Dr. Seuss Sums up my philosophy on people

Today, I'd like to talk about someone very important to me - Dr. Seuss.  His books guided me when I was young, both in fueling my imagination and in guiding me in my life.  The Places You'll Go was a gift to me when I graduated from high school, and its message has stayed with me ever since.  


Now, I'd like to talk about a different quote, specifically: 




‎"Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."
-Dr. Seuss


I've been living this way in my social life for a while now.  The latest time I've come across this is actually with a winter hat shaped like a baby seal.  It's cute and most people think its awesome.  And I wear it when I'm not at work, so it doesn't affect me professionally.  But one person actually suggested it was a little too crazy, and I politely told her that it was my choice and I liked wearing it.  I bet a couple years ago I would have been much less likely to deal with it that maturely.  


It took me several years to figure out who mattered and who didn't.  And I'm still struggling with the idea that those who matter don't mind.  The problem is that, in my job, I often face political concerns that forcibly bring "the people who don't matter" into my life.  I've read many business books that suggest that if you have a strong will and the right direction, those people will melt away, but that just isn't the case, especially for my age.  

Technology of Storytelling

I happened across this TedTalk, discussing the technological evolution of story telling mediums, beginning with the book, movies, twitter, etc.  Originally, we had the oral tradition of passing down stories.  Then it began to incorporate the visual, when we began creating pictographs in caves.  Next came the written word, in the form of the first writing systems.  And since then the main innovations have been adapting the medium (light, sound, paper) to better convey the story.

I've read about the basic structure of a story - the characters, plot, and settings.  I love storytelling because it allows you to use a medium, either new or old, to tell a story that is completely unique.  One of the dangers today is that your work will be derivative.  This is especially important when you consider the speed at which information moves through the collective consciousness.  But everyone adds something to any idea they touch.  That said, I tend to shy away from telling stories because they can be so heavily influenced by the world around you, which is toady filled with other people's information.  But down the road...  :)

This fits into the technological evolution of just about everything in our society.  Social networking, manufacturing, and even FOOD, all are moving from traditional methods to more modern techniques.  I would like to suggest that, once again, our society is changing in a fundamental way, and its impact will not be fully understood for many, many years.

Ideo and the Deep Dive

Years ago, I saw a story done on ABC Nightline profiling the company IDEO.  They are based out of Palo Alto, CA, and specialize in consumer product innovation.  Basically, they take a product (in this case a shopping cart), analyze it via their process, which I'm going to disect below, and come up with a prototype for an innovative version incorporating their findings.

They don't show their entire methodology, of course.  But from the video, they have several stages they go through for their planning. 

1. Issues discussion - brings to the forefront the most important concerns of the product.  These can be any identifiable need or desire.  (e.g. safety, security, ease of use, mobility, looks, color, texture, reusability, etc.)  
2. Qualitative use investigation - interview people who use, make, repair, monitor (or any other adjective) think about the current product status.  They seem to focus on what the product is not good for and what the customers want the product to do.  This is a hands-on activity that includes personal interviews, facility visits, and individual trails.  They want to find the real experts on the product.  
3. Share Learnings - teams from the qualitative investigation return to the office and communicate their findings.  This allows more data to be gathered by splitting the investigation and get everyone on the same page before moving forward into brainstorming. 
4. Brainstorming - They begin by throwing out wild ideas and posting them on the wall.  Those ideas are encouraged to be crazy, but on topic.  This leads to a wild bunch of ideas that fuel each other and generate more themselves.  They also ding people (by ringing a bell) to stop people from attacking ideas.  
5. Idea narrowing - The team votes on the best ideas for innovation based on constraints set up by the moderator (time, materials, cost, etc), and those are moved to the design board.  The team makes sure there are advocates for each representative group to prevent the most important issues from falling through the cracks.  It also helps prioritize them for discussion and inclusion. 
6. Mock Ups - At this point, the full team splits up into smaller teams to make a first version of their new product.  This is then presented to the group at large.  Each is evaluated, and eventually combined into a single prototype - the final deliverable for this process. 

This video was the impetus behind my desire to move into a more creative job.  Their team organization, the short deadlines, and the ability to use my well-rounded skill set is exciting.  They follow innovation procedures similar to those I learned about in grad school, but what I'd really be concerned with is how they would fare in our increasingly technological world.  I'm sure that since this segment aired, many competitors have begun to compete based on niches (automotive, electronic) or specialty services (green production, integrated marketing). 

I am in no way deterred, though.  Despite the probable competition, I believe innovation is more important than ever before.  I look forward to exploring more later.

Happiness vs. Doing what you love

Motivation!  Wow, there are some crazy theories out there.  And the theories vary almost as much as they possibly can.  On the one hand, you have B.F. Skinner, who believed that people were motivated solely by external means.  In his world, everything people did was a response to a stimulus and people were just machines.

But before that, and after that, too, was the idea that people were motivated by more than just external factors. The article here basically pointed out this possibility by discussing an interesting experiment involving children and their desire to draw.  They told some of the children that if they drew during their free time, they would get a reward.  Those kids were less likely to draw later because they couldn't decide whether their motivation for drawing was internal (I want to draw) or external (I want to draw to get a reward). 

That phenomenon is exactly what I was afraid of years ago when I considered starting a career in juggling performance.  I didn't want to lose my own enjoyment of juggling by creating a situation where juggling was just a job.  I instead chose to keep my work life separate from the hobbies I loved.  I have to be careful that, when I look for my next job, I don't accidentally ruin something I like (innovation and design?) in the pursuit of a job that I would enjoy. 

Biomutualism

One fascinating topic I've recently learned about is Biomutualism.  It's defined as "an association between biology and another discipline."  It boils down to using biology to make breakthroughs or gain insights into other fields of study.  Then returning to biology with a new question to be answered through field study.  I was introduced to this concept through a talk on geckos' feet and tails here.

They make several associations between geckos and other areas of disciplines.  First, the gecko feet have nano-sized hairs on their feet which allow them to grip surfaces using intermolecular forces, rather than traditional means like claws or adhesives.  Then the engineers figured out that you need a tail for climbing.  Then the biologists figured out an active tail was used for stabalization and movement in mid air, possibly during falls.  Then back to the engineers to develop active tail technology. 

Biology is a fantastic place to find inspiration and mutual benefits such the example above.  Life has existed for millions of years and the diversity of animals and plants ensures that some have come to use principles we have not even thought of yet.

It is also a good model for how I like to imagine my interaction with the world around me.  Taking information from multiple sources, using it in ways that may be unique to me, then offering ideas, designs or other intellectual property to others so they can do the same.

Average Time Use in a Lifetime

So when I happened across this, it really made me think about how little time I really have in my life.  I hope that the 1/5 of my life that is mine to spend is spent in the most valuable way possible, to both me and those around me. 

 I'd like to point out here, that all the things that are shown in this sheet are completely under your control.  Not necessarily how much time you spend at each of the tasks, since those are likely required by everyone.  I'm referring to the quality of the time you spend on each.  I, for one, enjoy sleeping immensely.  Especially when I have a comfortable bed, interesting and memorable dreams, and a warm body to cuddle up to.  

There is also the conscious choice to leave off some of the items on the list.  I bet people in Guatemala don't spend, on average, 19 days of their lives looking for the remote.  And if you have no phone, you can't spend two months waiting on hold. 

That reminds me of something else I recently learned about - Stop Doing lists.  They assume that there are negative actions you take that can be completely eliminated from your life, and should, to make room for more productive, engaging, or fun activities.  Maybe I should put "waiting on hold" on that list....?

My Hedgehog

I was reading the book Good to Great by Jim Collins, and I realized that most of the concepts in the book can be applied to your personal life. I especially like the Hedgehog Concept - taking a mission stance within a convergence of three circles on a Venn diagram of a) what you're passionate about b) what you can be the best in the world at and c) what you can make money doing.

That is actually what led me to writing this blog. I'll break down my personal hedgehog concept right now!

In a cubicle for years, so you see,

My job has been lacking in creativity.

Passion and drive from the new and the bold,

But not to forget the stodgy and old.

Learning about the whole wide world around,

media coverage of awesomeness abounds,

Without a tie to hold it all together,

I love new topics during inclement weather.

Best in the world is a daunting goal,

for a guy who doesn't get on long term rolls.

Most math and business comes naturally,

with communication practiced unceasingly.

Working on teams and personal relations,

tends to spark my imagination.

Collaboration on innovation,

Buzzwords? No! It's my inspiration!

Funny thing about a personal passion,

Quality comes without out the boss bashin'.

With work parameters, I must confess ,

Seeking a job for it doesn't cause me stress.

You know, and I know, the economy's bleak,

But for me, the future is golden streak.

Education, hobbies, friends, and past,

Are providing a great supporting cast.

Peace! I'm Out!

Addendum: The more I re-read this, the more pleased I am with it.  This is my first ever attempt at poetry (of any sort) and I think it turned out better than I could have hoped for.  :)

45 awesome posts

So one of my most biggest preoccupations is stupid human skills or organized events. I actually wrote a blog about them in 2009, which you can find here. I've been juggling for about 12 years now, and have gotten pretty good. The best part, though, is that there is always more to learn, both in your favorite props and in the myriad other props people have invented.

Of course, that blog wasn't just about juggling. It also highlighted circus, dancing, and a bunch of other random skill. I think my favorite was the square dancing tractors. :)

Initial Post

“The creative person wants to be a know-it-all. He wants to know about all kinds of things-ancient history, nineteenth century mathematics, current manufacturing techniques, hog futures. Because he never knows when these ideas might come together to form a new idea. It may happen six minutes later, or six months, or six years. But he has faith that it will happen.” — Carl Ally

That about sums up my feelings on creativity. I'm going to try to fill this blog with the tales of exploration for my creative side. Specifically, you'll be able to find here links and reviews of important topics I've come across and discussions of creative methods, mixed in with mushy stuff like dreams and random creative ideas floating through my head. 

Welcome aboard!