacher that
can guide them and foster and nurture their creative spirits that the real magic happens.
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Karolle Rabarison
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Arushi, I previously worked in a school in Hyd and repeatedly failed to gain traction on this sort of
activity; in part because of wishy-washy buy-in from mgmt/admin. I'm so excited to see this is working
elsewhere!
1. Are you guys looking to ry this out at other TFI-affiliated schools? In other cities?
2. I'm currently in Mumbai and would love to find out more about the OpenIdeo meetups.
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Arushi Aggarwal
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Hi Karolle,
From what I've seen and heard, gaining traction in these sort of programs is almost always hindered by
management/admin. However, sometimes even the parents exert pressure on the school to keep a
'academic focus' because they need their child to 'excel'. (I am aware of a residential school that faces
strong opposition from parents when the school tries to increases any co-curricular activities)
1. I'm actually not aware if this program is being tried out at other TFI affiliated schools, but I can find
out from the lady that started it and get back to you.
2. It'll be awesome to have you join us at the next meetup in Mumbai - it is tentatively scheduled for
the 24th of October 2013. If you'd share your email address, I can keep you updated.
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Ashish Didwania
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Brilliant work Arushi. This is my first day on the challenge and I came across something so
inspirational.
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Arushi Aggarwal
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Thanks Ashish!
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Vishal Jodhani
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This is fantastic Inspiration Arushi, thanks for sharing! I love their website, especially this part:
"We’re a bunch of third graders accompanied by a crazy 5 foot nothing teacher studying in a
government school in Pune, India. Our birth certificates show we are 9, sometimes 10 years old. We
love school,running races, story time and dancing to Bollywood’s finest.
But we all know, we are more than that. Much, much more than that. We are believers. Believers of
change. We are dreamers, constantly pushing ourselves to imagine a better way of living. But most
importantly, we are doers. Doers who believe in change, imagine a better way of living and are ready to
take on the daunting task
of “doing something about it.”
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Arushi Aggarwal
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Thanks Vishal!
The one afternoon I spent with these kids convinced me that all kids irrespective of where they live and
who their parents are, MUST be at least exposed to a program like this one.
Forest Kindergartens - Being Creative with less
Often the focus when talking about creative education and learning is on having some innovative tools,
toys or technology to facilitate creative learning. But limiting what you have to work with can really
make kids creative.
Carla Hannaford introduces Forest Kindergartens
Forest Kindergartens are very popular in Denmark and increasingly so elsewhere too. The kids stay out
in a forest all day no matter what the weather. Nature is a great source of inspiration and without fancy
toys to play with the kids are innovative by necessity and make/invent all kinds of toys and games
using what ever the can find in the forest.
Limiting what materials are available can often facilitate creativity in a very basic way as you do not
need to spend any time/effort on "figuring out" how to work with some fancy toy, software, tool, etc.
Give any preschooler a few cardboard boxes, some tape and a few color markers and they will be
making houses, cars, dragons, animals, computers in no time!
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Manwen Guo
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I really like the idea of "forest kindergarten," it challenges the concept of space in education/learning.
The most memorable memory I have from my childhood is my play in the nature with other kids
together. I believe that we should encourage kids to step into the nature when they are young, otherwise
it will be a bit hard to do. Being in the nature will balance our modern life, which may be really
beneficial.
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Saskia Baard
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Hi Jens,
great inspiration, thanks!
I find the idea of less resources leading to greater creativity very interesting.
I want to pick up on another point your post touches on though: the fact that nature is a great source of
inspiration. I think this is an important aspect of this project, just as much as the 'lack' of
traditional/high tech resources is.
I'm curious to hear your thoughts about how such a project might work / if the same outcomes might be
possible in an environment where this type of nature (like the forest) isn't immediately accessible. How
can we connect to nature in the same way in a more urban environment? Will it be possible to have a
similar experience in an urban environment?
(sorry for the earlier post underneath the wrong comment!)
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Jens Jensen
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Hi There,
Even in an urban environment you will always be able to find some kind of nature. This could be a
park, Community Garden, Roof Garden, Small stream/river, anything natural. I also really love the idea
of the edible schoolyard. This is not just about growing food to eat at school, but using nature to teach
everything from physics, biology, art etc.
BR
Jens
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Monica Otulakowski
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So true Jens. Caine did it with his arcade and inspired thousands of people to play. There's something
easy and non-threatening about using things you have lying around the house (or garage... or forest...
or...) and letting your imagination do the rest. And like your example, having the time and freedom to
create is all you need.
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Saskia Baard's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Saskia Baard
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Hi Jens,
great inspiration, thanks!
I find the idea of less resources leading to greater creativity very interesting.
I want to pick up on another point your post touches on though: the fact that nature is a great source of
inspiration. I think this is an important aspect of this project, just as much as the 'lack' of
traditional/high tech resources is.
I'm curious to hear your thoughts about how such a project might work / if the same outcomes might be
possible in an environment where this type of nature (like the forest) isn't immediately accessible. How
can we connect to nature in the same way in a more urban environment? Will it be possible to have a
similar experience in an urban environment?
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Rebecca Kerwin
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I recently read in the New York Times about the Brooklyn Forest School and was immediately taken
and enthused by the whole concept. Much of my childhood was spent outdoors, instilling in me a sense
of mystery, adventure, and excitement about nature that has never really left me. Occasionally, I roll
around in my head how to get back to those kinds of experiences, as well as how to introduce that same
sense of magic to someone who never experienced it as a child. The outdoors can be experienced alone,
but it is better shared together.
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Meena Kadri
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Your post really resonated with me. I was really touched by this a few years back when I was working
in India. On my way to the design school where I was teaching, I passed a number of families who
were living on the roadside who had been displaced by recent widespread flooding. There was a young
family I noticed, who every day gave their son something new to play with – a cardboard box, a spoon
+ plate, a broken comb. He never had much but I was amazed at how creative he got with what ever
was in his hands: http://www.flickr.com/photos/56252733@N00/226046709/
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Jens Jensen's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Jens Jensen
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I would think that one of the most important achievement indeed would be able to help facilitate
creative confidence/creative learning using minimal tools and toys. This way everyone, regardless of
social status, where they happened to be born, etc would be able to benefit.
The cool thing would be to see how this boy grow up to become a multi entrepreneur because his
parents helped him develop curiosity and innovation.
People are usually more creative with less simply because it forces them to think in new, innovative
ways.
Try this: How many things can you image you can use a spoon for? Or/and how many things can you
image you can make out of a spoon?
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Meena Kadri's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Meena Kadri
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That's a great build on this conversation, Jens!
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Kiran
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Great point, Jens!
Building creative confidence based on minimal facilities and tools should be the first step.
Using the minimal approach method can be replicated across communities with minimal resources and
help foster creativity which might help such communities develop solutions to their own unique
challenges.
Adding additional tools, resources at a later stage can then help creativity reach new heights.
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Joan Menefee's reply to Manwen Guo's comment
Joan Menefee
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I have been thinking about "loose parts theory" as I have looked through the inspirations. I first
encountered Nicholson's theory in Richard Louv's Last Child in the Woods.
http://fortheloveofplay.blogspot.com/2012/05/loose-parts.html I believe these ideas should be part of
the discussion. A person has to see room for her or his contribution. Kits and recipes and things that
make producing finished products "easy" are often counterproductive.
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Johnson Chu
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Surprise! I feel that SURPRISE is the key here to the treasure chest of creative confidence.
When we watch the little ones doing this, we can be so amazed by what they can come up with. The
most truthful positive pleasant look and vibe that we give them on the spot, is the best confidence boost
to these little ones. This is something that registers and follows them as they grow up. At least this is
what I remembered when I was that young.
As young adults do this little exercise, at the very end of it, they will have a little surprise for
themselves. “I don't need what I thought I would, to be able to build this” “With these, I can actually
come up with this? Wow I’m not that bad” “This actually free my mind, I just do what I wanna do; I
feel at ease and mighty” “Boring is what I thought before I even start, as it goes on, challenge accepted,
another achievement earned is what I got in the end” A little positive reflection is what it takes to get
the ball rolling.
Sometimes the simplest thing is what we really needed. Great inspiration, Jens!
How to kill child's imagination and creativity
This is sadly a true story from a child in Primary 1 during an English Test Paper. Instead of freedom the
imagination of the kids in Singapore, it turns out kids need to have the knowledge of fairy
tales,specifically, politically correct fairy tales.
a picture of the child's answers and corrections from the teacher
a picture of the child's answers and corrections from the teacher
Quoting the person from her blog:
"So the child was penalized for not knowing her fairy tales, or rather, stories that are in their right
structure and order. Handsome princes can never be turned into snakes by fairy godmothers, and castles
should always be beautiful, but cannot be on beautiful green fields...
...Really, I don’t see anything wrong with the answers she provided. There are no grammatical or
spelling errors. and the language structure is correct. The teacher must have added a politically correct
fairy tale module in her evaluation of these answers, thus, the child will not pass based on her slightly
varied take to what is deem as a right representation of sentence structure in fairy tales....
...I assume that the purpose of this question was to get the child to test the child’s ability to; re-arrange
the sentence, identify and build sentence parts and probably capitalize sentence beginnings and
punctuate statements. This questions were likely meant to test the child’s skills to select the appropriate
language structure and become an independent writer. So then, why is the child being penalized for not
knowing her fairy tales?
...This, I believe, is just a common example of how conformity is being inculcated in our local
education system. Success through education is determined by exam results, which have marking
schemes to follow. There is only ONE right answer to every question."
http://www.catch-fortywinks.com/2013/09/there-is-a-fairy-tale-module-in-primary-1/
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Inspiration submitted by: Carmen Escano
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Mathieu Chevalier
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Thanks Carmen for your post. For me you are getting closer to the problematic we should solve. We
should not necessarly focus on how kids can nurrish their creative confidence ... but we should try to
understand where and how creative confidence slowly (or quickly) disappear. This is the key point I
think. Find this "tipping point" to imagine solutions to avoid it.
For example, we should maybe focus on adults more than kids. We should explore what adults do, and
imagine creative solutions to help them having the good attitude towards kids' creative confidence. Do
you see what I mean ?
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Carmen Escano's reply to Mathieu Chevalier's comment
Carmen Escano
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Hi Mathieu, thanks for sharing your thoughts. I know what you mean, and I share the same opinion. I
think is worth it to focus on both sides, kids and adults, and I would also add the context. Society also
play a big role here, influencing adults and therefore kids...
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Vishal Jodhani
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Wow, great inspiration Carmen. This is a sad yet very real example of how our creative confidence is
stifled, and that too, at such a young age. We are trained to draw within the lines, paint by numbers and
in this case, structure our fairy tales correctly. The impact of these early experiences and the role played
by schools and teachers cannot be ignored when addressing creative confidence!
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Carmen Escano
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Hi Vishal! thanks! Yes is very sad... I believe is really important encouraging kids to express
themselves and giving them the freedom to see the world from a different perspective; instead of
having a correct or incorrect answer, teachers should inspire kids to approach it unusual ways.
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Meena Kadri's reply to Mathieu Chevalier's comment
Meena Kadri
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Great share and insightful reflections, guys. It really speaks to the essence of our challenge. How might
we inspire this young person cultivate their 'beautiful green field'?
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Arjan Tupan's reply to Mathieu Chevalier's comment
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Oh, how horrible. Great inspiration, Carmen! There have been already a few examples of educators
standing in the way of creative confidence building. For me, it's not only a question of inspiring young
persons to break through this, but also to inspire and help educators to value the creative work of young
people on other factors than conformity. If my future child would have a teacher who makes
corrections like these, I know I'll need to have a conversation with the school.
By the way, another great example of something similar was shared by Mike:
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/st.-patrick-comic-book/
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Carmen Escano
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Hi Arjan! Definitely agree with you. Teachers have a big influence in young people's confidence.
Thanks for sharing the link, it's a really nice personal story. :)
Would you design for your country instead of designing toys?
Sebastian Alegria, designed a earthquake warning (with Twitter) system with using a 75$ domestic
earthquake detector and Aurino. Right now he has around 35000 followers on Twitter.
If you wanna check out the Twitter account here you go: @AlarmaSismos
And for other works of him: thenextweb.com
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Inspiration submitted by: Eray Alan
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OpenIDEO
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Hi Eray, interesting post! Any chance you could find an image to go along with it? Images help grab
attention and tell a story with higher impact. You should be able to use the Update Entry button on the
right of your post and follow the instructions to add images from there. We know occasionally people
have issues uploading images so let us know by hitting the Support tab on the left hand side of most
pages of our site if you face any problems. Looking forward to seeing more of your inspiring insights
on OpenIDEO.
And here's more handy tips on the Inspiration phase: http://bit.ly/oi_inspire
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Eray Alan's reply to OpenIDEO 's comment
Eray Alan
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oh yes, i had problem but now it worked, thx!
Time to Tinker
Raising kids who are confident and creative is possible when they take the time to tinker.
Watch the Tinkering Studio in Action
Watch the Tinkering Studio in Action The Tinkering Studio Open Make
"Tinkering activities provide a powerful way to inspire students' interest, engagement, and
understanding in science. Tinkering is an age-old human practice that has recently been introduced into
the educational field as a potential driver of creativity, excitement, and innovation in science learning.
It is seen by many as an effective means to engage students in exploring STEM concepts, practices and
phenomena. Tinkering typically blends the high and low tech tools of science along with a strong
aesthetic dimension that supports children’s self expression." (From the "Tinkering Fundamentals"
course description on Coursera)
The Exploratorium hosts The Tinkering Studio and they provide lots of great activities for your family
(including kids and adults) to gain creative confidence through hands-on exploration at home. My
personal favourites: Light Painting, Wind Tubes and Plastic Fusing. Also, check out their artist section
for inspirational makers.
Which activity would you like to try?
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Inspiration submitted by: Monica Otulakowski
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Rudolf Kutina
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Hi Monika,
My personal favorite of Tinkering demonstration are WATER WALLS :-)
http://www.letthechildrenplay.net/2011/02/planning-new-water-wall-for-water-play.html
I also make 2 inspirations related to Tinkering - YES it's really important
Tinkering School
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/gever-tulley-teaches-life-lessonsthrough-tinkering-school/
SF Birgth works
http://www.openideo.com/open/creative-confidence/inspiration/brightworks-an-extraordinary-schoollearn-by-building-and-design/
We can also meintion link of Tineting with innovation research, for exmaple lemerson Institute
Inovation at Play
http://inventionatplay.org/playhouse_tinker.html
PS: As non English native speaker, I can say then there is a trouble with Tinkering or Tinekerer on
International level - many languages don't have such word :-(
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Monica Otulakowski's reply to Rudolf Kutina's comment
Monica Otulakowski
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Hi Rudolf, I like those water walls :) You have posted some great inspirations in this challenge - I'm
looking forward to seeing more of your work here.
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Rudolf Kutina's reply to Rudolf Kutina's comment
Rudolf Kutina
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Hi Monika,
Are using Coursera regularly ? There are also interesting courses About creativity innovation and
change Change, Innovation, and Creativity https://class.coursera.org/cic-001/class and Design:
Creation of Artifacts in Society https://www.coursera.org/course/design
May be you can make single inspiration Coursea entry for all these 3 courses.
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Dina Gold
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Hey Monika! This is like Montessori schools which give tremendous time to tinkering as beginning
control and coordination of mind and body. Goes with the notion that learning revolves around tangible
experiences.
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Monica Otulakowski's reply to Rudolf Kutina's comment
Monica Otulakowski
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Hi Dina, yes, good connection to Montessori. Its nice they put an emphasis on 'fine' motor control and
coordination throughout their activities.
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Meena Kadri
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It's been great to see all the Inspirations flowing in about space and time to play, explore – and now...
tinker :^) Will be exciting to see what all this sparks for our upcoming Ideas phase!
Google Garage - A space for nurturing creativity
A defined space that individuals from all walks can come to with the intention to explore, create, and
collaborate.
Fast Company Article
Fast Company Article
Link to Video/ Article: http://www.fastcompany.com/3017509/work-smart/look-inside-google-garagethe-collaborative-workspace-that-thrives-on-crazy-creat
Google thrives on innovation, pioneering the original 20% time to focusing on alternative ways to keep
their employees happy through onsite haircuts, free lunches, and a focus of maintaining a fun lively
culture.
As a company gets bigger it is sometimes difficult to continue to promote creativity and an
entrepreneurial spirit. This is where Google at the top of its game in the Internet world strives to stay
open to good thoughts and keeps avenues open to communicate good creative ideas. The willingness to
pilot said ideas is the other half of nurturing an exploratory environment to nurture the creative
confidence of its employees.
The brain child of multiple employees who partnered together to think about how they could increase
the culture of innovation and creativity within Google (outside of their normal work responsibilities)
saw to the creation of the Google Garage.
Google Garage is a commons area where people are encouraged to come in and learn , collaborate and
create to their hearts desire. Sometimes all you need is a dedicated space, materials to play with, an
open culture and curious people to spur the next wave of creative innovation.
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Inspiration submitted by: Tham Cao
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Stephan Kardos
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Hey Tham,
this is so great. I think much is really about being able to be creative, i.e. having an isnpirational
environment, with likeminded people. Add a challenge, game or interesting task and creativity is very
likely to emerge. Looking forward on how this evolves during the challenge. regards,
Steve
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Tham Cao's reply to Stephan Kardos's comment
Tham Cao
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Totally agree! You don't need much to harness your mind power. Sometimes it's the distractions of
daily life that keep creativity down but even blocking 15 minutes of time a day to brainstorm on misc.
topics will help unleash our potential and grow our confidence
To Build Creative Confidence We Need to First Build Drive
Dan Pink, in this talk at the RSA, illustrates the hidden truths behind what really motivates us at home
and in the workplace. The three main factors that leads to better performance and personal satisfaction
are Autonomy, Mastery and Purpose.
Dan Pink talks about Drive
If we can get children to be driven, they would have higher chance to being creative confident. If we
can get them to do things that are important and interesting to them, not necessarily for others, they
have a higher chance of getting through any obstacles that they may hit along the way.Getting by these
obstacles, big or small, are important in building confidence. By giving children a degree of autonomy,
they will find their own creative ways to achieve their purpose.
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Inspiration submitted by: Tony Li
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Bobby Cordell
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I think this is incredibly helpful, I will look for ways to incorporate autonomy, purpose and mastery
into concepts going forward. thank you!
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Mrinalini Ruban
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DRIVE by Daniel Pink is an amazing insight to three key focus points to unlock human motivation
thanks for posting this RSA version!
Do schools kill creativity?
Sir Ken Robinson talks about how schools kill creativity at TED. "If you're not prepared to be wrong you'll never come up with anything original."
Sir Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity?
A great summary of the problems associated with identifying and nurturing creativity. Lots of personal
resonance for me.
Highlights would be...
Definition of creativity: "The process of having original ideas that have value."
"If you're not prepared to be wrong - you'll never come up with anything original."
"Children are frightened to be wrong - we stigmatise mistakes. They're the worst thing you can make."
"We don't grow into creativity - we grow out of it."
"Our academic system is predicated on academic ability. Universities design the system in their own
image."
"We have to rethink the fundamental principles on which we're educating our children."
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Inspiration submitted by: Tom Bradley
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Kasia Dybek
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I think it has become quite a legendary video in the topic of creativity. It's an amazing inspiration: 'If
you are not prepared to be wrong, you will never come up with anything original.'
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Juliana Nascimento
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This video is great! Awesome! I´ve seen this before... Our education system encourage the "right
answear", not to make "good question"! We have to change the whole system and also the parents´
mindset... huge challange! :)! Love it! Thanks for this challenge IDEO!
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Karthik Vijayakumar
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Tom- This brings in profound inspiration and insight into this challenge. "If you are not prepared to be
wrong, you will never come up with anything original" - How so true! Thanks for sharing this.
Things I could do...
Thoughts in searching for 'Things I could do'.
A recent wind of stagnation and boredom led me to challenge myself to learn 5 new things in a year.
My obvious destination was the internet and I started looking for 'things I could do'.
My path lead me to an interesting weave of things I thought were interesting. I was so awed by the
resources that were out there and the possible list of things I could explore, that I spent almost 4 months
just exploring. Atleast I was creative in spending time and in sorting and prioritizing. :)
With all these random things on my list,
1. It struck me that there were so many simple crafts that I didn't even know the name of (I am sure
there are hundreds others that I don't know).
Takeaway: I had not been EXPOSED to these.
2. When I started looking for materials and tools for some of these crafts, it was all the more difficult to
find places and people who could open up these worlds to me. The groups I came across were not as
organized as in US or UK. Imagine it took me 3 months to finally find a round-nose plier. The names of
the material was not same, etc.
Takeaway: I did not have ACCESS to tools and materials as a grown up. Imagine how easily will a
child lose interest.
3. I also asked myself, I knew some of these but look at the passion and depth of these artists. So
Creative, such Perfection. Why didn't I pursue these if I enjoyed these? Among others, an important
reason was I didn't see these as viable career choices from a very young age and so they got lost in the
homework and other 'important' things I needed to do.
Takeaway: I was looking for a REASON to pursue my interest which my society could not provide.
A small story from earlier in my career when I was working with an NGO. Post the Gujarat earthquake,
we received a box of goodies from a school in Baltimore for the children in earthquake-struck areas.
Among the obvious items such as notebooks, pencils,etc. there were some unusual things such as
games and toys. And the first reaction from a lot of us was 'Do the kids there really need these right
now?' and a veteran in my office said 'Oh! they will be so happy. These will make them laugh.'
I put this story here because I feel happiness and excitement is important for children to explore and do.
Sometimes we should all think beyond the 'stationery'.
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Inspiration submitted by: Neetika Kapoor
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Asli Aydin
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Thank you for posting this inspirations. Your takeaways sounded quite familiar. Two years ago I
decided to pursue a "more creative" path in my career and to do that I left my job at a bank and moved
to New York to get a master's degree in design and technology. At first I had a very difficult time
because not only was every subject new to me, so was the vocabulary and the tools being used - and I
am not just talking about technological tools. Many other things were also different than the work
culture I had just left - failing, collaborating while still being independent with personal opinions,
trusting one and other, looking up instead of asking, daring etc etc. I can go on and on, the differences
are like black and white. I think you can tell a lot about a society by looking at what it's young
generation wants to be when they graduate. Most of my friends work in the corporate world and are
investment bankers or lawyers or marketing specialists, because those are the jobs that secure a
predictable and respectable future for them. Those are the careers encouraged by their teachers and
parents growing up. Culture I believe plays a huge role in increasing or decreasing a child's creative
confidence.
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Ashish Didwania
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Very interesting insight indeed. AT the end of each point mentioned by you, there is a heading
'takeaway'. I found this really interesting for the fact that at the end of each point you were taking a
break and figuring out what you got through this finding of yours. This is a very interesting way to
approach every work in life. I take a clue from your post and will try to make this part of my general
work habit.
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Neetika Kapoor's reply to Asli Aydin's comment
Neetika Kapoor
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Thanks Ashish.
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Meena Kadri
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Really insightful reflections, Neetika. I found it interesting your comment about access and groups
being located mostly in the US or UK. Do you think this might have been to do with searching online?
eg. I see appliqué on your cool mindmap list. I'm an appliqué fan – and some of the best examples of
this craft I've seen across the world are from Gujarat – especially Kutch. I wonder if exploring local
creativity and knowledge could also be an interesting starting point – both for you and as a possible
angle for our challenge topic at large?
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Neetika Kapoor
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Since I have been on this for more than a year now, I am finding newer avenues for exploring and
learning, even though my primary go-to place still remains the internet.
I have made several attempts to explore local knowledge, but the point I was trying to make was that
the local knowledge is so scattered, unorganized and 'closed' to some extent, it takes a lot of effort to
reach out for each step, that you end up dropping several loose ends.
I think 'exploring local creativity and knowledge' (or 'making local knowledge accessible and
connected') will make a great topic.
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Meena Kadri's reply to Asli Aydin's comment
Meena Kadri
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Great stuff, Neekita – as you mention, this theme is something that could be really great to explore
further in the upcoming Ideas phase. Figuring out avenues to engage local crafts people in a way that
they feel valued and confident to share their knowledge with others could boost the creative confidence
of everyone involved. I find myself wondering what a Maker Faire for India might look like, in that
vein: http://changeobserver.designobserver.com/feature/tinkers-hackers-farmers-crafters/14908/ I'm
also excited to think what our OpenIDEO community will come up with as they begin to transform the
Inspiration phase into fresh thinking for this challenge!
And if you ever need pointers on craft avenues in Gujarat, I highly recommend you try and meet
someone from NID in Ahmedabad, where I used to work. If you seek out folks in the textile
department, they have a wealth of knowledge and connect with local artisans, all the way out to Kutch.
I've also heard that the V&A in Mumbai runs the occasional class with tribal textile artisans form time
to time and that they're really amazing.
And best of luck with your learning of 5 new things. That's inspiration for us all, right there!
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Meena Kadri's reply to Asli Aydin's comment
Meena Kadri
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Oops! I meant Neetika :^)
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Neetika Kapoor
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Thanks Meena! Also for sharing the link. :)

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