What is Creativity?
I recently wrote about How to be More Creative, but I think I should have clarified what exact creativity is first. So, thanks to a nice article on creativity I have been inspired to share my thoughts on the matter.
Creativity is nothing horribly unique only to the gifted few. Creativity is simply the answer to the willfully asked question, “can this be done differently?” Edward de Bono calls this a ‘Creative Pause’. That is, before you go on to do something, pause and ask this question. If you can answer it in a way that brings out something new and useful, you are creative.
Really then, creativity is a way of thinking. When you make this question part of your normal, everyday thought process you open yourself up to becoming a creator; someone who is creative everyday. The hard part is remembering to pause to ask yourself the question.
So, are you creative? Some call it thinking outside the box, but it’s much more straight forward than that. Just stop to think before you act. Creativity is waiting inside all of us.
I’m a Bad Employee
I’m a bad employee. I only work to get paid. I’m not driven by some altruistic goal to better the world around me and I don’t think I’m the only one.
It seems only the truly self-centered and pretentious individual believes that he is even part of the answer to Man’s problems. Yet when it comes to work, I’d like to be doing something useful with my limited time. I’d like to do something that will somehow make another human being happier, even if only for a moment and I don’t think I’m the only one.
So let me be clear; a good employee is obsessed with his work, because that is the most important thing in his measly life. However, for the rest of us, we have to work because that’s the system we choose to live in. We must earn our way through life.
I believe there’s a way to be a good employee without sacrificing your values in life. Come to the realization that work is just work and decide to do the best you possibly can at it. Be happy when you wake up and know that what you’re doing counts for something. Know that others really appreciate what you do. Seek to be part of something that you can be proud of.
If you can’t achieve those things, maybe you need to quit your job and find other means of employment.
In that way you can be a good employee who does great work and still have a life beyond your secular obligations. That’s what I want to do and I don’t think I’m the only one.
What Does Open Mean For Business Today?
photo credit: O'Reilly - Oscon 2002
The advent of open source software has sparked a big debate in the global economy, an economy that is so used to secrecy for the sake of control. Open is a trend that is not going away. Open source software is created by volunteers from all over the world at no cost to the end users. These volunteers work for free because they need something, not because they see money in it(ie: http://zenfoc.us). They help themselves while helping others in the process.
But what does open mean for business today. Does open reduce the potential for profit(aka making a living)?
Ask and You Shall Receive
This powerful quote has proved very true in my personal endeavors to financially support my wife and I.
For a long while, I’ve been researching how to operate a business correctly. I’ve read books from the local library(one of my most valuable resources) as well as online. I’ve tried to learn from my freelance experiences as well as from working with a group of professionals in the last firm where I was employed. I’ve tried to watch others make choices and see how they react.
The Point
Of all the things I’ve done to learn, to ask others is the most effective method.
Advent: Choosing my path
I never saw this coming.
Here I am, figuratively standing on the edge of a gaping abyss with no where to go but forward. Ever seen Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade? If not, then find a way to see it and you’ll understand that this leap of faith isn’t easy.
There is only one difference. I have to choose between more than just one path, unlike Indiana Jones.