A couple years back, my friend Bobby had made the connection of using the “power” of mood rings to help the parents of children with [but not limited to] Autism by indicating the child’s mood before a tantrum occurs, when an extra cuddle may be needed, or when they were simply in a great mood. He shared this idea with his family and friends, including fellow entrepreneurs, who unanimously shot his idea down [a.k.a. Bazooka!]. They all told him that he wasn’t being PC, it would be scoffed at by parents and the medical community alike, the 70’s were over and he needed to move on- and so forth. Feeling foolish (and a bit dejected), Bobby abandoned the idea and shifted his focus to other happenings in life.
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Topics:
open-minded evaluation,
Amanda Hines,
ban the bazooka,
Innovation,
creative problem solving
Even though ours is a team-based model for creative problem-solving, we also know that team-based, consensus-oriented decision-making results in lowest-common-denominator creative ideas. At the same time, autocracy doesn’t work either. Instead, a paradoxical kind of decision-making is needed to insure that creative new ideas get implemented.
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Topics:
Amanda Hines,
leadership,
decision-making,
Management,
execution
Here at Creative Realities, Inc., we like to have fun. It's our mantra ("You get what you play for"), our cabinets are chock full of toys and pipe cleaners, and anyone who has ever worked with us knows what we mean when we say "bazooka".
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Topics:
Amanda Hines,
Creating an Innovation Team,
Innovation,
growth,
breakthrough,
Management,
execution
What starts off as a well-intentioned gesture- to invite some friends out to dine and catch up on our busy lives, to relax- almost always becomes a source of anxiety and frustration for me and, I’d be willing to bet, for a few of you reading this as well.
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Topics:
Amanda Hines,
Innovation,
decision-making
Here at Creative Realities, we use an 11-step process of creative problem-solving to help our clients generate, develop, and troubleshoot ideas to help them overcome an obstacle, realize an opportunity, or to simply stretch their thinking beyond its current state. In only working here a few shorts months, I've seen this process produce some amazing results for people and it makes me wonder why everyone isn't using this method to better their professional and/or personal lives?
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Topics:
creativity,
Amanda Hines,
convergent thinking,
divergent thinking,
creative problem solving,
brainstorming
In these trying times, consumers these days are looking for creative ways to stretch their dollar; to prioritize their spending – needs vs. wants – while trying to lessen the compromise of their quality of life.
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Topics:
Amanda Hines,
DIY,
creative,
creative thinking,
Innovation
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