Real creativity is a social activity
Stumble It!Creative innovation needs social networks not just neural networks
We often have in our head the stereotype of the brilliant but solitary artist or writer who cannot, or will not, work with anyone else but is this the whole story on creativity and innovation?
Sure there are those who fit this mould but New Scientist’s special issue on creativity (29 October 2005) quotes Professor Vera John-Steiner author of Creative Collaboration that to be really creative:
“you need strong social networks and trusting relationships…and at least one other person in your life who doesn’t think you are completely nuts”
This brought my attention back to the article How is your personal ecosystem and the excellent example of how Jim Henson, creator of the Muppets, carefully cultivated his own personal ecosystem of relationships each of whom had different roles in the overall creative process.
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Bioteams Books Reviews
The 5 personal change barriers instant test
How to identify someones main worry about a coming change. I found this technique in a book a long time ago – "The Secret Language of Success: Using Body Language to Get What You Want" by Dr. David Lewis (1989). I confess I never got round to testing it properly but it sounded intriguing so I pass it on - "buyer beware".
Buy it now from:
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Related Social Networking Articles
Social networking: privacy issues
The Washington Post reports that schools in and around the US capital are warning pupils to be careful what they write or what pictures they post to teen-friendly social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook and Xanga because prospective employers or college admissions tutors could be reading. For more see Teens' Bold Blogs Alarm Area Schools.
Social software group dynamics: Clay Shirky
One of the papers I re-read lately is Clay Shirky's landmark speech at ETech in 2003 "A group is its own worst enemy" where he identifies 4 principles for social software/social network design. These principles are every bit as relevant today as they were 5 years ago.
Social networks underpin creativity
We often have in our head the stereotype of the brilliant but solitary artist or writer who cannot, or will not, work with anyone else but is this the whole story on creativity and innovation?
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