Bra shopping in the big city! The left image is actually dress made of pink crayons. Cool, huh?

Our April trip to the Nashville PRSA Awards show was, what, all work and no play? I don’t think so. Inspiration comes in surprising places.  We were intrigued by the lobby art at our decidedly quirky hotel and that got us thinking (yeah, we do that sometimes) about the power of everyday stuff when it’s used in unexpected ways.

Who else is thinking “70′s porno flick”?  Why yes, that is red faux pony skin that adorned the walls of our hotel’s elevator.  Getting up to our floor was a memorable experience.  We weren’t quite sure if it was smarmy (okay, it was really smarmy) but it was completely true to itself.  Honest smarmy, you know?

And crayons.  Every kid has crayons.  But hardly anybody makes a pink crayon dress.  It stands out and sticks in your mind precisely because it is unexpected.  Kind of like the punch line to a joke. Your mind is going along a certain path and then, bam, you end up someplace you didn’t plan to be.

Madonna has already done underwear as outer wear but it’s not everyday you see a bra as a light fixture.  Illuminating – in every way.

Our trip to the big city reminded us that the potential for creativity is all around us.  It’s in the stuff of every day.  Maybe faux red pony fur is just what you need to stand out.  We’re sticking with crayons because underwear belongs in a drawer when it’s not on the job.

I just finished reading Jonah Lehrer’s beautifully written book, Proust was a Neuroscientist. Before you wrongly assume that I’m all egg-heady (more pointy-headed, especially on bad hair days) this book articulates in lucid and engaging prose the premise that creative types of the 19th and 20th centuries had an innate understanding of how the brain works long before neuroscience proved their insights.

This made me all skin-tingly and sweaty under the eyes (does anyone else perspire there)? You see, many of the guests that I’m privileged to interview for our podcast reveal insights about the practice and thought process of creating just as eye-opening as those in Jonah Lehrer’s book. Here’s an example.

Guy Sanville, actor and artistic director at the Purple Rose Theatre in Chelsea MI, was a guest on our show. When I asked him to define acting, he described it as being authentic in imaginary circumstances. He also said that the greatest actors are those who know how to pay profound attention to the other person in the scene.

After the rigorous crafting of a character from the inside out, it is the actors ability to pay attention to what’s going on that allows reality to arise from a make believe situation.

Coming back to the book, Proust was a Neuroscientist, the author makes a similar point, saying that the brain’s ability to pay attention is what gives rise to our sense of self. In essence, when we’re not practicing paying attention, there’s no there there. It’s our ability to listen-up, tune-in and take note that makes us real to ourselves. That’s one of the coolest things I’ve ever heard. As long as we pay attention to one another we can construct reality together. I guess that means you’re a neuroscientist and I am too.

Jan

One of of the best things about interviewing guests on our podcast Conversations with Creative Mind is that my partner Susan Bachman and I come away with fresh insights about the practice and practical application of creativity.

Interviews with Guy Sanville, actor and artistic director at the Purple Rose Theatre (founded by Jeff Daniels) are now available at www.conversationswithcreativeminds.com. Guy has mind-awakening things to say about the craft of acting and the business of constructing an artificial reality that seems, well, real. But one of his statements has a particular resonance with the way Susan and I approach our work and our lives too.

“We don’t always know what we’re doing, but we have our principles and our passions to guide us.” Guy Sanville

I’m completely on board with the concept of not-knowing. In fact, I probably hang out there more than I should. But Guy isn’t talking about not having a clue. Rather, he’s making the point that by having an intention, an idea of what you want to do, you can begin doing without waiting to know everything. It’s the willingness to not-know everything that opens the door to possibilities and possibility-thinking leads to the consideration of unlikely ideas; ideas that an informed or knowing mind would reject.

Susan and I often debate whether we’re not all that smart or if we’re just smart enough because not-knowing doesn’t stop us from getting started. Somehow, it’s in the act of doing that we discover what needs to be done. I suppose that’s what some people would call thinking outside of the box. Guy affirms that the willingness to leave behind the comfy place of knowing is a pre-requisite for the structured practice of craft.

Here’s our interview takeaway. Use not-knowing as a point of origin rather than a barrier to beginning. If you’re willing to start from stupid, really interesting ideas will emerge. The knowledge that follows will create the structure that’s needed to sustain your creative insights.

Jan

A problem is well, a problem; intractable, thorny, distracting, distressing, difficult and a pain in the neck. But, what if a problem was a puzzle instead? That’s the premise of Dr. Eric Rabkin, a professor in the Department of English at the University of Michigan. On the live version of the Conversations show, Professor Rabkin made the point that the difference between a problem and a puzzle is that a solution is built into a puzzle. You may mull over the New York Times’s crossword puzzle, searching for that nine-letter word meaning ‘record or history of’, but you know there’s a solution even if it’s not immediately available.

When a person encounters a problem, it’s time to change the approach, to deliberately shift one’s perspective, and treat the problem like a puzzle. Based on Dr. Rabkin’s observation and my experience, a shift in perspective, even the slightest little bit of a shift, opens the door to creativity. The act of thinking about a problem as a puzzle establishes the premise of a successful outcome. When approached from a puzzle point of view, a problem is relocated from the narrow, anxious realm of “how in the world can we solve this” to the expansive and possibility-filled world of “in what ways can we consider this situation?”

So, if a puzzle is an opportunity to introduce variety and consider multiple viewpoints, what can a person do to shift from a problematic perspective to a more productive point of view? The answer is so obvious it’s practically incomprehensible – simply shake-up your habits (gently) and deliberately do something differently for just a few moments. For example:

If you wear glasses, take them off for a few minutes (no walking into walls or driving)

If you hold a pen between your thumb and index finger, re-position it to the index and middle fingers and write something, anything for a few minutes

If you usually sit at a desk, try sitting on it; or better yet, lie underneath it (if your floor is cleaner than mine)

Sure, it seems a little goofy at first, but here’s the point. Changing habits of behavior will enhance your ability to shift habits of thinking. When you change the way you think, a problem has the potential to become a puzzle and a puzzle can be solved.

Jan

Top photo: Every party has one. If there had been a lamp shade this person would’ve been wearing it. Bottom photos: Left: The first guest arrives. Right: Big heads. Big egos. VIPs turn out for the Conversations with Creative Minds launch party.

No expense was spared for the lavish two-city launch of the new Conversations with Creative Minds Web Site. It was definitely OFF-THE-HOOK.

But this entry is not about the party.

When your company works from remote locations and you’re introducing a new venture, creative measures are sometimes needed to keep up the enthusiasm and excitement, and to find a new audience. Utilizing Web 2.0, we turned on our iCHATs, kept in touch, uploaded interviews from Conversations to video sharing sites, shared launch party pix on Flickr, got social on network sites and even started tweeting. Now it’s time to turn our attention to blogging.

The web site, Conversations with Creative Minds, is a talk show that explores the role that creativity plays in the lives and careers of successful people from all kinds of fields. Our podcast, Creative Juice, is two girls talking about the talk show and all other things “creative” that interest us. So I guess the blog will be two girls blogging about talking about the talk show.

Wait, I’m getting dizzy.

Well, you get the idea. We’ll blog about the talk show. We’ll blog about the podcast, including show notes on both when appropriate. We’ll blog about creativity in our own business. We’ll blog about creativity in our own lives. In short, we’ll blog, blog, blog.

Susan