Category Archives: Creativity

Creativity tip: select a theme song

March 21, 2007 By in Creativity, David Theory Leave a comment

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One of the hardest parts of working on project is getting started. Writing the first page of a novel is difficult enough, but every single time you sit down to work on it you have to start all over again. Long term projects require you to maintain the same creative urge for months or years at a time. You have to create a signal to you brain that it needs to enter a creative state.

My favorite way to do this is to pick a theme song for every project. Just like the opening credits to a TV show, play the same music every time you start your project. As you create more and more, your creative state will get linked to the music and you’ll be able to get into the groove instantly.

The best songs to use are the more simple or corny songs with positive lyrics. Don’t use something that makes you think or already has some emotional connection for you.  Don’t Stop Me Now, by Queen, is one that I use all the time. I know people who use the theme from Rocky and Funkytown.

Different music can be used while you are creating to help you enter different emotional states or to help you zone out. This tip is just to help you take that first step, if you can’t do that then nothing else matters.

Learn faster, deeper and better: hacking knowledge

March 15, 2007 By in Creativity, Genius Leave a comment

From Online Education Database, not satisfied with those piddly 5 or 10 hint long lists of ways to learn faster and be more creative? Well, this is a list of 77 ways to improve your ability to learn (and just think). They get a bit weak toward the end, but there’s a ton of great stuff here. Health, Kinesthetic, Verbal and Self-Motivation are all covered.

Some tips are obvious, like Use Post-It Notes, or odd, like Learn What You Do Know And What You Don’t, but I suppose a list this long has to have something for everyone.

See all 77 tips here

Charles Bonnet Syndrome: amusing and magical visions

March 10, 2007 By in Creativity Leave a comment

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Here’s an article on an interesting phenomenon experienced by some people while they are going blind. Named for Swiss naturalist Charles Bonnet who observed it in his grandfather in the mid1700s, Charles Bonnet Syndrome or CBS is an affliction that seems to allow its sufferers to pull aside the veil to fairyland and take a peek. Symptoms include seeing hallucinations of all kinds of objects including building, animals and most commonly the floating faces of strangers with features that resemble gargoyles. Here’s a description from the article, “One woman was visited by several tiny chimney sweeps in stovepipe hats that paraded around her home, and another man spoke of a gaggle of monkeys in blue coats and red hats frolicking in his front yard day after day.”

One theory as to why it happens is that as stimuli from the outside world is removed, the brain creates interesting things to fill in the blanks. Here’s a bit from the article that supports that theory:

Formal studies have found that Charles Bonnet Syndrome has a higher rate of occurrence in those with higher education and those with creative leanings, a finding which suggests that the concept-association skills inherent in creativity and intelligence may be playing a role. The whole condition is also reminiscent of phantom limb syndrome, where people with missing limbs experience sensations as though the body parts are still present.

I know that people sitting in zazen meditation also get hallucinations similar to these referred to as makyos. They are often confused as being a vision or enlightenment, but are believed to be simply distractions to meditation.

So, if you are looking for hallucinations, skip drugs and just try lack of stimulation and boredom. You could find your yard full of playing monkeys and that’s always a good thing.

Link To Article

JJ Abrams on his influences

March 8, 2007 By in Creativity, Quotes Leave a comment

JJ Abrams, creator of Alias and Lost, has great record so far for taking B-Movie plots and elevating them to another level. I thought this quote about his influences was actually very revealing. I think knowing your influences, and moving past them, is one key to creativity. No matter what you might think of him, he seems very clear about who he is and what he’s doing.

WN: You’ve listed Twilight Zone’s Rod Serling and Aristotle as major inspirations. You told The New York Times last year that anything Rod Serling couldn’t do Aristotle had covered. The influences of both are really evident in Lost. What do you take from each of them?

Abrams: Obviously, Aristotle (is) the structure, the paradigm of storytelling — you know, the beginning, middle and end. The most fundamental rules. . . . You can color it and decorate it and complicate it and talk about it . . . but it comes down to What is your story? What is the beginning? Where are you going?

Rod Serling, for me, is the inspiration for a number of reasons but, fundamentally, he understood that amazing combination of pure pulp and deep character. And the respect he had for character and the audience was enormous. He would write about things that mattered to him in allegory and tell tales about aliens and monsters, but they were almost always about subjects that mattered to him — whether it was the terror of the Russians, whether it was the mystery and fear and hunger for space travel, whether it was racism or politics, or whatever it was he was always grappling with.

 

Comic Advice

March 4, 2007 By in Cartooning, Creativity, Quotes 2 Comments

Directly opposing ideas from two successful people, Ricky Gervais (The Office) and Scott Adams (Dilbert), about how to be successful:

Scott Adams: "Other people are not like you. If you create cartoons that you like, you’re probably only appealing to other cartoonists. I made that mistake early on in my career when I did a lot of comics that focused on clever puns. If you want to preserve your artistic integrity and vision, that’s fine, but don’t expect to make money doing it."

Ricky Gervais: "We’re making comedy for us and people who are like-minded. We want to do the best we can and if that means leaving behind some people who prefer broad comedy then so be it, because I really don’t care."

Scott Adams: "Your readers care about themselves, not you. Readers will perceive as funny anything that "hits home" even if it isn’t all that clever by any objective standard. Unfortunately the only person you know well enough to "hit home" with on a regular basis is yourself. Write about the situations that you have in common with other people. The common situations can be analogous, not exact. For example, you might have a weird hobby that thrills you but makes others roll their eyes. It doesn’t matter if readers share your hobby, only that they might indulge in something that is also disdained by others. It’s the feeling of disdain that should hit home, not the hobby."

Ricky Gervais: (About Spinal Tap)  "…Finally I thought that a film had been made for me and nobody else. When I got the chance, I didn’t want to make 10 million people’s fifth-favorite comedy for 10 months, I wanted to make some people’s favorite comedy ever."

When I first read Scott Adams’s advice, I thought he was kidding. It sounds like he doesn’t like his own comic and thinks less of people who do.  Still, I had to stick it in this blog. Creative inspiration from a cynical desire to connect with other people for money is still inspiration.

Of course, I don’t really think Dilbert is funny. And Ricky Gervais has enough money that he never needs to work again.

I guess they’re describing how to create a fad versus how to create something lasting. Any thoughts?

Creativity idea: make choices using the story-ability factor

March 1, 2007 By in Creativity, David Theory 1 Comment

Bored? Boring? Try choosing what you do this weekend not on the basis of what you want to do or what makes sense, but by how much fun it will be to tell as a story later. I call it the “story-ability” factor. Factoring story-ability into your decision-making every once in awhile makes for a better life. The next time someone invites you to go to a bigfoot believer convention, go! Someone wants you to cover their shift as a clown at a charity event? Of course!

Now, the key to this is to end up with a fun story. You have to choose something that even if the actual event is a dud the simple fact that you did it will be interesting. Doing something new and fresh will make you use different parts of your brain and give you something to talk about.

Avoid doing something that will result in a bad story. (Choose things with a high storyability factor and a low drama factor.) Don’t pick up hitchhikers, rob a bank with an old high school buddy or say yes to someone who asks you if you want to see a dead body.

But, when a neighbor asks if you’d like see his collection of Charlie Chaplin memorabilia or go with him to get lunch at a restaurant where the waitresses dress like characters from the Wizard of Oz, say yes. Be forewarned, once you start saying yes to these opportunities, they will start coming more often and you will find yourself agreeing to do more and more them. New and interesting experiences can become addictive.

What am I doing today? Reading The Cat in the Hat to 350 grade school kids while wearing a crazy striped hat. Keep your fingers crossed for me, I have to follow a fire chief in full uniform.

Exercise to unstick creative blocks – What would never work?

February 28, 2007 By in Creativity, David Theory 2 Comments

Mick NapierA few years ago, I attended a sketch comedy workshop in Chicago with all the living Second City directors. Mick Napier, of the Annoyance Theater, told us about an exercise that I not only remember, but use constantly. While they were writing their show, he sent the players home with the challenge, “Write at sketch you would never see on the Second City stage.”

Most of what he got back was unusable, but one sketch was so shocking and funny they had to use it. The premise was a group of men were robbing a bank when they heard a noise from offstage. One of them looked out the window and said, “Oh no, the jig is up, it’s Superman.” Then, Superman rolled out on stage in a wheelchair.

This was in the mid-90s, Christopher Reeve had just had his accident, so the concept was even more shocking then than it is now. The sketch continued with the thieves reacting to Superman as if he weren’t in a wheelchair. He gets their guns away from them and eventually leads them off to the police station.

They didn’t use the sketch as it stood, they had Superman sing a song about what was going on inside his head to win the audience over, but it was one of the stronger sketches in the show.

Now, when I’m asked to brainstorm about something, I always ask myself, what would never work? What would our company never make? What would I never say? What would never sell to consumers?

Whatever your creative endeavor, let your mind wander across the line into the unacceptable and the impossible Even if you don’t come up with something that is directly usable, it will help you define exactly what you can do. Sometimes you don’t know where the line is until you cross it.

The next time you’re stuck for an idea, ask yourself, “What would never work?”

In his book, Improvise, Mick gives one of the best pieces of artistic advice you can get. He says it in the context of improvisational acting, but it applies to anything. “Do something. Anything.”

Increasing creativity: 5 tips to appear smarter while actually making yourself stupider

February 27, 2007 By in Creativity, David Theory, Genius Leave a comment

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If you ask most people whether they would rather look smart to the world or actually be smart and have no one know it, I think a majority would choose to look smart. So, here are five thing that you can do that will make you seem smart to other people while actually reducing your IQ, knowledge base and creativity.

1. Specialize

Mentally challenged people are helped to get by in the world by being taught a single skill that they do very well. It can be something as simple as taking out the garbage or running a cash register, but once they learn it people accept them in situations they wouldn’t before. Studies have shown that if you do one thing well, people will put up with you not being able to do other things.

Think of the stereotype of the absent-minded professor. A person so lost in their own limited academic world (Of Physics or History or Shakespearean Sonnets) that they can’t be expected to remember a phone number or where they parked their car. So, if you want to seem smarter, spend all your time studying only one thing. Don’t bother trying to relate it to other area of interests or to actual life, just memorize facts.

That way when you do something that seems less than smart, your friends can say, “Oh, he’s always so lost in thought about the trickster narratives of the Native Americans, it’s no wonder he can’t add numbers, comb his hair or hold down a job.”

It’s also a great way to stop other people from boring you when they start talking about what interests them. You can cut off the interaction by pointing out that what they’re saying is outside your area of expertise.

Of course, the only way to have a new thought about a topic is to try to relate it to other topics. But, we don’t care about that. We just want to look smart.

2. Perfect the Disapproving Grunt And Sigh

This is great in any conversation where you feel uncomfortable with the topic. Instead of admitting that you don’t know anything about it or asking questions for clarification, just grunt and sigh. That way the other people will feel that you are smarter than they are and have dismissed what they are talking about as trivial.

You not only seem better than they are, but you have also made them feel stupid and prevented them from teaching you something new.

3. Only Use Words You Are Sure You Know How To Spell And Pronounce

Nothing makes you looks more like an idiot than fumbling language. Stick to what you know! People will argue that tapes and books can teach you new words, but you still risk a terrible mistake.

Learning new words can broaden your thinking and amplify your ability to communicate. However, doing so will open you up to appearing stupid, so you should stick with words you are 100% positive of pronunciation and meaning. Even if it takes you an entire extra sentence to explain a concept that one word would have clarified instantly, it’s totally worth it.

4. If You Haven’t Done It, It’s Not Worth Doing

This is great for not having to appear stupid while trying new things.  If someone suggests you try something new, travel to a new location or learn a new skill, just have pat reasons for explaining why it isn’t worth doing. Good general answers include “I can’t waste my time with that” and “I’ve read about that and what we already do is far better”. If you want to appear smart, never try a new type of food, go to a new store or learn to dance in front of other people. Either do the activity by yourself until you become proficient or don’t try anything new at all.

5. Notice Other People’s Mistakes And Call Attention To Them

If you make fun of someone for their mistakes, it obviously means it’s a mistake that you don’t make. So, pointing out everyone’s mistakes to them will make you look more perfect. Now, remember this list is about people thinking that you’re smart, not people liking you. Using this step will make people like you less, but they will think you’re a smart jerk instead of a stupid jerk.

Also, this will bring you less contact with other people, which means that your exposure to new ideas, stories and opinions is limited. But, you are so smart it doesn’t matter.
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Feel free to take these tricks and use them to get ahead in the world. When you’re done with that, do the exact opposite and actually get smarter and more creative.

The Two Faces of Creativity – Orson and Ed

February 26, 2007 By in Creativity, David Theory Leave a comment

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People often tell me that they have trouble getting started on a project or they have trouble finishing it. I have come up with a system for working through both problems. This is not based on science or years of research. It’s just something that works for me.

When I go through my creative process, I have noticed two impulses which push against one another. These impulses were completely beyond my control forces of nature. I was their slave. Well one way to control something is to name it.

I named one “Orson Welles” and the other “Ed Wood“. Orson and Ed for short. These are not based too specifically on actual biographical facts about the two directors, but more the spirit they embody.

Orson is quality over quantity oriented and can’t stand to see a finished product that is anything less than perfect. Orson has trouble with process and abandons projects or has them taken away from him before they’re finished. He would rather quit than see anything mediocre come from his efforts.

Ed loves process. In fact, he smiles the whole time he’s working. He hates to do things again. Reshoot a scene? He has already done it. Who cares if the tombstone moved? We got the shot lets move on. Once the product is finished, it’s great! I made it, so it’s great!

I think that most of my trouble with creating comes from trying to balance Orson and Ed. You can’t be 100% either one and be a successful and happy creative person. I used to be far more Orson than Ed, but years of doing improvisational acting has made my Ed side stronger.

Here are some things than I have noticed about them working together. Let Ed write your first drafts. Hide them from Orson if you have to. Orson can approve the initial idea, but let Ed run with it. Orson will be happy to rewrite for you when it comes time to do it.

There always comes a time when it’s finished. Of course, if you leave it up to Orson, it isn’t done until it’s perfect. (Meaning it will never be finished.) Eventually, you have to let Ed take control and release it. It should be easy for Ed, after all, once he’s finished he can start work on the next project. That’s hard if you spend most of your time as an Orson. You have to take the credit and the blame for what you produce.

Don’t try and spend all your time as an Ed or you end up writing crappy self-published horror novels filled with terrible grammar.

Don’t spend all your time as Orson or you’ll never do anything except pat yourself on the back for being a undiscovered genius.

Remember, let Orson listen to feedback, but let Ed read the bad reviews. Life is easier that way.

Increasing Creativity: 5 Tips On How To Trick Your Brain Into Taking A Fresh Look At The World

February 25, 2007 By in Creativity 2 Comments

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1. The George Costanza Method

Named for the life choice that George Costanza made in Season Five of Seinfeld. His life wasn’t what he wanted it to be and no matter how hard he tried doing the “right” things to get it to where he wanted, he got nowhere. So, he decided to start doing the opposite of what he instinctively felt would lead to the results he wanted. If doing what you think should work isn’t working, do the opposite. Spend some time doing the exact opposite of what you usually do. Obviously, this won’t work in every situation, but in the context of creativity the stakes are low. If you’re designing a cover for a heavy metal band, try making it look like a hallmark card. The best part, if doing the opposite doesn’t work, you can always stop doing it.

2. Change Your Commute

Most of what you do in a day is so ingrained in you that you don’t actually think about it. For a lot of people the best example of this is their commute. They go into a trance-like state as soon as they get on the road and when they get work, they couldn’t answer a single question about the trip. In fact, I know a lot of people who have left the house on a Saturday morning with the driving somewhere fun and then ended up at their work feeling slightly embarrassed. (I’ll admit it, I’ve done this myself.) This one is easy. Even if it takes a little longer or is more inconvenient, change your path to work for a few days. Drive down fresh streets, stop at different stop lights. You’ll be amazed at all you notice and you might just discover a faster route.

3. Calling Things By The Wrong Name

This is an improvisation warmup invented, as far as I know, by Keith Johnstone. This exercise is loud and funny looking, so you’ll want some privacy. The best place to do this is in a room you’re familiar with, maybe an office or living room. Take a few minutes to just point at objects in the room and say the wrong name for them. If you point at a lamp, call it a giraffe. If you point at a book, call it a salad. If you start to get uncomfortable just keep going. Some people report that this actually makes them lightheaded. A usual side-effect is that everything seems brighter and your awareness of your surroundings is increased.

4. Write WIth the Wrong Hand

This is another method that seems stupid and simple, but can yield amazing results. If you are right-handed, write about your problem or area of exploration with your left hand. If you are left-handed, do it with your right. This makes your conscious mind have to think about the process of writing applies the opposite side of your brain to the problem.  This one is especially good if you buy into the whole right-brain/left-brain dichotomy.

5. Listen to a Radio Talk Show That Pisses You Off

Sometimes you just need to light the fire of passion underneath yourself. That can be hard when you aren’t passionate about what you’re working on. So, whether it’s Rush Limbaugh, Al Franken or the guys on Car Talk, find something that really makes you angry to listen to while you’re working . Cursing at the radio helps to physicalize the passion.