Go and Create! (Is it that easy?)

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The design process
Image by davidwhitedesign via Flickr

We are supposed to be seeking creative solutions.  For our country and our businesses. But, can we just decide to be creative? Can we just provide a commandment like the title and expect results?  Not quite- but  we can certainly be more creative, if we follow certain practices.

The first thing we must do is learn to connect the dots and understand the interactions between the various systems.  Discerning systems and their interactions is one of the first techniques taught chemical engineers.  (It needs to be part of the required discipline in finance, business, as well as the engineering and sciences.).  The first step is  to define the basis (the system we plan to examine).  And, the key is to keep each component system simple, yet interconnect them, examining their interactions.  The issue is that these complex interconnections rarely are solved “perfectly”;  the interactions are discerned by changing specific variables and observing the results of that change.  Eventually, the patterns of these interactions are clear and the interactions can be clearly mapped.  We can then see what affects the parameters of our design have on the ultimate performance of our creation.

Developing our product or process requires that one not only must discern what the customers want, but what others will not provide them.  By concentrating on this “free” area, one does not have to waste resources dealing with the competition.  One can design a product that meets the needs of the user (customer) and have some latitude before the competition becomes an issue.  The result ofs such efforts is the development of a product that has disruptive technology.

As a result, we realize that the ultimate product/process must be easily defined.  A single sentence is all that should be needed to describe the concept.  Once the end result is “defined”, the key metrics must be discerned to determine if one has successfully achieved the objectives.  The end result must be in concert with the market needs and the strategy of the founding (developing) company.  They all must be in alignment. Continuous and rapid customer feedback is a critical component to such an alignment.  The “musts” require fulfillment, as well as many of the “wants”.  Given today’s vast capabilities in social media, these can be rapidly assessed.  Facebook and Twitter, to name two, afford the developers a means to reach many people quickly.  (Another possibility is Quirky, but it appears one can lose control of the outcome there.)

To develop creative solutions, we must be able to adjust our perspective, to effect a paradigm shift. This usually requires one to be able to recall or envision diverse sets of experiences.  It also requires one to be able to deal with ambiguous situations.  We must be able to sift through various scenarios to discern the winning strategy or design process.

Now, we come up with two attributes that may not be easily learned.  Chronesthesia, the ability to consider past, present, and future situations concurrently, seems to be a crucial component in creative processes.  Our memory is reconstructive- we piece together details and then surround them with our own biases and beliefs.  Dependent upon how well we minimize our beliefs in the scenarios we develop, our ability to reconstruct the past correctly is exquisite. Our ability to imagine the future uses the very same portions of the brain that let us recall the past.  So, given that, our ability to view the future exposition of our product or process is as good as our ability to recall the events that led us to develop it in the first place.  This time shift- the ability to see the conception and envision of the concept simultaneously- affords us the ability to achieve the creative design.

The final factor setting up our success is influence.  The leader or creator is nothing other than a dreamer if he/she cannot convince others to join in and participate in the construct.  Only when others believe and follow does a leader have a movement.  The innovator must be able to explain or show the process in a simple fashion. The first follower (another critical component), therefore, converts the innovator into a leader.  Without a following, the “leader” is nothing other than a lone wolf doing great things.  And, in today’s world, a lone inventor is usually unable to bring forth the new product or process.

Roy A. Ackerman, Ph.D., E.A.

 

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13 thoughts on “Go and Create! (Is it that easy?)”

  1. I thought it was easy until I read your post Roy.
    I liken creativity to artisitic and imaginative expression. When I create, as in write, I take a simplified approach – a think, do, reflect process. Underpinning that of course is an amalgam of my business – plans, target market, gaps, solutions to problems and stats etc
    I work alone which I think makes the whole process easier. I also dont create “hard and fixed” products but I do create words. The aim ultimately is the same – profitability. To that end, I certainly need to influence, being a long wolf is not in my radar. Or a lone wolf for that matter!!!
    Maureen Hunter recently posted..Are Easter Eggs Your Only Gift This Year

    1. You see, Maureen, it may still be easy. You probably incorporate these elements without realizing they are being employed.
      And, writing may require less of each of the components. One of the reasons is that writing involves one operating in an environment that is completely controlled and invented by YOU! That is not what portends when creating a product, process, or system. In these cases, the environment is totally out of our control- so more elements need to be considered.
      Thanks for your comment. And, the wolf is still not yet extinct!

    1. I think both require these concepts. Even writing, another creative process, which can be done with fewer of the components achieves greater heights (and depths) with all 5. How many times have you heard novelists proclaim that they needed to know the ending for each of the characters as they started their writing? See- even there!.
      Thanks for your comments, Hajra.
      Hope your trip was fantastic.
      Roy

  2. Some solid components to the creativity process, Roy! I like how you described the first step as understanding the interaction of systems. The entire concept of a system is holistic and I think that’s the key — realizing that the target market is affected by so many other components. You’re so right that chronesthesia and influence can’t be taught. =P I’m definitely lacking in those two fields! =)
    Samantha Bangayan recently posted..The Via Crucis of a Personal Pilgrimage

    1. Thanks for picking up on that item, Samantha!
      I don’t think we can teach those items, but we can learn them. It takes practice for the first (and, even those who CAN do it fail to do so 100% of the time), and the influence is learned by trying and emulating what we see others do. I bet you have influence in your apartment in Peru!
      Take care.
      Roy

  3. Roy you have such a wide vocabulary and thought process which is really impressive. I like to think that ‘go and create’ is just as simple as it sounds. I find so many things around me and through my life that are inspirational and keeps me motivated to move forward. People that I meet are always a huge factor in learning more every day.
    Lynn Brown recently posted..Are You On Target Towards Online Business Success

    1. Innovation and creation have become two of the more trite words in our language. They are used by politicians and business people alike to garner our interest in things that are barely different from what happened before. About the only mundane (and some of it is truly sublime) creation is our writing. And, nowadays, too many consider the 140 characters the limit of their developments. If we truly want to create what would make our next 100 years better, more environmentally friendly, and profitable, we have to devote our energies to their development.
      Thanks for you comments. Appreciate them, as always, Lynn!

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