Muses for the Modern Age
According to ancient mythology, there are Nine Muses that inspire all the forms of art and science. The Ancient Greeks believed that great ideas came down from the heavens. The muses brought these ideas...
Tagged: creativity
The Mystery Bottle
Many years ago, my dad and I were walking along a sandbar in the Mississippi River. The river was unusually low, and there was quite a bit of detritus washed upon the sandy shoals....
Analog Thinking in a Digital Age
I noticed it first in an office setting: people who insist in emailing files even when there’s a networked drive available. It’s a much better use of time and brainpower to leave the file...
27 Kinds of Cheez-Its
Cheez-It Crackers are delicious, but there are too many kinds. Go to your local supermarket, and you’ll find half an aisle of them. Just out of curiosity, I went to the Cheez-It website. It...
Subtle Foe of Creativity
The subtle foe of creativity Drowns us in banality. Endless meetings and pointless emails, Mindless procedures and operations. A delicate idea that barely exists Can be crushed with great ease. Bureaucracy kills all innovation,...
Improv at the Workplace
In improvisational comedy (“improv”), the cardinal rule is “yes and“. Each comedian on stage builds on the previous performer’s idea. Using this method, you can take any simple situation and turn it in to...
Copyright: A Generational Divide
During the SOPA/PIPA controversy, the nonpartisan nature of the debate really surprised me. First off, the laws in question had strong bipartisan support in both the Senate and the House. SOPA was introduced on...
My Resistance to Change
It all started when I got an iPhone. Buying yourself a new toy is not usually a moment for self-reflection, but in this case, it got me thinking. I couldn’t stop thinking about my...
Blind Spot
I have a blind spot in the center of my vision. So do you, though you’ve probably never noticed. Our brain fills in the information, like the Clone Stamp tool in Adobe Photoshop. This...
Steve Jobs: Time Traveler
I just finished the book Replay, by Ken Grimwood. It’s the story of a 43-year-old man who dies and awakes in his college dorm room. He then lives his life over again. Only this...
