Training Genius: The Learning Secrets of Polyglots and Savants

K. Anders Ericsson is the world’s expert on expertise. His research has debunked centuries-old assumptions about how people become exceptionally good at certain skills.
Before Ericsson, the accepted assumption was that all ability was innate. People had capped potentials, and once that potential was reached, there wasn’t much you could do. Geniuses were born, not made.

http://the99percent.com/articles/7059/Training-Genius-The-Learning-Secrets-of-Polyglots-and-Savants

Why being certain means being wrong

Of all the headwinds we face as decision-makers, the power of one overshadows all others: our need for certainty. It is typically more important for us to feel right, than to be right — a difference that didn't matter much in the lives of our ancestors, but now matters a lot.
Implications for creativity and innovation??

http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2011/07/why_being_certain_means_being.html

6 ways to kill creativity

A recent blog based on old research from Teresa Amabile but still relevant today.
http://www.spring.org.uk/2011/07/6-ways-to-kill-creativity.php

29 ways to stay creative

http://vimeo.com/24302498

Is there a link bewtween creativity and addiction?

Given the recent death of Amy Winehouse this piece from Scientific American seems timely.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=is-there-a-link-between-creativity-and-addiction

Scott Adams on Creativity

I read someplace that the brain needs some boredom during the day to process thoughts and generate creativity. That sounds right. My best ideas always bubble up when I'm bored. And my period of greatest creative output was during my corporate years when every meeting felt like a play date for coma patients.
http://dilbert.com/blog/entry/creativity/

How one man took the leap to self-empolyment

At first, Todd Henry’s interest in how people can boost their creativity was a hobby. In 2005, he launched a podcast called “The Accidental Creative,” where he explored strategies for creative professionals under pressure to come up with new ideas all the time. His hobby quickly grew into an online community, e-newsletter, products, and most recently, a book, The Accidental Creative. Today, his full-time speaking and consulting business has replaced his full-time job.
http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/alpha-consumer/2011/07/13/how-one-man-took-the-leap-to-self-employment

Art versus product

The creativity motivation spectrum.
Shared by Tara Grey Coste
http://thestartupfoundry.com/2011/07/12/art-vs-product-the-creativity-motivation-spectrum/

Imagination Summit

Shared by Alan Black.
http://www.livestream.com/imaginationsummit
Some great video clips from the summit.

The On-line Entrepreneurs Productivity Tool.Kit

From Jonathan Fields blog - from a gust contributor Natalie Sissons
http://www.jonathanfields.com/blog/the-online-entrepreneurs-productivity-toolbox/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+JonathanFields+%28Jonathan+Fields+%7C+Awake+At+The+Wheel%29

Tanya Stubbles, Artist

Shared by Reverse Garbage.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/RevGarb

Great use of 'reusing' materials.
http://www.tanyastubbles.com.au/series_on-the-road.html

Do nothing!

As composer, musician and producer Brian Eno has opined: "The difficulty of always feeling that you ought to be doing something is that you tend to undervalue the times when you're apparently doing nothing, and those are very important times. It's the time when things get sorted out. If you're constantly awake work-wise you don't allow that to happen."
http://blogs.hbr.org/johnson/2011/07/go-ahead-take-that-break.html

Twitter Helps Unfinished Book Hit No. 1

An article on creative approaches to marketing for authors. John Green's latest novel hit No. 1 even though it is not yet finished. The power of social media!!
http://professional.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304450604576418161912396814.html?mod=googlenews_wsj&mg=reno-secaucus-wsj

5 essential money skills for creative people

From Mark McGuiness and Sarah Thewall - an audio on essential money skills for creative people. It's great and its FREE!
http://networkedblogs.com/kGATZ

What makes a true innovator.

http://video.forbes.com/fvn/innovation-11/what-makes-a-true-innovator

Entrepreneurs are artists

It’s about a vision of what could be. And much like great composers putting together a symphony, founders are different from the early employees. The founders see the vision, but then they manage to attract a set of world-class performers.
http://blogs.forbes.com/drewhansen/2011/07/20/entrepreneurs-are-artists/

5 big mistakes creative people make with money

Mark McGuiness' FREE ebook.
Download from this site: http://networkedblogs.com/kAXP2

Planning a brainstorm Part 2

And with a link to Part 1 for those who like to do things in order.
http://brainboltz.com/2011/07/13/planning-a-brainstorm-from-a-to-z-part-2/

Hemingway on the art of fiction

A must read for writers - from 1958.
http://www.stevenpressfield.com/2011/07/hemingway-on-the-art-of-fiction/

Creative Architecture

Combining the concept of pod-like hotel rooms, with the growing trend of eco-responsible tourism and the use of waste materials for construction, architects T3arc have created the 20 room Tubohotel made from recycled concrete pipes.
http://www.springwise.com/eco_sustainability/tubohotel/

Eight tips to unstick your creative thinking

Dr Detlef Reis in the Bangkok Post.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/248033/eight-tips-to-unstick-your-creative-thinking

Mark McGuiness - Creative Pathfinder

Mark McGuinness writes one of the best business anywhere devoted to the field of creative enterprise and the art of dealing with the business of being an artist. His free "Creative Pathfinder" course is a godsend to creative professionals unsure of where they are going or how to navigate the commercial realities of their work. We seldom receive such training in regular education as creative professionals, and Mark's work really ought to be required reading for university students. It is for my private students.


This according to Steve Barc . . . and I am inclined to agree.
http://themansphere.blogspot.com/2011/07/men-we-admire-mark-mcguinness.html

Survive and Thrive

New Zealander of the Year 2011 Sir Paul Callaghan's video address to creative entrepreneurs at Survive & Thrive: Fuelling the Business of Creativity, held in Auckland on July 14 2011.


Held at The University of Auckland Business School, and now in its third year, Survive & Thrive 2011 is a programme of inspiring speakers, intensive workshops and networking, and is all about helping creative, entrepreneurial people succeed.


http://www.thebigidea.co.nz/news/tbi-tv/89205-sir-paul-callaghan-address-to-survive-thrive

Where good ideas come from.

People often credit their ideas to individual "Eureka!" moments. But Steven Johnson shows how history tells a different story. His fascinating tour takes us from the "liquid networks" of London's coffee houses to Charles Darwin's long, slow hunch to today's high-velocity web.
http://www.ted.com/talks/steven_johnson_where_good_ideas_come_from.html

Being creative means walking the edge

Can we be creative and play it safe at the same time?
I don’t think so.
In fact, I think that to live a creative life, we need to live very far from safety.
http://www.catfishparade.com/being-creative-means-walking-the-edge

James Geary, Metaphorically Speaking

A TED Talk.
Aphorism enthusiast and author James Geary waxes on a fascinating fixture of human language: the metaphor. Friend of scribes from Aristotle to Elvis, metaphor can subtly influence the decisions we make, Geary says.
http://www.ted.com/talks/james_geary_metaphorically_speaking.html

From waste to architecture

Rematerial: From Waste to Architecture
On Places, Rematerial: From Waste to Architecture: a gallery of architecture projects constructed from discarded materials, ranging from recycled tires to repurposed refrigerators to the steel supports of a dismantled expressway.
Read the essay and check out the slide show.
http://places.designobserver.com/feature/rematerial-from-waste-to-architecture/13838/

Creative Container Homes

The numbers of shipping containers on the planet must be huge. Affordable housing is in short supply around the workd. Why not match the two up. Here are some examples.
http://www.jetsongreen.com/design/container-design

Inspiring Stories

This film is about youth discovering their inspiration. It showcases a New Zealand project that gives voice to youth by teaching them how to tell stories through film.http://possiblefuturesfilmcontest.org/film_25393528/

What if they listened to entrepreneurs?

Yet another great offering in the Change This series.
http://changethis.com/manifesto/84.01.EntrepreneurLobby/pdf/84.01.EntrepreneurLobby.pdf

Design Thinking

From exercising with Wii to staying at boutique hotels, we are increasingly immersed in designed experiences. Our expectations grow. Even previously prosaic objects become better-designed set pieces in the scenes of our life, mimicking what the media show us we can have. From soap dishes to store signage, what is mundane we pass over for the more elegant alternative.
http://ideas.economist.com/blog/design-thinking

Overcoming procrastination

When it comes to glamorous procrastinators, Scarlett O'Hara is one of our most enduring icons. A quick sampling of her lines in Gone With the Wind yields: "I can't think about that right now. If I do, I'll go crazy." And, "I'll think about it tomorrow, when I can stand it." And, of course, her famous closing line: "After all... tomorrow is another day!"


http://the99percent.com/tips/7051/Cant-Start-Wont-Start-Tricks-for-Overcoming-Procrastination

Artists who sell

"If you don’t sell your artwork, you won’t eat. And you’ll probably find out that not eating kinda sucks. Personally, I’m a big fan of eating. That’s why I stopped fooling around with words and started asking people to pay me for writing.
If you want to make an honest go of being a full-time artist, at some point you’re going to have to ask people for money."

Great blog from The Abundant Artist by Steff Metal.

http://www.theabundantartist.com/how-to-write-art-sales-page/

Tips from Creators and Beyond

Making Kickstarter projects work for you.http://www.kickstarter.com/blog/tips-from-creators-and-beyond-2nd-ed

Writers and Procrastination

AL Kennedy on writing. "After much delay I finally get around to the subject of poracrastination."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2011/jul/05/procrastination-al-kennedy

Creativity Quotes

http://www.ideachampions.com/weblogs/archives/2011/07/25_awesome_quot.shtml

Standardised education is killing creativity.

This from the States but could equally apply to what is happening in New Zealand.
"Buckminster Fuller said, "Look into the eyes of a newborn baby and you will see the spark and the soul of a genius."
So, why do we take that baby and spend 12-plus years schooling its genius out?"
http://www.dailynewstranscript.com/opinion/columnists/x1498053445/Nardone-Standardized-education-is-killing-U-S-creativity#axzz1Rho9t1no

Creative Kryptonite and the Death of Productivity

Just discovered this blog coutesy of Lateral Action.

"Great work, brilliant ideas, extraordinary art requires space.
Time away. Room to process, synthesize, allow connections between seemingly disparate parts to effervesce out of the ether of the mind. Genius is the offspring of the in-between."


http://www.jonathanfields.com/blog/creative-kryptonite-and-the-death-of-productivity/

Ken Robinson on the Principles of Creative Leadership

"Creativity is not some exotic, optional extra. It's a strategic issue," said Robinson while in Cannes where he was invited to speak about the necessity for creativity in innovation. "So what people are faced with is having to think very different about how to run organizations."
http://www.fastcompany.com/1764044/ken-robinson-on-the-principles-of-creative-leadership

Mobile devices rob your creativity

Really?
In the pre-mobile device days, when you waited for a train or a plane, or on your commute to work, you would probably do nothing but think or read. It could get pretty boring indeed. Today, on the other hand, every time you have a second with nothing to do, you go online, you text, you make a call. Boredom be damned.
More here: http://www.bnet.com/blog/health-fit-tips/how-mobile-devices-rob-you-of-creativity/1112

Summer and Creativity

Given we are in the middle of a New Zealand winter this is very timely.
How summer sparks creativity.
http://thenextweb.com/industry/2011/07/02/soak-up-the-season-how-summer-sparks-creativity/

Thinkergy

http://www.thinkergy.com/documents/Thinkergy_News_20_2011_07.pdf

A newsletter worth a look at.

Why the 'why' matters in exercise and creativity?

Meaningful motivation can stoke creatives to sweat.
This from Jeffrey Davis in Psychology Today.
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/tracking-wonder/201106/why-the-why-matters-in-exercise-creativity

Creativity and Science

A physicist may seem like an unlikely person to address the creative sector forum, Survive and Thrive.
But as Professor Sir Paul Callaghan explains in this interview, scientific insights are creative acts and boosting our creativity is key to growing our ‘smart’ industries in NZ.

http://www.thebigidea.co.nz/news/interviews/2011/jul/88715-rethinking-creativity-with-sir-paul-callaghan

Chumping and the 48h Hour Film Festival

Chumping??
More here - be sure to watch the video clip towards the bottom of the page.

http://www.thebigidea.co.nz/news/industry-news/2011/jul/88684-child-jumping-fad-scores-v48hours-top-honours

Business Survival Toolkit

There is a new free toolkit available ~ the Business Survival Toolkit helps you whether you are self-employed, run a small creative team, or manage a cultural business of two hundred people.http://www.mycakefinancialmanagement.co.uk/blog/?p=3909

How to build a castle in the air

http://lateralaction.com/articles/gormenghast/

What are you wasting your creative energy on?

http://www.creativesomething.net/post/7230714606

Finding an audience for your creative work.

Part of Mark McGuiness's Break through your Creative Blocks series.
http://networkedblogs.com/k1TKI

The Age of Imagination

The Age of Imagination: Placing Art and Design at the Centre
by Sara Diamond, President, Ontario College of Art and Design
http://www.ocad.ca/Assets/pdf_media/unused_pdfs/Age_of_Imagination_Oulu.pdf.pdf

Laughter leads to insight.

Stumped by a crossword puzzle? Try taking a break to watch a funny TV show. Recent research shows that people in a lighthearted mood more often have eureka moments of sudden inspiration.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=laughter-leads-to-insight&WT.mc_id=SA_sharetool_Twitter

48 hour flim festival success

The 48 Hour Film Festival is a great vehicle for creativity. These guys from my home town did good. Check out their film.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/5232300/Success-for-Taranaki-team

Creative Characteristic: CURIOSITY

Improv sessions show up frequently at creativity events because a) they are very fun and b) they reflect the essence of creative thinking: “yes and”. The idea of “yes and” – building on others ideas without judgment – is a powerful concept and one that doesn’t get enough attention in the business world.
http://www.drumcircleco.com/anneblog/