the shower and idea generation
When thinking about the idea sparking creativity I couldn’t help but think about where my own ideas are sparked – and quite often that’s in the shower. Why do our best ideas often come while we’re taking a shower …or walking the dog …or running to the bathroom between meetings? It seems so inconvenient.

The good news is that there is an actual reason for why this happens and in better understanding what’s underneath perhaps we can harness it and encourage it to happen during far more convenient (and needed) times throughout our day.

… the subtle suggestion of psychological distance seems to help people think outside the box. Jia, L. et al., “Lessons from a Faraway Land: The Effect of Spatial Distance on Creative Cognition,” Journal of Experimental Social Psychology (forthcoming) (Boston Globe).

The focal point of cognitive distance as it pertains to our daily creativity is that as we further ourselves physically from the problem the more able we are to tackle that problem in a creative, innovative, and out of the box kind of way.

We see this applied in actual work environments especially in more progressive ones like Google. TOMS is another great example. They are encouraged to take breaks during the day to play (to surf, bike, run…) which better enables them to tackle their work with greater innovation … not mention passion and energy.

innovation in everyday places
I think we often have a very specific idea of what creativity looks like – we either associate with it or not. This can be incredibly limiting. Creativity can be found in tackling anything and everything – it means approaching a problem in a different way. No matter the industry we all benefit from innovative solutions.

As noted there’s Google workplace culture, but that’s not realistic for everyone. So how do we apply this idea of cognitive separation in a way that works within more traditional spaces and cultures? How do we create opportunities to separate ourselves from the problem in order to be creative? How do you make it culturally acceptable for individuals and teams to creatively explore together?

mental space and time to play
In creating cognitive distance to encourage creativity and innovative problem solving the trick is to foster it in a way that works for us (our lives, work, work styles). This doesn’t have to just be physical separation it can also be mental separation. Carving out space to mentally separate from a problem or task it just as powerful as taking a physical break.

A great example of the effectiveness of mental separation came from my friend, Amy. She had worked at a more traditional foundation where they were given the opportunity to use 10% of their weekly working time to ‘take a break’ from the norm. It was time used to explore ideas, current events, other industries, and more. This fostered mental separation that was a chance to not only cultivate knowledge expansion, but also knowledge sharing.  The group shared what they had learned during the week and created the chance to participate in collective creativity. In taking a break to explore and share they were better able to apply what was learned to their own work in more innovative ways.

the creative limitations of failure

The other reason why cognitive distance makes sense and why our best ideas may happen in the shower is because it’s safe. No one judges your ideas when you’re in the shower. To be creative and innovative we have to be unafraid to fail. Fear of failure hinders creativity. We often struggle to not only separate ourselves from the challenge, but the potential failures attached to solving the problem in a different way. To be creative and innovative in our approach we not only need to separate, but also be willing to fail. Sometimes it’s the third or fourth idea that sticks.

So the next time you are up against a challenge or problem take a break. Take a walk, read The Atlantic, or something you’re simply curious about and be open to the solutions that come to mind no matter the outcome. If worse comes to worse, you can always wait for that spark of creativity to strike when you’re in the shower the next day.

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Wednesday, December 5, 6:30 pm
Berkman Center Conference Room
23 Everett St., 2nd Floor, Cambridge MA

It’s easy to find business and political leaders. But who are the Web’s leaders? Although the big online collaborative projects have nominal leaders, they play a very different role than do traditional CEO’s. The Web seems to be providing an alternative to the notion that business leaders are people imbued with special traits. In fact, Some of the traits and roles of traditional leadership are now becoming properties of the network itself.

Also, check out Q & A with David Weinberger on Web Leadership in preparation for Wednesday’s discussion.

The small community of El Boqueron is located at the edge of a cloud forest in the province of Olancho, Honduras. El Boqueron has a small elementary school for local children to attend, serving grades one through six. To attend grades seven through twelve however, or “colegio,” students must travel to a nearby town. In addition to the costs of transportation, students are required to pay for their own school books, uniforms as well other materials. While these costs are minimal, most families do not have the means to cover these expenses.

The cost for each student to attend one year of colegio is approximately $50.00 (US), and $300.00 (US) to graduate from the six-year track.

It has been over a year since she left Honduras and the community of El Boqueron behind and despite her chaotic schedule she has found time to start a pilot scholarship program that she is attempting to implement in El Boqueron.

The pilot will be supported solely by donations. Please consider showing your support. I will be returning to El Boqueron to celebrate Christmas, as well as to meet with the local teachers that I have been communicating with regarding the permanent establishment of EDUCARNOS.

Please fill out the EDUCARNOS Order Form if you’re interested in participating or would like to contact Heatherjean for more information. Be well.

The Nonprofit Open Source Initiative (NOSI) recently launched an updated version of its excellent guide, “Choosing and Using Free and Open Source Software: A Primer for Nonprofits.”

Note: You can download the primer for free here.

The Ethos Roundtable is “an informal group of people who are interested in 1) measuring and extending ethos, and 2) using technology for positive social change. We meet on the third Tuesday of the month from 4:30 to 6:00 pm, at the Charles Hotel in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.”

Avila (Saturday, December 1) prix fixe menu
Bambara Cambridge (throughout December)
dante (Saturday, December 1)
KO Prime (throughout December)
Myers+Chang (Friday, Nov. 30 & Sat. December 1)
No. 9 Park (Saturday, December 1)
The Fireplace (Saturday, December 1)
The Ruby Room (throughout December)
Silvertone (Saturday, December 1)

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.

Oh, and there’s still a call for participants. Also, there is a Grub Street sponsored NaNoWriMo get together this evening (my apologies for the late notice).

When: Tonight, Monday, November 19th at 6:30pm

A crew of Grubbies who are also NaNoWriMo-ers are all getting together at Remington’s bar, (124 Boylston Street), just a few doors down from Grub Street. They’ll be talking novels, sipping beverages, and connecting with one another. If you’ve been slaving away during National Novel Writing Month, now is the time to come talk to some other brave souls who’ve been doing the same (courtesy of the Grub Street Rag).

And it was in receiving my daily email that I learned of Pie in the Sky.

Not only are they committed to making tasty pies, but also “are committed to delivering culturally diverse and wholesome meals to 675 critically ill people in and around Greater Boston all year long.”

Pies are made from Boston area chefs, but you won’t know who made your pie until you open your box – an entertaining bonus. So why struggle over baking or dessert centric decisions when you can simply treat your family and friends to a pie on a mission? Oh, and be sure to order your Thanksgiving pies before Nov. 14th.

Check out the agenda (featuring Governor Deval Patrick) and schedule for more information or if you’re interested in registering, then kudos to you – and with a little rearranging (and luck) I’ll see you there!

PKU is a rare inherited metabolic disorder. PKU has an incidence of about 1:10,000 births in the US.

As noted, Laurie, a Pampered Chef consultant, who also has a teenage daughter with PKU, has organized this fundraiser.

If you want to participate, you can do so easily online. Please follow these easy steps:

· Go to Laurie’s website: www.pamperedchef.biz/lauried
· Select “Order Products”
· Enter “Maine PKU & AD” as the organization
· Place order – all orders must be placed by 11/5
· 20% of the proceeds go to PKU